Book Club: Chronicles of Ori: An African Epic by Harmonia Rosales
Thu, February 5th at 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Free
NOMA’s book club meets monthly to discuss fiction and non-fiction books related to art in the museum’s collection and exhibitions.
This month’s book club selection is Chronicles of Ori: An African Epic, Rosales’ debut book in which she retells the African myths she has long treasured, crafting an enthralling epic that spans the birth of the universe to the modern world of colonialism and resistance.
About NOMA’s Book Club
NOMA’s book club is an informal group open to anyone on a month-to-month basis. You do not have to attend every meeting or read every book to participate. In addition to monthly book discussions, the book club meets periodically for curatorial programs related to the book selections.
Books are selected in advance and planned according to the museum’s exhibition schedule. Participants are expected to procure their own copy of the titles. Selections are also available at the NOMA Museum Shop, where museum members receive a 10% discount.
Meetings are held in person or via Zoom. All meetings begin at 12 pm. For more information or questions, please email programs@noma.org.
About the Book
Chronicles of Ori: An African Epic
Chronicles of Ori: An African Epic is the debut book by celebrated American artist Harmonia Rosales, retelling the West African myths of her childhood in an enthralling new format. While the original stories of the Orishas were passed down through traditional oral storytelling, Chronicles of Ori Rosales presents a linear narrative framework, weaving age-old and her own ancestral knowledge to shape a sweeping and singular literary experience. This contemporary retelling of an ancient mythology expands the universe of Yoruba spirituality. It reflects humanity’s collective journey and ongoing struggles while revealing profound connections not only to other African folktales but to religious narratives from far corners of the world.
Chronicles of Ori is a remarkable work, its visual beauty and literary elegance at once familiar and radical. Rosales’s twenty-seven luminous paintings enhance each story, simultaneously honoring the beautiful physicality of the human form while evoking the transcendent spiritual world.
-description provided by the author
About Harmonia Rosales
Harmonia Rosales, Artist and Author of “Chronicles of Ori: An African Epic”
Harmonia Rosales is an American artist from Chicago whose work depicts and honors African myths and the diaspora. Her artwork is held by numerous public and private collections across the United States. She lives in Los Angeles, California.