Founded in 1984, the museum is "dedicated to increasing public understanding and appreciation of African art and culture."

[1] The Museum has organized nearly 60 critically acclaimed exhibitions and traveled these to almost 140 venues nationally and internationally, including 15 other countries.

"[3][4] As director, Vogel curated and organized ground-breaking exhibitions which put into question ways in which African art is presented to Western audiences, and how museum practices structure knowledge for the public.

"[5] In February 1993, the institution changed its name to the Museum for African Art and moved to a three-times larger space at 593 Broadway in Soho, that was designed by the architect and artist Maya Lin and described by New York Times architecture critic Herbert Muschamp as "a flowing sequence of galleries, unfolding on two floors," in which Lin "uses subtle gradations of color to suggest a passage through time as well as space.

The new building's aim was to make the museum accessible to a wide range of people from the world over, thus solidifying the museum's presence as one of the most challenging and diverse art institutions in the U.S.[17] The new building would encompass approximately 90,000 square feet (8,400 m2) with 16,000 square feet (1,500 m2) of exhibition space, as well as a theater, education center, library, classrooms, event space, restaurant and gift shop.

[1] While the outer-shell of the building was completed in 2010, critical interior build-out and occupation was delayed by stalled fundraising efforts and leadership transitions.