Art Appreciation November 2014 African Art A Trip Around the World

Art Appreciation - A Trip Around the World 2 nd Stop: AFRICA Charlotte, NC #1: Latin America #2: Africa Africa covers of 1/5 of the land on earth. More than 1,000 different languages are spoken here. Art produced here is typically utilitarian and meant to be used, not just observed

 African masks usually have spiritual and religious meaning  Used in ritual dances and social and religious events  A special status is attributed to the artists that create masks and to those that wear them in ceremonies  Mask-making is an art often passed from father to son, along with the knowledge of the symbolic meanings conveyed by such masks  The most commonly used material for masks is wood, although a wide variety of other elements can be used, including light stone or metals like bronze & copper Dogon Kananga Ceremonial Mask Mali, Africa Wood & Pigment African Art Masks Mask used in Dama dance performed by the Dogon people of Mali, Africa Belief that without the Dama dance the dead cannot cross to the supernatural world in peace Made of a single piece of intricately carved wood

African Art Masks Fang Tribal Mask, late 19th–early 20th century Gabon, Africa Wood, Pigment. Poro Society Mask (Kponyungo), 1970 Carved by Zana Soro Ivory Coast (Senufo) Wood Within the Fang tribe of Gabon, Africa, was a secret society called Ngil (The Ngil ceased to exist in the 1930’s) Ngil members wore masks such as this one when initiating new members Also used during rituals for disciplining tribe members for wrong-doing A Kponyungo is a funeral helmet mask that honors deceased Poro elders Its symbolic and magical weaponry (much borrowed from animals) is believed to protect the deceased in the afterlife

Pende Mbangu Mask, “Sickness Mask” Pende, Congo, Africa Wood, pigments and fibers Private Collection African Art A Powerful Influence Les Demoiselles d’Avingnon, 1907 Pablo Picasso Oil on canvas Museum of Modern Art, New York Not until the early 1900’s did Western artists begin to appreciate and study African art Pablo Picasso was one of the first. He found African masks fascinating and incorporated similar images in many of his Cubist paintings The “sickness mask” from the Pende tribe in Congo was a strong inspiration for Picasso’s influential painting shown here

African Art Metalwork  Evidence of metalworking in Africa dates back at least 4,700 years  The process of using fire to transform ore into metal, and metal into an object, was widely seen in Africa as a dangerous act of creation, much like giving birth to a child  Metalwork was often carried out at some distance from villages to protect secret rituals and keep danger away  Because metalworkers knew how to make offerings and sacrifices to the spirits and ancestors, and how to protect their work from spirits and magic, they were often regarded by the rest of the community with a mixture of fear and awe Ruler of Ife 12 th to 15 th century Bronze British Museum, London, England This detailed bronze head likely depicts an Ooni, which is a ruler of the West African kingdom of Ife that flourished between 1100 and 1500 AD The portrait-like realism of Ife heads is unique in African art Shows the remarkable skill of early African metalworkers ___________________________________________

African Art Metalwork Benin Bronze plaque, 13 th century Copper alloy British Museum, London, England The Benin Bronzes are a group of more than 1,000 metal plaques that decorated the royal palace of the Benin Empire in modern-day Nigeria The Bronzes are the best known examples of Benin art, created by the Edo people from the 13th century In 1897, most of the plaques were removed by the British and placed in museums throughout Europe. Although controversial, this led to a greater appreciation of African art, which had rarely been seen outside of Africa before

African Art Wood Carving Headrest, c Tsonga peoples Wood Mozambique and South Africa  Wood Carving is one of the most common forms of artistic expression in Africa  Villages typically have one or more carvers who pass skills down from generation to generation  Most African sculptures are carved from a single piece of wood which is roughly carved using a small axe. Once polished, details are added using a knife or chisel Headrests such as this one were often used to support a sleeping person’s neck and to protect elaborate hairstyles The Tsonga peoples of southern Africa typically carved headrests representing animals such as this elephant

African Art Wood Carving Bowl with figures, 1925 Olowe of Ise Wood Yoruba Tribe, Nigeria Olowe of Ise became known as the “Carver to the Kings” after creating this amazing bowl and other treasures for the King of the Yoruba people in Nigeria He became a master artist at the King’s palace, and as his fame grew, other Yoruba kings and wealthy families commissioned him to carve architectural sculptures, masks, drums and other objects for their palaces Among the Yoruba, such elaborately carved and decorated bowls were prestigious objects used to offer kola nuts to guests or to gods during religious worship. Except for the lid, the entire sculpture, including the bearded head shown resting on the base, was carved from a single piece of wood.

African Art Ancient Egypt  Ancient Egyptian art was produced by the civilization occupying the Nile River Valley from about 3000 BC to 100 AD  Much of the surviving art comes from tombs and monuments and thus there is an emphasis on life after death  It is almost entirely symbolic and had very precise meaning This funeral mask was placed over the head and shoulders of Tutankhamun’s (“King Tut’s”) mummy Made of gold inlaid with colored glass and semiprecious stone; weighs 24 pounds Emblems on the forehead (vulture and cobra) and on the shoulders (falcon heads) were symbols of the Two Lands of Upper and Lower Egypt and of divine authority King Tut was 9 years old when he was made Pharaoh and reigned for about 10 years; little is known about his death ______________________________________________ Death Mask of Tutankhamun Gold, glass & stone Egyptian National Museum, Cairo, Egypt

African Art Ancient Egypt Painting depicts a typical ancient Egyptian funeral scene – the weighing of the heart against the feather of truth Ancient Egyptians believed the actual heart of the deceased should be lighter than a feather; if not the heart was heavy with wrong-doing and the deceased would not be allowed to enter into the afterlife This process was overseen by the god Anubis pictured under the right side of the scale Weighing of the Heart Against the Feather c BC Painted papyrus British Museum, London

African Art Ancient Egypt The Sphinx & Great Pyramid c BC Giza, Egypt Pyramids were constructed as elaborate tombs for pharaohs; the Sphinx was built to guard the tombs The Great Pyramid took 20 years to build using over 2 million blocks of solid rock weighing between 2 to 30 tons each The massive sphinx is 241 feet long and 66 feet high. Its eyes are over 6 feet tall Exactly how the pyramids and sphinx were constructed remains a mystery

Art Appreciation - A Trip Around the World Next Stop: MEDITERRANEAN Charlotte, NC #1: Latin America #2: Africa #3: Mediterranean