GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) – Tree huggers and art aficionados linked together today to unveil a new West African sculpture at the Dreamer’s Garden in Gainesville.
There was food, live music, and other West African performers and speakers to honor African culture.
The artwork is called ‘Nommo’ — a wrought iron sculpture by local artist and blacksmith Yaw Owusu Shangofemi.
The art was inspired by the Gullah Geechee culture of West Africa.
Nommo are ancestral spirits, revered by the Dogon people of Mali for their life-giving powers, often depicted as amphibious or fish-like creatures.
Back in 2024, Shangofemi’s “Gate of the muses for Ray Charles” became the garden’s entry gate. The piece is decorated with musical notes and piano keys.
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