The Philadelphia Museum of Art has announced the upcoming arrival of a brand new collection, “Head to Toe: African and Asian Wearables.” This inaugural presentation of the Ira and Myrna Brind Collection features a variety of wearables, including jewelry, headdresses and textiles. In total, the collection consists of over 50 objects that will be on display from May 9 of this year through Jan. 19, 2026.
The collection, curated by the Brind Center’s inaugural director and curator, Imani Roach, and the Hannah L. and J. Welles Curator of Chinese Art, Hiromi Kinoshita, will examine how various forms of exchange, such as trade, have influenced the meaning of specific materials for the cultures they represent and how objects collected abroad can become a part of their new local culture.
Despite their great cultural importance and artistic significance, personal adornments such as those in this collection are often overlooked in African art presentations and rarely receive the recognition they deserve. This collection will showcase those wearables, bringing them to the foreground and giving special attention to the materials’ aesthetic, spiritual, historical and commercial features.
Nearby will be a selection featuring headdresses and ornaments from Asia spanning the late-19th to mid-20th centuries. The ensemble of wearables puts a spotlight on the artistic legacy of ethnic minority peoples from China, Southeast Asia and Central Asia, whose work, in a similar fashion to the pieces from Africa, has often been overlooked within art museums. Among the items featured will be a wedding diadem from Turkmenistan, fashioned from gilded silver and inset with carnelian, and a butterfly-shaped bridal headdress from the Yao community in China. Each piece showcases the incredible skill behind these objects that have been crafted with lacquered cotton, bamboo and vibrant silk yarn.
“Having my collection on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art is, for me, a dream come true. It is the result of collecting for over 45 years,” said PMA Board Trustee Ira Brind. “This exhibit shares important and historic examples of the artistic, cultural, and spiritual lives of communities across Africa and Asia. It helps bring insights into the world many have come from. In creating the Brind Center, it was always my goal to open possibilities for cross-curricular dialogue, exploration and collaboration, but especially to bring these amazing works to the people of Philadelphia. I hope this first exhibition starts a conversation that resonates throughout the city and beyond.”
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