The collection includes 193 slides taken by Marilyn Heldman in Ethiopia in the 1960s and 1970s. Subjects include architecture, art objects, marketplaces, pottery, reliefs and cultures including the Bamileke, Fulani, Hausa, Oyo and Yoruba peoples.

The collection consists of one postcard and 67 photographs documenting the installation for and art objects in the exhibition "African Art from Nigeria and the Ivory Coast" (April 6-25, 1983), held at the Sarah Lawrence College Art Galley, and curated by Barbara Jarocki. The postcard is an invitation to the opening reception.

This collection contains a variety of materials including (1,615) 35 mm color slides, circa 400 photographic prints, 1 box of manuscript materials, 1 notebook, 52 audio and 1 video cassettes, and 1 CD-ROM. Many of the slides and photographs were taken during Houlberg's field work in Nigeria (1973-1975) and depict Ibeji figures, wood carvings, Egungun masquerades and masks, twins, portraits, hairstyles, festivals, shrines, textiles, and peoples including the Yoruba, Ekoi, Ibibio, and Ogoni. The audiocassettes consist of lectures, music, field records, and interviews.

The collection consists of 6,567 color slides taken by Dr. Marilyn Houlberg during various field studies among the Yoruba in southwest Nigeria between 1961 and circa 2005. The images depict Yoruba art and culture with a special focus on artisans, art objects, body arts, costume, festivals, hairstyles, indigenous photography, weaving and textiles. Cultural events depicted include Balufon festivals, Egungun and Gelede masquerades, social events (weddings, christenings, funerals), and religious ceremonies (initiation and animal sacrifice). Also included are various scenes of daily life, architecture, food preparation, markets, portraits and landscapes. Houlberg extensively documented Yoruba artists in the process of creating their art, including carvers Yesufu Ejigboye, Runshewe, and Lamidi Fakeye, as well as the final pieces themselves. Houlberg documentated art in situ, such as Yoruba house posts, shrines, wall art and wood doors and art objects, including Gelede masks, Ibeji (twin) and Eshu figures, Osanyin staffs, and Ogboni and Shango shrines. Manuscript and printed materials, including Houlberg's resume, thesis, and numerous published articles are also available in this collection.

Both Henry John Drewal and Margaret Drewal traveled to Nigeria, Ghana and Togo (West Africa) for extended periods from 1967-1986. During their trips to Nigeria they conducted research into the ritual performance, masking traditions, and traditional sacred rites of the Yoruba people as well as Mami Wata devotes of Togo, Ghana, and Nigeria. They are the co-authors of Gelede: Art and Female Power among the Yoruba (1993).Both Henry John Drewal and Margaret Drewal traveled to Nigeria, Ghana and Togo (West Africa) for extended periods from 1967-1986. During their trips to Nigeria they conducted research into the ritual performance, masking traditions, and traditional sacred rites of the Yoruba people as well as Mami Wata devotes of Togo, Ghana, and Nigeria. They are the co-authors of Gelede: Art and Female Power among the Yoruba (1993). Photographs taken by Henry John and Margaret Thompson Drewal during the 1970s and 1980s of Yoruba and Ewe art and culture.