Jan-Lodewijk joined Mia in 2008 as its first curator of African art. A cultural anthropologist by training, he brings to his curatorial practice a commitment to honor the cultural context of objects and to understand the values of the people behind the art. Appreciating different forms of knowledge and actively pursuing a multiplicity of voices, he strives to decolonize the western encyclopedic art museum.
Since his arrival he has acquired art from Somalia, Ethiopia, and Islamic West Africa, countries from which the Twin Cities has large communities. He seeks to build sustained relationships with community members to develop exhibitions that are resonant for all stakeholders. Select shows include, “I Am Somali: Three Visual Artists from the Twin Cities” (2017, in collaboration with Ahmed Yusuf who translated the labels and panels in Somali), “The Enduring Soul” (2019, co-curated with the Cultural Wellness Center, Minneapolis, and Robert Cozzolino in Mia’s Arts of the Americas Department), and “Khatt Islāmi: Sacred Scripts from Islamic Africa” (2020, co-curated with Amal Mohammed from the Somali Museum of Minnesota). In 2013, he led the innovative reinstallation of the African galleries, making artworks physically, emotionally, and intellectually more accessible through open displays and interactive technology. In 2021, working with a council of Muslim advisors and colleagues at the museum, Jan-Lodewijk oversaw the creation of a new gallery dedicated to art from Islamic Africa. His future projects focus on religious and political art from the Black Atlantic, and Afrofuturism.