Africa Art

Olowe of Ise (Yoruba peoples)

(about 1860-1938) made a career out of artmaking decorating the Royal Yoruba Palace at Ise. He had many assistants and made a variety of objects: chairs, bowls, drums, ritual objects, yet...... His most famous known work: Carving this Door! These door panels and lintel commemorate the King receiving a British administrator, Captain Ambrose, for the first time in 1901

*The Great Mosque, Djenne, Mali Largest Mud brick structure/Mosque in West Africa

- The largest mud structure and mosque built at Djenne is one of the oldest cities in Africa -monumental architecture is the best-preserved legacy of its early history on the continent. Built from Adobe bricks, the Great Mosque in the city of Djenne is a monument to the influence of Islam on West Africa. Mosques are the most important architectural examples of the tremendous aesthetic diversity generated by the interaction between African peoples and Islamic faith.(West Africa)

The Benin people

-At its peak from the 15th to the 19th centuries, Benin was renowned for its wide avenues, prosperous citizens, and luxurious royal palace. -The palace was the home of a divine king, the Oba. Although the people of Benin had no written language, they did leave a detailed record of their culture in bronze plaques commissioned by the Oba. Almost 900 of the plaques still exist. Much of the art of Benin was looted by the British in 1897, And the city was destroyed during the colonial period that followed. Ancestral Altars:

West Africa

-Before the Discovery of the Americas in the 16th C., West Africa was a major source of Gold for European Trade. Areas of Ghana became Trade-Rich cities & important Muslim Centers Slide 76 -Around 800 CE, Muslim traders carried faith to many parts of Western Africa -The introduction of Islam reinforced the African fondness for geometric design and the repetition of patterns in decorating the surface of textiles and crafted objects.

*Five miniature baskets Rwanda grass, black, red dye early 20th C Rwanda

-Coiled native grasses & reeds construct containers with spiraling, serpentine, banded designs -many serve as prestige objects in ceremonial exchange (sizes range from miniature to large)

* Head from Jemaa Nigeria, Nok 5 th C. B.C.E. Terracotta, 9 7/8" high

-For the most part, the terracotta is preserved in the form of scattered fragments. That is why Nok art is well known today only for the heads, both male and female. Characterstic Nok Features include - perforated nostrils -eyes are triangle shapes /gouged pupils -mouths open, but teeth seldom shown -hairstyles are particularly detailed and refined through matching sets of perpendicular lines. Imagine the Nok artists taking a small diameter stick or cordage to lay into the wet clay, to make these symmetrical and even markings! Elaborate hairstyles depicted through repetitive lines marked into the clay.

West Africa

-From the Coastline of Cameroon to the upper Niger River in Mali, ironworking technology spread from 500 BCE on, sustaining urbanized areas with specialized art and craft traditions. The fabrication of iron tools and weapons allowed for the kind of extensive systematized agriculture, efficient hunting, and successful warfare necessary to sustain large urban centers.

Oba Regalia (Benin)

-High, beaded coral collar and Crown emphasize the head symbolizing Oba's Prominence and Power

East Africa

-Some of the Earliest Humans are traced to this area of Africa -Rwanda, Ethiopia, & Sudan commemorate major life and community events with artwork. is home to some of the earliest evidence of humans and their tools. Little is known about the beliefs and rituals of the most ancient cultures. More recent cultures are known to commemorate major events and life changes in the communities: Rites of passage might include birth, initiation into adulthood, and funerals

Iyoba

-Title for the mother of the Oba -distinguished by peaked, conical coral bead crown.

Central African Sculpture

-Used for veneration of ancestors who work as intermediaries between the living and the otherworld.

Pictorial Quilt

A distinctly African-American type of Quilt with large patches, each representing a story, provided a kind of Bible for the iliterate.

Battered

Architecture: Building Technique: Inward slope of walls toward the top that give them stability.

Rwanda

Art Form: Basket Weaving Parts of Rwanda wealthy from trade, & privileged women had leisure time to perfect their skills and intricate designs.

Media & Process (yoruba)

Beads in Africa • Beads are valued for their exotic nature, since acquired through trade • Crafted into objects of social status & personal adornment

The lost-wax Metal casting process (Yoruba/West Africa)

Casting is an indirect sculpture process in which one material is substituted for another: pouring a liquid into a mold (usually molten metals), Letting it harden or cool, then releasing it from the mold.

Ethipoia

Christian Art and Thought mixed with an Ethiopian aesthetic.is close to the Nile River, thus they were influenced by Christian Missionaries traveling down river from Syria and Egypt Christianity took root in the 4th century-150 years later, missionaries from Syria translated the Bible into Ethiopic script.

* El Anatsui, In the World, But Don't Know the World, 183 feet long and 32 feet tall 2009-10, Aluminum (liquor bottle caps) & copper wire. October Gallery, London

El Anatsui's art is not made of fiber ,like traditional Kente cloth, but metal pieces-made from bottle caps, food tins, beer cans, etc. They are flattened, twisted, then stitched together with copper wire. His work recycles materials imported to Africa, coming from wealthier places, like the United States and Europe. Literal trash to treasure situation when experiencing an El Anastui's work in person. choices!

