NCCU Museum Houses State's Largest Collection of African-American Art

Museum workers carefully unpack paintings, quilts and sculptures that will be displayed at North Carolina Central's Art Museum.

The new exhibit features the work of Clementine Hunter, a self-taught artist who started painting when she was in her 60s. Today, Hunter is considered one of the country's premiere African-American artists.

"She is today considered a primitive-slash-outsider, but has climbed, or should I say ascended, in recent years to probably one of the top ten spots in the country," says the museum's Kenneth Rodgers.

The museum boasts the largest collection of African-American art in North Carolina. Rodgers hopes visitors will make the trip to Durham during the CIAA tournament.

"They'll be introduced to a world that perhaps some knew about, certainly others will be learning a bit more about as well," he says.

Janella Sellars is an art student at Central. Until this week, she had only studied Clementine Hunter in class. She says it is worth the trip to see Hunter's work up close.

"I think it's definitely a learning experience. Everyone one should enjoy it. She was a very talented woman who worked with the limited resources she had, and she produced some beautiful works," Sellars says.