Opening Hours
Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Activity: Your Mojo Secrets
Make your own work of art from The Betye Saar Art Box inspired by Betye Saar’s work, Nine Mojo Secrets. Disponible en español.
Recommended for ages 8 and up.
About This Artwork
In Nine Mojo Secrets (1971), the artist Betye Saar used found objects to explore ancestral veneration, rituals, and symbolism from various traditional spiritual practices. Saar was inspired specifically by African art, utilizing various iconographic images and objects that represent power, healing, and magic. She combined personal symbols such as the lion that represents the artist’s astrological sign (Leo) with references to Africa such as a magazine photograph of a traditional religious ceremony, as well as images with broad cultural significance like the all-seeing eye, the moon, and stars.
Click on the expand icon below to enlarge the image of Nine Mojo Secrets.
Betye Saar, Nine Mojo Secrets, 1971. Mixed media assemblage, 49.75” x 23.5” x 1.75” California African American Museum. Purchased by Foundation from Olga Adderly in 1989.
How might creating your own version of Nine Mojo Secrets help you learn more about yourself and your family lineage?
Activity
Download or Print Activity PDF
For this project, you will create an assemblage, which is a form of art made of everyday found objects, arranged in ways that suggest new meanings.
Supplies
- Crayons
- Scissors
- Glue stick
- Colored pencils
- Found objects (things you like at home)
