“Heroes: Principles of African Greatness”

Even in an exhibit of works depicting great leaders, Ousmane Sow’s moving sculpture “Toussaint Louverture et la Vieille Esclave” (above) stands out. The work depicts Louverture, the father of the Haitian Revolution, in grand scale—seven feet three inches, to be exact—offering his hand to an elderly enslaved woman. The piece is just one of the items in the museum’s permanent collection included in a new installation that shares the stories of heroes of the African diaspora and the artists who have immortalized them.