When it comes to art, Marion "Mame" Jackson's interests might seem a little out of the ordinary. Jackson, professor, Art and Art History, Wayne State University, and a Fulbright scholar, has made a career of bringing less studied forms of visual arts into the mainstream. Her areas of expertise are Inuit and African-Brazilian art. For Jackson, it all began in 1975 with a curiosity in Inuit soapstone sculpture. Unable to find enough information to satisfy her interest, she flew north to Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic to discover more information for herself. While not able to speak the Inuktitut language at first, she used an interpreter to communicate with the artists. Returning to the Arctic fifteen times over the next 20 years, Jackson stayed with Inuit families, learned the language and became friends with the artists. They called her Arngnakota, meaning "tall woman," and Kuvinasuq, "the one who smiles a lot." Determined to share what she learned, she has devoted herself to preserving and documenting the culture and introducing Inuit artists to the outside world. As an expert in Inuit art, she's given over dozens of lectures and coordinated several exhibits of Inuit art at universities and museums across the U.S. and Canada. "Visual images are very direct and can communicate values and experiences of a culture," says Jackson. "The Americas have been shaped by a complex mixing of cultural traditions. I am interested in indigenous and African traditions that have contributed richly to this mix but have been overlooked in the past." Jackson's research focuses on the artistic traditions that have emerged in the Americas from the period of colonization to the present. Lately, her interest has turned south. She travels regularly to Brazil to study African-Brazilian art. In 2000, she received a Fulbright research and teaching grant that took her to the city of Salvador, Brazil, to study and teach the influence of African art. Her most recent success was building a bridge between North American artists, art professors and students and their counterparts in South America. Last spring, she organized a groundbreaking weeklong international conference in Salvador, called African Influences in the Visual Arts of the Americas. The conference brought together prominent artists and students from Wayne State and three Brazilian universities to explore cultural similarities and the influence of African art on the arts of the Americas. This significant event marked the first time the universities worked together. The conference attracted approximately 200 Brazilian participants and 40 North American participants representing Wayne State University and other Detroit area institutions, including the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, The College of Creative Studies, Marygrove College, The University of Michigan, Washtenaw Community College and Madonna College. In her keynote lecture, Jackson presented the similarities and differences among artists in the two countries. "In both countries, the artists' works reflect conditions of slavery, liberation and globalization," she says. "The arts of the U.S. and Brazil are a complex mix of European, African and indigenous cultural traditions. The result is rich and varied artistic expression." Jackson is currently researching a book about African- Brazilian popular art. "In the book, I explore how self-taught artists use their art to express cultural identity and maintain this identity separate from the dominant culture," she says. She also looks forward to further collaborations with the Brazilian universities at a follow-up conference in the next couple of years - this time on her home turf at Wayne State. The Wayne State University College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts is educating the next generation of visual artists, musicians, communication professionals and professional actors and dancers. The college offers 16 undergraduate and 12 graduate programs in Art and Art History, Communication, Dance, Music and Theatre with students benefiting from expert faculty and excellent resources such as the nationally recognized Hilberry Theatre. Fast Facts

• Hometown: Saginaw, Michigan
• Education: Bachelor's degree in English Language and Literature, University of Michigan, Master's degree in Education, Master's in History of Art, University of Michigan. Ph.D. History of Art, University of Michigan
• Years at Wayne State: 7
• Career Highlights: Associate Professor, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada. Associate Professor, University of Michigan. Professor, Wayne State University
• Honors/Awards: Fulbright Senior Scholar, 2000-2001, National Endowment for the Humanities grant, National Endowment for the Arts grant, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada grant, Michigan Council for the Arts grant, Research grant from the Government of Bahia, Department of Culture and Tourism (Brazil)
• Accomplishments: More than 30 published articles and papers
• Co-curator for 7 national/ international exhibitions at leading museums including the National Gallery of Canada and the Canadian Museum of Civilization
• Presented numerous lectures and seminars, including the free 2002 African-American Art Lecture Series every Wednesday from March 20-April 10 at Wayne State University