Douriean Fletcher: Jewelry of the Afrofuture opens April 18 at the Walters Art Museum

Visitors will see jewelry and costumes from Marvel Studios’ Black Panther films, pieces by Alexander Calder and Art Smith, and works by Fletcher made exclusively for display at the Walters

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Baltimore, MD (February 25, 2026)–On April 18, the Walters Art Museum opens Douriean Fletcher: Jewelry of the Afrofuture, a major museum show dedicated to this self-taught jewelry artist, whose work spans costume, film, and independent design. Douriean Fletcher explores the artist’s jewelry as a powerful narrative tool in art, Black identity, and visual storytelling through over 100 works. The exhibition traverses the artist’s life and career from her formative years to the present day and includes pieces from Marvel Studios’ Black Panther films, selections from museum collections including the Walters that inspired Fletcher, and original works made for display at the Walters. Douriean Fletcher: Jewelry of the Afrofuture was organized by the Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) in New York City and has been modified for its presentation at the Walters.

Douriean Fletcher is on view through August 9, 2026, and will be accompanied by a robust slate of programming. An opening day celebration will be held on Saturday, April 18, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and features an auditorium talk with the artist, art workshops, and performances. The Walters will also present tours, performances, artmaking, film screenings, and more programs and events for community members of all ages throughout the show’s run.

“Douriean’s career—from her contributions to film and television costume to her personal artistic practice—has been defined by her dedication to craftsmanship, a deep understanding of history and culture, and a respect for the customs and traditions of peoples around the world. We are thrilled to present the work of this prolific self-taught artist, which is right at home here alongside the Walters’ own global collections of jewelry including extraordinary works from ancient Egypt, Indigenous Latin America, and Ethiopia,” said Kate Burgin, Andrea B. and John H. Laporte Director and CEO. “Whether you have never been to the Walters before or you are a frequent visitor, we hope that Douriean’s artistry inspires you to join us for a tour, artist talk, family day, or repeat visits through the exhibition.”

Exhibition Overview

Fletcher’s practice exemplifies the ethos of Afrofuturism, a cultural movement that reclaims Black identity and history while envisioning egalitarian futures. The exhibition consists of three sections: Fletcher’s formative years, her breakout film and television work, and her current artistic explorations. Visitors will encounter the jewelry Fletcher made for Queen Ramonda and the Dora Milaje from Marvel Studios’ Black Panther (2018) and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022). These pieces, displayed with a selection of the films’ costumes by Academy Award-winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter, offer a window into how adornment defines character, advances world-building, and represents Black sovereignty on screen. Fletcher’s jewelry for television miniseries Roots (2016) and motion picture Coming 2 America (2021) are also featured.

“When I started teaching jewelry making classes in New Orleans, one of the things that I recall researching early on is that jewelry was one of the first ways that humans used objects to differentiate themselves from each other, based on their region or status,” said Fletcher. “I don’t know why but I was so attracted to that; understanding that bone and shell and beads were the first ways that people identified who they were, and we as people have continued to do that throughout history. We utilize the things around us and put them together to tell people who we are.”

Visitors will also discover the inspiration behind Fletcher’s designs, from a Maasai neckpiece to the structural experiments of Alexander Calder and the modern designs of Art Smith. Unique to the Walters presentation of the exhibition, Fletcher crafted never-before-exhibited works that will make their debut in Baltimore. Process sketches, prototypes, and behind-the-scenes imagery of Fletcher at work and her recent collection for New York City-based luxury department store Bergdorf Goodman will also be on view. The exhibition includes a video interview where the artist shares her self-taught beginnings, her current practice, and the significance of her work in her own words.

Douriean and the Walters Art Museum

Visitors to the show will also encounter fourteen objects spanning centuries and cultures from the Walters Art Museum’s permanent collection hand-picked by the artist to be on view alongside her artworks so that visitors can see additional visual references behind her designs. This includes two rings from the Walters’ ancient Egyptian holdings that directly inspired Fletcher’s practice and designs. According to the artist, the rings display a simplicity of craft that gave her the confidence to become a jeweler, and will be installed in the formative years section alongside a recreation of her first studio in New Orleans.

