107
FIG. 5 (above left): Sword
ornament in the form of a
lion.
Asante; Ghana.
Gold, textile. L: 17.8 cm.
Diana and J. Thomas Lewis Collection.
FIG. 6 (above): Shelves in
Tom Lewis’ home study, New
Orleans.
collections in the United States, as showcased
in the 2011 exhibition and catalog Ancestors
of Congo Square. And, as of last summer, it
has Ndubuisi Ezeluomba as its new Françoise
Billion Richardson–endowed curator for
African art.
Tom Lewis is one of the most significant
local collectors, and he wrote the text for
the 2001 Tulane publication and exhibition
Materials of Africa: African Art in New
Orleans Collections. A man of dry wit and
reserved words, for forty years he has taken
a deeply analytical and measured approach to
his collecting, as only an attorney could. We
sat down in his distinctive octagonal study,
which is lined with books and artworks,
poured some very fine Ledaig from the Isle of
Mull, and discussed his interests.
Charles Davis: Geographically, the Southern
U.S. ranks consistently behind many other
regions in terms of art collecting and the true
connoisseurship of museum-quality objects.
Why and how are you not a product of that
geography?
Tom Lewis: I am part of this Southern
geography but concede that my collecting
habits are not typical. New Orleans has two
significant assets: an outstanding collection
at the New Orleans Museum of Art and
one of the country’s outstanding dealers.
These, together with exposure to dealers
and museums in both the United States and
Europe, have given me a general background
that may be unusual for collectors in this
territory. I have also served on boards of
NOMA and the National Museum of African
FIG. 7 (left):
Figure with rifle.
Teke; DR Congo.
Wood, commercial buttons, fabric,
ritual materials. H: 22.9 cm.
Diana and J. Thomas Lewis Collection.
FIG. 8 (right): Bowl figure
(kneeling female with
cockerel), attributed to
Olowe of Ise. Yoruba;
Nigeria.
Wood, pigments. H: 41.9 cm.
Diana and J. Thomas Lewis Collection.