Research specialties: African art history; ‘traditions of modernity’ in 19th/20th century African arts and visual culture; arts of Western and Central Africa; African architecture; history of collecting; contemporary art and artists; African avant-gardes.
Ph.D.
in Art History,
Columbia University,
Department of Art History & Archaeology,
Traditions of Modernity in an African City: Continuity and Change in the Architecture of Kumasi 2009 - 2017
M.Phil.
in Art History,
Columbia University,
Department of Art History & Archaeology 2007 - 2009
M.A.
in Art History,
Columbia University,
Department of Art History & Archaeology 2006 - 2007
B.S.
in Foreign Service,
Georgetown University,
School of Foreign Service 1998 - 2002
Professional Biography
Kevin D. Dumouchelle joined the National Museum of African Art in October 2016. He was the lead curator for Visionary: Viewpoints on Africa’s Arts, the museum’s recent, award-winning permanent galleries, which present the full range of time, place, and media represented in the National Museum’s collection. He has served as the NMAfA in-house curator for World on the Horizon: Swahili Arts Across the Indian Ocean and Good as Gold: Fashioning Senegalese Women.
Previously, Dumouchelle served a decade at the Brooklyn Museum as the curator in charge of the arts of both Africa and the Pacific Islands. At Brooklyn, he conceived two award-winning re-installations of the African collection: African Innovations (2011) and Double Take: African Innovations (2014). He has written books and articles on a range of topics and curated exhibitions on both contemporary and historical African art, including Power Incarnate: Allan Stone’s Collection of Sculpture from the Congo (2011) at the Bruce Museum and the Brooklyn Museum presentations of Gravity and Grace: Monumental Works by El Anatsui (2013) and Disguise: Masks and Global African Art (2016).
Dumouchelle earned a Ph.D, M.Phil., and M.A. in Art History and Archaeology from Columbia University. His doctoral research in Ghana examined architectural modernity in Asante. He is also the recipient of a first-class master’s degree in history from Oxford University and a B.S. in Foreign Service from Georgetown University.
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2017. "Visionary: Viewpoints on Africa's Arts." Tribal Arts 21-4 (85):86-95.
2017
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2013. "Curating African Art History." African Arts 46 (3):7-8.
2013
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2012. "In Memoriam: William Siegmann (1943-2011)." African Arts 45 (3):
2012
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2011. "African Art in Detail." African Arts 44 (2):93-94.
2011
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2011. "African Innovations." Tribal Arts 15-4 (61):92-101.
2011
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2010. "Traditions of Modernity: Currents in Architectural Expression in Kumasi." Ghana Studies 12-13:155-188.
2010
book
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2015. African Art at the Barnes Foundation, edited by Clarke, Christa and Dolkart, Judith. Barnes Foundation.
2015
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2014. Brooklyn Museum Handbook, edited by Stayton, Kevin. Brooklyn Museum.
2014
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2012. Collecting for the Future: a Decade of Collection Highlights, edited by Stayton, Kevin. Brooklyn Museum.
2012
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2011. Power incarnate: Allan Stone's collection of sculpture from the Congo. Bruce Museum.
2011
chapter
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2020. "Thinking With Masks: Surveying the Literature on Bifwebe." in Kifwebe: A Century of Songye and Luba Masks, edited by Neyt, François., 302-319. 5 Continents Editions.
2020
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2014. "Bill Siegmann: a Connoisseur's Curator." in Visions from the forest: the art of Liberia and Sierra Leone, edited by Grootaers, Jan-Lodewijk and Bortolot, Alexander., Minneapolis Institute of Arts.
2014
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2009. "Beyond the Body Boundary: Queer[y]ing the Photographs of Rotimi Fani-Kayode and Samuel Fosso." in Expressions of the body: representations in African text and image, edited by Baker, Charlotte., 63-93. Peter Lang.
2009
Dumouchelle, Kevin. 2009. "[Various entries]." in [Exhibit catalog:] Man Ray, African Art, and the Modernist Lens, edited by Grossman, Wendy, Bari, Martha Ann, and Bonnell, Letty., 154-155. University of Minnesota Press.
2009
review
Dumouchelle, Kevin D. 2012. [Book review] "African Goldweights: Miniature Sculptures from Ghana 1400-1900." African Arts. 92-93.
2012