Students Get a History Lesson by Curating African Textiles
Cloth becomes a lens for history in “Ancient to the Future: African Cloths and Textiles,” a window exhibit that runs until January 6 at 618 S. Michigan Avenue. Students in a Black Arts and Artistry class, taught by Associate Professor Robert Hanserd, curated the exhibit in partnership with fashion house Maison de Haj with an assist from Columbia’s School of Fashion. It displays African culture, tradition, and features video as well as a QR codes that link to a website entirely built by students.
A Fashion Partner
Designer Elhadj “Haj” Mademba Gueye, founder of Maison de Haj, brought both lineage and lived experience to the collaboration. Born in Senegal, Haj is a third-generation couturier whose work is rooted in generations of African craftsmanship and global training. Since partnering with Columbia, he has served as a resource for students as a guest lecturer on fashion, African history, and culture, while also supporting the School of Fashion through donated mannequins, sewing machines, and materials.
His engagement extends beyond the classroom, offering internships, independent study opportunities, and professional clothing for students preparing for interviews and career milestones.
In the exhibit, his contemporary designs connect historic textiles to modern expression, showing how African cloth continues to carry culture and meaning forward.
For Animation major Nevaeh Wade, the project reshaped how she understands clothing and culture.
“Breaking down the fashion was a game changer,” Wade says. “It’s just like, wow, I didn’t know what was behind the fashions my family wore to church.”
From Archives to the Michigan Avenue Window Display
The exhibition traces the evolution of African textiles from traditional forms to contemporary fashion, pairing historic cloths from Columbia’s School of Fashon’s special collections with modern designs by Maison de Haj. In the window, visitors encounter traditional garments alongside tailored suits, boutique pieces, and accessories. Mud cloth and Adinkra symbols appear in multiple forms, illustrating how materials and meanings shift across time while remaining rooted in African history.
Video installations, created by students, play throughout the display, offering context and interviews with the designer, while QR codes invite visitors to take a deeper dive via a companion website.
Building a Digital Exhibit
Graphic Design major Tyshea Gooden worked on the web team, translating the physical installation into an expanded digital experience.
“For the website, we compiled all of the information we were going to have on the window into more detail,” Gooden says. “We provided more background on Haj, the featured designer, and the symbols and the fabrics in the display.”
Students also designed the exhibit’s promotional materials. Wade helped create the poster through multiple iterations focused on highlighting the textiles themselves.
“It was really difficult, but it was really fun,” Wade says.
Learning History Through Fashion
Students from a wide range of majors say the project deepened their understanding of history by examining clothing as a cultural record.
“The experience was very eye-opening, particularly in understanding the origins of traditions I grew up with,” says Keeara Davis-Peterson, a Creative Writing major.
Film and TV major Denzel Howard, who created video collages and helped interview Haj for the exhibit, had a similar experience in the class.
“There’s been a lot of things that I’ve learned to think in a new way when it comes to history,” Howard says. “This is something that I would have never thought about before taking this class.”
A Hands-On Approach to Black Arts and Archives
For Hanserd, the project reflects the core goals of the course.
“The connection between aesthetics and art and history and culture is central to helping students think critically about creativity and its roots,” he says. “I hope projects like this bring African history into the vanguard in terms of its cultural impact.”
“Ancient to the Future: African Cloths and Textiles” remains on view through Jan. 6, with the student-built website extending the exhibit beyond the window and inviting visitors to explore the stories behind the cloth.