Exhibitions

Current Exhibitions

AAMP’s exhibitions promote our mission to interpret art, history and culture. They inspire, educate, promote dialogue, and bring together community.
Quicklinks +
> Current Exhibition
Upcoming Exhibits
Call For Artwork
Exhibit Proposals
​Past Exhibits
Photographic Memory: Archival Images by Maurice Sorrell
On View: January 18 - April 1, 2019

An exhibition of images by Maurice Sorrell (1914-1998), the first Black member of the White House Photographers Association. AAMP will showcase 45 black and white photo reproductions in the Jack T. Franklin Auditorium. Guest curated by Stephanie Renée.
AAMP on Paper: Selections from the Permanent Collection
On View: March 8 - May 12, 2019
​
This year’s collection exhibition features rarely seen works on paper, including drawings, photography, paintings and prints from 20th century masters such as Elizabeth Catlett, Paul Keane, Hughie Lee Smith, Dox Thrash and Hale Woodruff and more. These works provide an intimate look at the some of the gems of the Museum’s works on paper via portraiture, landscape and abstraction.
Baye Fall: Roots in Spirituality, Fashion and Resistance
Photography by Laylah Amatullah Barrayn
On View: March 8 - May 12, 2019
​
Barrayn’s photographic series visually engages the Baye Fall, a sub-group of Senegal’s notable Sufi Muslim Community, the Mourides. The Baye Fall possess a unique aesthetic that includes “locked” hair, patchwork garments, symphonic chanting and artisanal leather talismans and prayer beads. Through witnessing the lives of the Baye Fall, and the Senegalese cities in which they dwell, this series shows how pre and post-colonial politics have influenced their spiritual practice. Baye Fall first shown at Contemporary Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) in Brooklyn NY.
The Sacred Star of Isis and Other Stories
Photography by Adama Delphine Fawundu
On View: March 8 - May 12, 2019

As the only child in her immediate family born in America, Fawundu’s mixed media photographic works explore the tension between her family’s traditional Mende beliefs (Sierra Leone) and Westernized values. By incorporating the artist’s ancestral gifts of colorful handmade batik fabrics and layering these complex and distorted histories, her work uncovers personal and universal cultural patterns that are present within herself and the African Diaspora.

Audacious Freedom:
African Americans in Philadelphia 1776-1876
On Permanent Display

Audacious Freedom: African Americans in Philadelphia 1776 - 1876, presented by PECO recounts the stories of and contributions made by people of African descent in Philadelphia during the tumultuous years following the founding of our nation. Through this exhibit visitors will learn who the people were, how they lived and worked, and their unheralded impact on our nation.
Among the highlights of the exhibition are:

  • A narrated, interactive timeline that spans 100 years of history. The timeline highlights a sequence of images and documents, all drawn from the historical record, that illuminate and explore topics of relevance including entrepreneurship, environment, education, religion, and family traditions.
  • Ten full-size video projections of trailblazers from 18th Century Philadelphia including such heroes as Octavius Catto, Richard Allen and Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. The individual trailblazers answer questions about their lives during the time period. (left photos)
  • Children ages 3 through 8 will enjoy the Children’s Corner, a hands-on installment where they can explore the daily lives of children in Philadelphia during the time period.
Audacious Freedom: African Americans in Philadelphia 1776-1876 and special exhibitions at The African American Museum in Philadelphia are made possible due to the generous support of our presenting sponsor PECO.
Museum Hours

​Wednesday thru Saturday
10 AM - 5 PM
​
Sunday
12 Noon - 5 PM
​
Open Dr. Martin Luther King Day
with related programs
General Admission

​Adults                         $14
Youth (4-12 yrs.)       $10
Students (w/ I.D.)      $10
Senior Citizens          $10
AAMP Members        FREE
Access / EBT *            $2
Group Rates              CALL
​(215) 574-0380 ext. 225

