Sana Musasama
(b. 1957)1983–84 Artist in ResidenceSana Musasama’s ceramic and mixed-media works are deeply influenced by her experiences traveling globally. On her travels, she immersed herself in a range of international indigenous and traditional approaches to clay and other materials.
Biography
Musasama’s mother sent the young artist to PS.90, where she became the only Black child at the school. The artist attended City College of New York, receiving a BA in ceramics and education in 1973; she received her MFA from Alfred State College of Ceramics in 1988. At City College, she was part of the SEEK (Search for Education, Elevation, and Knowledge) Program and worked at the Harlem Hospital, doing clerical work for four years.
In between undergraduate and graduate school, she spent twelve years traveling and self-teaching. She traveled for many years, including to Sierra Leone, China, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Mexico, and in various locations in South America and the United States. She took workshops wherever she visited, she took workshops, learning techniques and approaches to clay as a material. She also took classes from Norman Lewis at the Arts Students League in New York City and was hired by Betty Blayton-Taylor to teach ceramics. Musasama is also known for her active involvement in community organizing. She works with Cambodia’s Together1Heart, an organization focused on the rehabilitation of young women who were trapped in the commercial sex industry. She also runs the textile-making Apron Project, which employs young women who were previously trafficked into sex work. The women who graduate from the program learn various life skills, such as sewing and cooking.
The artist has been featured in multiple group shows at the Studio Museum, including From the Studio: Former Artists-in-Residence (1984); Curator’s Choice: Selections from the Permanent Collection (1985); From the Studio: Then and Now (1989); Selected Works from the Permanent Collection: 30 Years of AIR Residents; and Passages: Contemporary Art in Transition (2000). Her work was first acquired by the Studio Museum in 1987.
Sana Musasama
(b. 1957)1983–84 Artist in ResidenceSana Musasama’s ceramic and mixed-media works are deeply influenced by her experiences traveling globally. On her travels, she immersed herself in a range of international indigenous and traditional approaches to clay and other materials.
Orange Interior, 1983
Biography
Musasama’s mother sent the young artist to PS.90, where she became the only Black child at the school. The artist attended City College of New York, receiving a BA in ceramics and education in 1973; she received her MFA from Alfred State College of Ceramics in 1988. At City College, she was part of the SEEK (Search for Education, Elevation, and Knowledge) Program and worked at the Harlem Hospital, doing clerical work for four years.
In between undergraduate and graduate school, she spent twelve years traveling and self-teaching. She traveled for many years, including to Sierra Leone, China, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Mexico, and in various locations in South America and the United States. She took workshops wherever she visited, she took workshops, learning techniques and approaches to clay as a material. She also took classes from Norman Lewis at the Arts Students League in New York City and was hired by Betty Blayton-Taylor to teach ceramics. Musasama is also known for her active involvement in community organizing. She works with Cambodia’s Together1Heart, an organization focused on the rehabilitation of young women who were trapped in the commercial sex industry. She also runs the textile-making Apron Project, which employs young women who were previously trafficked into sex work. The women who graduate from the program learn various life skills, such as sewing and cooking.
The artist has been featured in multiple group shows at the Studio Museum, including From the Studio: Former Artists-in-Residence (1984); Curator’s Choice: Selections from the Permanent Collection (1985); From the Studio: Then and Now (1989); Selected Works from the Permanent Collection: 30 Years of AIR Residents; and Passages: Contemporary Art in Transition (2000). Her work was first acquired by the Studio Museum in 1987.