African Art

Sub-Saharan

Your Assignment:o Draw an illustration of an African

Art Pieceo Write 5 sentences that explain the

piece.o Introduce your piece of African Art,

describe what the piece looks likeo Describe what the piece is made out

ofo Explain what the piece was used foro State where this piece might have

come fromo Conclude your paragraph.

Swamp Witch, EvilDecember 3, 2012

Period__Rubric

Out of 10 pointsIllustration-3 points for a complete, neat, illustration which demonstrates good effortParagraph - 1 point for each assigned sentence, you earn each point for giving the assigned information. You will loose .5 points per sentence for incorrect information or needed editing. Presentation- 1 point for a neat presentation that demonstrates effort.Heading – 1 point for correct heading

Quick African Art Noteso Is part every aspect of life, but each of the

hundreds of African groups has its own styles and forms. Pieces of art serve their intended purpose while pleasing the family or community for whom they were made and the ancestors to whom they were addressed.

o Made for a variety of purposes; to be worn or carried, placed on altars in shrines to enable the living to communicate with the realm of the ancestors, to address the forces of nature or enhance the power of a ruler.

o African art is “conceptual” rather than “perceptual” conveying ideas rather than describing the visual world.

o In a human figure, some parts may be exaggerated because of the their importance to the purpose of the figure. Most often it is the head, but sometimes the breasts or stomach.

o A figure may symbolize many things. A woman holding a baby may represent motherhood, but also could represent the founding of a group, or the transmission of wisdom or authority.

Quick African Art Noteso Elements of African Art

o Not made to be viewed in museumso Served a variety of purposes: religious,

medicinal, and political o Symbolic, thus some parts of some

human figures are exaggeratedo Works are often attributed to specific

cultures instead of individual artistso Usually takes the form of sculptures of

animals and humans or functional items such as weaving and pottery

Matrix for African ArtPiece’s Name

Quick Sketch

Materials used?

Functionof piece?

Mali Mother Figureo Woodo In most African societies the most important

role of the woman is bearing and nurturing of children. In this sculpture the woman is shown in the prime of life at her most productive age of young adulthood.

o The cultures of Africa have created a world-renowned tradition of three-dimensional and relief sculpture. Everyday and ceremonial works of great delicacy and surface detail are fashioned by artists using carving, modeling, smithing and casting techniques.

o The human figure is perhaps the most prominent sculptural form in Africa, as it has been for millennia. Male and female images in wood, ivory, bone, stone, earth, fired clay, iron and copper alloy embody cultural values, depict the ideal and represent spirits, ancestors and deities.

o Used in a broad range of contexts--initiation, healing, divination, leadership, prestige and religious worship, to name but a few--African sculptures clearly demonstrate the central role of the arts in the African experience.

Akua’ba figureo Woodo This figure is an abstract

symmetrical human female figure with an enlarged disc-shaped head, delicate features, ringed neck, outstretched arms and a columnar trunk with little indication of legs or feet. Akua’ba which means Akua’s baby, refers to an Akan legend.

o By carrying such a figure in her sash and caring for it daily as if it were a real baby, a young Akan woman learns child care routines. (practical)

o A pregnant woman expresses her deep wish for a healthy baby.(spiritual)

o Because the Akua’ba is carved with breasts it also symbolizes a broader wish for the continuity of the Akan people.

Mankala Game

o Woodo This Mancala board is an example of African art that is in everyday

use.o Mancala may well be the oldest board game in the world. It can be

easily played with whatever medium happens to be around. For instance, in Africa, people often play with pebbles using hollows scooped into the earth, with cowrie or other seashells in rings in the sand or specially carved wooden board with seeds. It is a wholly mathematical game - its more complex versions have as much scope as Chess, despite its primitive origins

Kuba Musical Instrumento Sanza, consists of a

hollow wooden box with metal springs attached to it.

o The art of the Kuba is one of the most highly developed of all African traditions, and significant cultural accomplishments are part of their heritage.