* Present your Pennsylvania ACCESS/EBT card and receive general admission for up to four adults at $2 each.  Learn more...
Visit AAMP Today

​701 Arch Street Philadelphia, PA 19106
Phone: (215) 574-0380   |   (Directions)*

​The Museum is located in the City's Historic District at the corner of 7th & Arch Streets, one block from Independence National Historic Park and a short walk from the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
​
The museum offers barrier-free access for the physically disabled.
​
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© The African American Museum in Philadelphia

Exhibitions

Current Exhibitions

AAMP’s exhibitions promote our mission to interpret art, history and culture. They inspire, educate, promote dialogue, and bring together community.
Quicklinks +
> Current Exhibition
Upcoming Exhibits
Call For Artwork
Exhibit Proposals
​Past Exhibits
Photographic Memory: Archival Images by Maurice Sorrell
On View: January 18 - April 1, 2019

An exhibition of images by Maurice Sorrell (1914-1998), the first Black member of the White House Photographers Association. AAMP will showcase 45 black and white photo reproductions in the Jack T. Franklin Auditorium. Guest curated by Stephanie Renée.
AAMP on Paper: Selections from the Permanent Collection
On View: March 8 - May 12, 2019
​
This year’s collection exhibition features rarely seen works on paper, including drawings, photography, paintings and prints from 20th century masters such as Elizabeth Catlett, Paul Keane, Hughie Lee Smith, Dox Thrash and Hale Woodruff and more. These works provide an intimate look at the some of the gems of the Museum’s works on paper via portraiture, landscape and abstraction.
Baye Fall: Roots in Spirituality, Fashion and Resistance
Photography by Laylah Amatullah Barrayn
On View: March 8 - May 12, 2019
​
Barrayn’s photographic series visually engages the Baye Fall, a sub-group of Senegal’s notable Sufi Muslim Community, the Mourides. The Baye Fall possess a unique aesthetic that includes “locked” hair, patchwork garments, symphonic chanting and artisanal leather talismans and prayer beads. Through witnessing the lives of the Baye Fall, and the Senegalese cities in which they dwell, this series shows how pre and post-colonial politics have influenced their spiritual practice. Baye Fall first shown at Contemporary Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) in Brooklyn NY.
The Sacred Star of Isis and Other Stories
Photography by Adama Delphine Fawundu
On View: March 8 - May 12, 2019

As the only child in her immediate family born in America, Fawundu’s mixed media photographic works explore the tension between her family’s traditional Mende beliefs (Sierra Leone) and Westernized values. By incorporating the artist’s ancestral gifts of colorful handmade batik fabrics and layering these complex and distorted histories, her work uncovers personal and universal cultural patterns that are present within herself and the African Diaspora.

Audacious Freedom:
African Americans in Philadelphia 1776-1876
On Permanent Display

Audacious Freedom: African Americans in Philadelphia 1776 - 1876, presented by PECO recounts the stories of and contributions made by people of African descent in Philadelphia during the tumultuous years following the founding of our nation. Through this exhibit visitors will learn who the people were, how they lived and worked, and their unheralded impact on our nation.
Among the highlights of the exhibition are:

  • A narrated, interactive timeline that spans 100 years of history. The timeline highlights a sequence of images and documents, all drawn from the historical record, that illuminate and explore topics of relevance including entrepreneurship, environment, education, religion, and family traditions.
  • Ten full-size video projections of trailblazers from 18th Century Philadelphia including such heroes as Octavius Catto, Richard Allen and Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. The individual trailblazers answer questions about their lives during the time period. (left photos)
  • Children ages 3 through 8 will enjoy the Children’s Corner, a hands-on installment where they can explore the daily lives of children in Philadelphia during the time period.
Audacious Freedom: African Americans in Philadelphia 1776-1876 and special exhibitions at The African American Museum in Philadelphia are made possible due to the generous support of our presenting sponsor PECO.