In 1988 the Fowler Museum lent a group of hats to the exhibition Dressing the Head: More than a Matter of Taste at the Gallery of Art, University of Missouri, Kansas City. The guest curator was Mary Jo Arnoldi from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. The exhibition explored the cultural importance of the head among many African groups through hats and headwear—objects that were both recognizable and accessible to gallery visitors, many of whom had little or no previous interaction with African arts. In February 1994 Doran called Mary Jo in Washington to ask whether she would consider reprising Dressing the Head at the Fowler. Doran explained that the Fowler had a gap in its schedule because objects for its planned exhibition on Haitian Vodou were embargoed in Port-au-Prince. Always delighted to work on any project with Doran, Mary Jo immediately agreed. Never one to let grass grow...

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