o Today the Kuba people number 250,000. They form a confederation of nineteen ethnic groups dominated by the Bushong.

o

Drumo Woodo Music is an important part of African

culture. Instruments accompany the events of daily life and are prominent in public ceremonies and royal courts.

o The northern part of Cameroon has been Islamized and has no sculpture; on the other hand, the savannas of the west, the Grassland, are composed of three ethnic groups with ancestors in common. The Grassland is divided into 90 small independent kingdoms and chiefdoms, whose powers are counterbalanced by male and female societies. The artistic production of the people living in the Grassland of Cameroon is closely associated with royal and societal ceremonies. This highly artistic musical instrument of rare quality is an excellent example of the royal art. Such instruments have been used during different ceremonies in palaces.

Benin Bracelet~Leopard Image.

o Bronzeo The Benin kingdom was founded by the son of an

Ife king in the early 14th century AD. The art of bronze casting was introduced to Benin around the year 1280.

o Leopard images have been identified with King Ewuare. Tradition maintained that one day as he was sleeping underneath a tree, a leopard lying on one of its upper branches dripped blood down on him. On waking Ewuare killed the leopard and began a yearly tradition of sacrificing leopards to promote royal destiny. The danger and quickness of the leopard served as a potent metaphor for royal power, Benin kings often being referred to as “leopards of the house.” Leopard teeth and pelts were given by Benin monarchs to important chiefs and military leaders under their command. This bracelet with the image of leopard has a symbolic meaning in some ceremonies of the Yoruba people.

Plaque~Oba and a warrior.o Bronzeo The plaque is a symbol of and

divinely endorses royal power. Early explorers and traders found these plaques mounted on and covering pillars in the royal courtyard. They served as decoration, historical records and celebration of oba’s power.

o This plaque presents an oba (king) sitting on the horse and a warrior.

o When British forces entered Benin City in 1897 they were surprised to find large quantities of cast brass objects. The technological sophistication and overwhelming naturalism of these pieces contradicted many 19th-century Western assumptions about Africa in general and Benin

Kente clotho Cotton or silko Akan people, Ghana

o This textile, called kente cloth, is woven on looms and is composed of narrow cotton strips sewn together, the strips are sewn together stripes staggered, forming a weft of blocks. Kente cloth is worn by Akan royal persons as a wrapper for state occasions. These garments show the significance and rank of the divine king

Luba Headrest.o Woodo A headrest serves as a pillow

that is both cool and comfortable in a tropical climate, and protects elaborate hairstyles by raising the head above the surface of the bed. Some hairdos took up to fifty hours to complete. Using a headrest allowed the hairdo to last two or three months. In addition to the great personal attachment that people developed for their headrests, these were also seen as the seat of dreams.

o Luba consider dreams to be prophetic: dreams foretell important events, provide warnings and communicate messages from the other world. It is therefore fitting that headrests should be supported by the female priestesses who serve in real life as intermediaries and interlocutors for the spirits of the other world.

Ceremonial comb.o Wood, twineo People called “Fang” in geographic or

ethnographic literature constitute a vast mosaic of village communities, established in a large zone of Atlantic equatorial Africa including Cameroon, continental equatorial Guinea and nearly the whole north of Gabon, on the right bank of the Ogowe River

o The Fang peoples practice a cult devoted to ancestor lineages, the bieri, whose aim is to both protect themselves from the deceased and to recruit their aid in matters of daily life.

o The bieri, which has most obviously given rise to the making of remarkable wooden sculpture. This comb presents an image of an ancestor typical for the bieri cult; such objects were used in initiation ceremonies.