“It is fascinating to see works by Douriean and makers of the past side by side in this exhibition, as it underscores the continuous and universal tradition of identity-building and storytelling through adornment,” said Christine Sciacca, point curator for the exhibition at the Walters. “Offering public access to art collections for everyone, as we do at the Walters, allows artists, like Fletcher, to explore techniques, materials, and styles to build their craft.”

To encourage further exploration of the connections between contemporary jewelry-making and historic metal working, the museum’s Education & Interpretation department worked directly with Fletcher on a guide of the Walters’ permanent galleries featuring objects from Ethiopia, Latin America, ancient Egypt, and medieval Europe personally chosen by Fletcher.

The Walters Art Museum presents an adaptation of Douriean Fletcher: Jewelry of the Afrofuture organized by the Museum of Arts and Design, New York, 2025.

The exhibition is co-curated by Barbara Paris Gifford, Museum of Arts and Design’s Senior Curator of Contemporary Art, Craft, and Design, and curatorial consultant, professor, and design historian Sebastian Grant, Parsons School of Design. Christine Sciacca, Curator of European Art, 300-1400 CE, is the point curator of the exhibition at the Walters Art Museum. 

This exhibition is made possible, in part, by The Betty Cooke and William O. Steinmetz Exhibitions Fund, Guy Flynn and Nupur Parekh Flynn, Judy and Scott Phares, Alex Cooper Auctioneers, Jesse Salazar and Tom Williams, Mark Anthony Thomas, and other supporters of the Walters Art Museum.

ABOUT DOURIEAN FLETCHER

Raised in Pasadena, California, Fletcher began making jewelry as a personal exploration of identity and cultural heritage. Her early work was shaped by her travels to South Africa, where she studied traditional forms of adornment and their role in community and ceremony. In 2016, she became the first jewelry designer to be included in the Motion Picture Costumer Union. This distinction made her the sole jewelry artist on the production teams of the films to which she contributed. In addition to her film work, Fletcher maintains an independent studio practice, with recent collections featured by luxury retailers such as Bergdorf Goodman. Her work has been celebrated for its layered references and commitment to handcraft, blending past, present, and future in wearable form.

ABOUT THE WALTERS ART MUSEUM

The Walters Art Museum is a cultural hub in the heart of Baltimore, located in the city’s Mount Vernon neighborhood. The museum’s collection spans more than seven millennia, from 5000 BCE to the 21st century, and encompasses 36,000 objects from around the world. Walking through the museum’s historic buildings, visitors encounter a stunning panorama of thousands of years of art, from romantic 19th-century images of French gardens to mesmerizing Ethiopian icons, richly illuminated Qur’ans and Gospel books, ancient roman sarcophagi, and serene images of the Buddha. Since its founding, the Walters’ mission has been to bring art and people together to create a place where people of every background can be touched by art. As part of this commitment, admission to the museum and special exhibitions is always free.

VISITOR INFORMATION

Admission to the museum and Douriean Fletcher: Jewelry of the Afrofuture is free. The Walters Art Museum is located at 600 N. Charles St., north of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. For general museum information, call 410-547-9000 or visit thewalters.org.

Free admission to the Walters Art Museum is made possible through the combined generosity of individual members and donors, foundations, corporations, and grants from the City of Baltimore, Maryland State Arts Council, Citizens of Baltimore County, and Howard County Government and Howard County Arts Council.

ABOUT THE MUSEUM OF ARTS AND DESIGN

The Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) champions contemporary makers across creative fields and presents the work of artists, designers, and artisans who apply the highest level of ingenuity and skill. Since the Museum’s founding in 1956 by philanthropist and visionary Aileen Osborn Webb, MAD has celebrated all facets of making and the creative processes by which materials are transformed, from traditional techniques to cutting-edge technologies. Today, the Museum’s curatorial program builds upon a rich history of exhibitions that emphasize a cross-disciplinary approach to art and design, and reveals the workmanship behind the objects and environments that shape our everyday lives. MAD provides an international platform for practitioners who are influencing the direction of cultural production and driving twenty-first-century innovation, and fosters a participatory setting for visitors to have direct encounters with skilled making and compelling works of art and design. For more information, visit madmuseum.org.