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GREAT QUEENS AND KINGS OF AFRICA

Cleopatra VII—Queen of Egypt (69-30 B.C.) ascended to power at the age 17 to cocome one of Africa's greatest female rulers. Her grateful nature and stunning personality proved to be valuable diplomatic attributes. Often erroneously portrayed as a Caucasian, the young Egyptian Queen was multi-lingual, mastering Greek, Syrian, Latin, Arabic, Hebrew and Egyptian languages and several African dialects. Her influence flowed beyond the the borders of Egypt. (Ann Marshall)

Queen Nzingha—Amazon Queen of Matamba, West Africa (1582-1663), was the perfect example of a diplomat. Nzingha, who excelled as a military leader, formed an army and waged a 30-year war against the massive influx of slave-hunting Portugese. These battles led to a unique moment in African history, as Mzingha allied her nation with the Dutch. This marked the first union of an African nation with a European power against oppressors of an African nation. (Dorothy Carter)

ARTISTS

ANN R. MARSHALL—A native of Detroit, Ms. Marshall's major work is portrait painting and advertising. She is a graduate of the Society of Arts and Crafts College in Detroit (now the Center for Creative Studies). The school is one of the top art colleges in the country. She is also involved in interior design and is associated with a furniture design company.

She was recommend for the project by Carl Owens, the artist of two of the Great Kings of Africa—King Affonso I and King Khama. Prior to being commissined by Budweiser to do the Queen Cleopatra VII painting, she had been involved with her own project of doing lesser-known African rulers, both men and women.

"I was always very impressed and attracted to the Great Kings of Africa art series, but I never expected to be involved," said Ms. Marshall. "I have a great appreciation for what Anheuser-Busch is contributing to the cultural heritage of Afro-Americans."

Of her Queen Cleopatra painting, Ms. Marshall said, "It is important to me that the painting is representative of the character of the person I'm presenting. I want the painting to be recognized as an Ann Marshall paintging, but accurate character representation is first and foremost."

DOROTHY CARTER—Ms. Carter, painter and printmaker, creates in her studio on the south side of Chicago. Her work had been exhibited in many art galleries, museums and libraries throughout the area.

A graduate of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, she has also studied at the School of the Art Institute, the Institute of Design and the American Academy of Art.

She has directed several large-scale projects with young people in the Chicago public schools. Mural projects under her direction have been funded by the Chicago Council on Fine Arts in 1981, 1982, and 1983.

In 1978, she presented a series of paintings depicting the Black religious experience. The paintings were based on extensive research by the artist at two local Baptist churches: Cathedral of Love Missionary Baptist Church and Greater Harvest Missionary Baptist Church. The series title is "God's Trombones," named after the great work by James Weldon Johnson.

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