The Tribal Arts Society is dedicated to exploring the arts and archaeology of lesser known cultures of Africa, the Americas, Asia, and the South Pacific. It is an all volunteer group and has served the University of Miami's Lowe Art Museum and south Florida for over fifteen years.

Monthly lectures by visiting scholars, curators, and explorers who are outstanding in their fields, augmented by special events and workshops, offer opportunities to extend one's knowledge and meet others with similar interests. Tribal Arts Society programs often relate directly to the collections or special exhibitions of the Lowe Museum, providing the South Florida community insight into the diversity and cultural content of tribal arts on view in the Museum.

The Tribal Arts Society Fall 2005 lectures schedule can be found in the Lowe Museum's Calendar of Events. To provide a broader picture of the interests of the group, a selected list of lectures presented in the last five years is also included below. For more information or to join the Tribal Arts Society, please call Freda Tschumy at 305-444-2825 or Dot Downs at 305-667-3202.

Selected Tribal Arts Society Lectures: 2000-2005

Feb. 23, 2005 Dr. Eric Kjellgren: Joseph I. Falk Lecture, “ Adorning the World: Art of the Marquesas.” Associate Curator for Oceanic Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC

Jan. 26, 2005 Dr. David Graf: “Rediscovering Petra: the Lost Cities of the Nabataeans.” Prof. Dept of Religious Studies, Univ. of Miami, Coral Gables, FL

Nov. 17, 2004 Dr. Bruce Bernstein: “The New National Museum of the American Indian, National Mall, Washington, DC.” Assis. Dir. of Cultural Resources, NMAI, Smithsonian Institution

Oct. 20, 2004 Dr. Francisco Estrada-Belli: “New Discoveries at Cival, Guatemala: Dawn of the Maya.” Assist. Prof. of Mesoamerican Archaeology, Vanderbilt Univ.

Sept. 22, 2004 Dr. Robin Poyner: “Art of the Owo Yoruba.” Assist. Chair, Prof. of Art History, University of Florida, Gainesville

Mar. 25, 2004 Joe Falk: “Art of the Asmat People of Southwest New Guinea: Woodcarvings and Fiber costumes of the Jipae Festival.” Collector, explorer

Feb. 19, 2004 Dr. Katherine Hacker: “Indian Tribal Bronze Casting.” Univ. of British Columbia

Jan. 29, 2004 Dr. Joan Aruz: “First Cities: the Third Millenium BC from the Mediterranean to the Indus.” Curator, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC

Nov. 29, 2003 Pat Courtney Gold: “A Native American Reflection on the Lewis and Clark Expedition.” Wasco basketmaker, Educator, Historian, Maryhill Museum

Oct. 23, 2003 Dr. Dale Olsen: “Music of El Dorado: Pre-Columbian Music of Peru.” Prof. of Ethnomusicology and Dir. of Center for Music of the Americas, FL State Univ.

Feb. 27, 2003 Dr. John Carlson: “Merchants, Scribes, and Cuanderos: Secrets of Ancient Maya Flasks and Miniature Vessels.” Director, Center for Archeoastronomy, Prof. Univ. of Maryland

Jan. 30, 2003 Dr. Hope McLean: “The Magical World of Huichol Art.” Author

Nov. 14, 2002 Ruth Rosenwasser: “The Adi Tribes of Arunachal Pradesh, India: Craft Production and Tribal Artifacts.” Collector and textile expert

Mar. 21, 2002 “Form and Meaning in Pre-Columbian Art: A Curator’s View.” Curator, Jay I. Kislak Collection, Miami Lakes

Feb. 7, 2002 Dr. James Farmer: “Pueblo Bonito: Center of the Chaco World.” Assoc. Prof. of Art History, Virginia Commonwealth Univ.

Apr. 12, 2001 Dr. Michael Carlebach: “Shooting Indian: the Influence of 19th Century Photography on the Current Perceptions of Native Americans.” Prof., Univ. of Miami

Feb. 22, 2001 Dr. Mari Lyn Salvador: “Art of the Kuna: Molas of Panama.” Chief Curator, Maxwell Museum of Anthropology and Assoc. Prof. of Anthropology, Univ. of New Mexico

Oct. 26, 2000 Dr. Michael Kan: “African Art: a Curator’s Perspective.” Exec. Assist. Dir. and Curator, Detroit Institute of Art, Detroit, MI

Apr. 27, 2000 Dr. Carlos Rincon Mautner: “Xunguiga: the Unknown Children of Quetzalcoatl in the Mixteca Alta of Oaxaca, Mexico.” Prof. of Anthropology, FIU, Miami

Jan. 27, 2000 Preston Singletary: “Native and European Traditions Meet in Tlingit Glass Art.” Tlingit glass artist, Seattle, WA