Reliquary ancestor figure (bieri).o Wood, rope, bark

o Fang ethnic group extends from the region of Yaounde in Cameroon to the Ogooué River in Gabon and includes Equatorial Guinea.

o The Fang practice the bieri cult, whose aim is to protect themselves from the deceased, to recruit their aid in matters of daily life, and to protect the bones of revered ancestors

o Bieri are reliquary figures placed by the Fang upon their bark boxes to personify the tribal soul, containing the skulls and skeletons of prominent deceased persons.

o The assemblage of an ancestral reliquary was essential to the establishment of Fang communities during pre-colonial era. Over time, relics associated with its most important members were continually added around the crania of its founder. The bieri also served for therapeutic rituals and, above all, for initiations of young males

Bamana ~ Chi Warao Wood, metal, beads, fibero Bamana people, Malio The ChiWara headcrest mask

is carved of a single piece of wood in a composite form~man, aardvark, antelope. The mask represents the mythological culture hero, Bamana, a half-human who taught them agriculture.

o The mask is used in a ritual, an imitation of antelope prancing and pounding seeds into soil

o The masks serve as a reflection of universal order of the cycles and relationships of the sun, seasons, and moon, human and animal, rain and earth, male and female, the real world and the spirit world.

Hemba Chief’s Stoolo Woodo The Hemba practice ancestor

worship to justify the present authority and power of the chief of the clan. The Hemba stools with their supporting figures might be representations of the ancient custom prescribing that the king sit on the back of a crouching slave to symbolize his power. Another source says the figure may be a reminder that the Hemba live in a matrilineal society.

o The Hemba are divided into large clans. The hereditary chief of each clan renders justice and has the privilege of receiving numerous gifts.

Power Figure N’kiaia N’konsio Made from wood, metalo This POWER FIGURE is a

naturalistic human figure. Cavities in the belly and sometimes in the back or head are filled with powerful materials . Its torso and shoulders are covered with inserted metal nails or small plaques.

o The Nkisi N’kondi holds power in both legal and moral matters binding the living and spiritual worlds. Its open mouth equals communication. Each metal piece inserted represents the solemn vow or oath of an individual who makes the vow in the presence of a diviner or ritual specialist.

Baule ~ mouse oracleo Woodo Boxes for the mouse

oracle (in which sticks are disturbed by a live mouse, to predict the future) are unique to the Baule

KUBA Ceremonial cupo Woodo The Kuba, numbering 250,000, excelled

in making objects of prestige for the dignitaries of the court. They customarily decorate prestigious drinking cups with figural designs.

o The Kuba love of form, knowledge of materials, skill in execution, and appreciation of quality are best seen in the number and variety of cups and goblets, mostly for drinking palm wine.

o There are reports – not confirmed – that these cups sometimes might have been used in the poison ordeal. Among the Kuba, as among other African tribes, death was never attributed to natural causes but to malevolent spirits or to witchcraft. The person suspected of using witchcraft was required to drink poison from such a cup. If he vomited up the drink, he was declared innocent. On the other hand, his death proclaimed his guilt and constituted his punishment.

Yoruba Bead Worko Glass beads, Cowry Shellso The wide variety in bead type, size,

style, and technique reflects the range of cultures that produce beadwork across the Yorubaland.

o Bright colors add to their ritual significance and visual appeal, each color (or combination of colors) being associated with a different empowering god (orisha).

o Yoruba beadwork is undertaken for royal commissions and appears on crowns, tunics, shoes, king’s emblems, staffs and other objects.

o The image of bird alludes to the mysterious power of elderly women

o The legendary first Yoruba ruler to whom all Yoruba kings must trace their ancestry to entitles them to wear beaded crowns.

o The images of the crocodile are used by the Yoruba in some ceremonial masks.

Yoruba~Ibeji figureso Wood, beads, fabrico The Yoruba, with a

high rate of multiple births, feel that twins are very special and powerful. If a twin dies, a figure dedicated to Ibeji, the diety of twins, is carved to be the earthly abode of the spirit of that twin. The figure is nurtured by the mother and/or the surviving twin . Different hair styles, scarification, figure shape and style of carving indicate the origin of a figure. Often dressed and fed, some still have their special robes.

Kuba moneyo Irono Money. Among the

Kuba such iron, shaped “weapons" were recognized and used as currency for rare but major transactions. This item has a shape of a ceremonial executioner’s sword.