* Queen Mother Benin, Nigeria early 16th c. bronze, lifesize

General Characteristics of Commemorative Heads: -Busts depict beaded collars snugly around necks. Delicately rendered facial features. See awareness of bone and flesh. Careful treatment of hair. Queen mother busts with distinctive coral headdress (curving cone) are common.

Applique

Hand and machine stitched, Powers' quilts were made through this (in which pieces of colored fabric are cut and sewn to a fabric ground to create a design. )

Igbo (Ibo)

In Igbo communities to the west of the Niger River, A distinct custom evolved. Mbari are unfired, painted mud figures constructed by young boys and girls from a certain age group who work under the supervision of senior craftsmen. Communities build mbari houses when events indicate that the Ala (their creator goddess) is unhappy... if they have poor rains, bad harvests, or if people died suddenly.

Mbari (Igbo)

In the mbari tradition, the act of creation is more important than the finished object. The function of the building is to honor the goddess of creation and thereby ensure the productivity of the earth. Exposed to wind and rain, the clay figures crumble within a few years, and then the next age group will construct new mbari. For the creation, the mbari artist is sequestered behind a walled enclosure, and uses special clay collected from termite hills to form the structure and figures. They have porches or niches which house publicly displayed clay figures: Imagery includes deities, ancestor spirits, animals from myths and legend, and humorous genre scenes from daily life. Everything is painted and finally unveiled to the public after a panel of judges approve the work, as they want Ala to be proud of the house.

The Gelede festival

Mixed Media Event honoring the "mother ancestors" to encourage rain & fertile soil. was founded among Yoruba people celebrating womanhood and mothers.-This ritual takes place each year between March and May, at the beginning of a new Planting season-performed in the Market-the heart of the society and place for transformation where spirits can enter our world. -It is performed to protect and honor women within the community: treasured for their talents & community healing powers The performers pay tribute to the mystical powers of women, both elders and ancestors, who are known affectionately as "our mothers." The Masquerade, which includes Mask headdress and full-body costume is worn by the men. The mask rests on their heads with a veil that covers their own face. They must wear a plump costume made of layer upon layer of strips of fabric: giving them a feminine shape to look like the women they are honoring. The masquerade provides an opportunity for "our mothers" to be pampered so that they do not use their destructive powers against the Yoruba people; instead they encourage rain and fertile soil. You might have noticed : three short, vertical lines placed on the cheeks and sometimes on the forehead of these masks. These are popular scarification markings in Yoruba -who regard them as a "gem" on the human face. The Masquerade involves colorful masks, striking headdresses, festive music, and miraculous performances.

Namibia

PreHistory: 27,500 BCE The Earliest South African Art Rock Painting by: The San Culture

The San culture

San performed rituals in which the hunter goes into a trance and dances around or near the carcass of a freshly killed eland in order to harness supernatural energy from the animalSlide 13 -The San believe the experience of a 'trance' and the 'death' of the eland in their physical manifestation are the same: It is a metaphor. That's why the men in the rock paintings are depicted taking on the eland's features as it dies and they go into a trance.

Zimbabwe

Settled by Herdsmen: Year 1 CE -Ruling elite controlled wealth through management of cattle & trade.

Ancient Nigeria: The Nok Culture (500 BCE-200 CE

Sophisticated clay sculpture figurines used in shrines, altars, graves. appeared in Nigeria around 500 BCE and mysteriously vanished around 200 CE. They were sophisticated and skilled potters; creating the earliest known life-sized Terra Cotta (ceramic) Sculptures on the continent, next to those of Ancient Egypt. Slide 44 -Their specific function is still unknown.

* Seated Figure Yoruba Tada, Nigeria Copper 13-14th C.

The "Seated Figure" is the finest surviving object from the early Yoruba Metal smiths working in Ile-Ife and one of the most mysterious works of African art. Slide 50 •It is distinguished from all other Ife sculptures by its complex asymmetrical position ( African sculpture generally favors a frontal or symmetrical pose) • The sculpture is also unusual for the proportions of the head and other body parts, which resemble that of a real human body. • With what remains, we can see the rounded forms of body, arms, & legs.

* Kente cloth, Ghana

The Akan of Ghan Today, they are BEST known for their highly colorful, eye-dazzling patterns woven in Kente ( means "basket") cloth. With over 300 established patterns, each cloth's choice of colors and patterns carry complex level of meaning. For example, blue means peacefulness and harmony. Green is vegetation and spiritual renewal. Yellow-gold is preciousness, royalty, & spiritual purity

The first king, or Oba of Benin (West Africa)

The kingship of Benin is closely related to Ife. The first king of Benin is traditionally supposed to be a descendant of Oduduwa, the founder of Ife and First Oni. -The most distinctive examples of Benin craftsmanship are the bronze plaques, which adorned the palace walls. -As in the artwork of Ife, the craftsmen of Benin produced bronze and copper heads celebrating the power of the Oba.

Chi Wara Mask

These antelope headdresses are called . Chi means "work" and wara means "animal," thus "working animal." Sli The celebration includes two male dancers wearing one male and one female headdress Illustration on the left. During the performance, to imitate the Chi Wara's hoeing the earth with his long horns, the dancers butt their heads up and down and scratch the earth with long sticks-shown here as well! Male & Female forms symbolize fertility & union of sun(male) & earth/water(female)

*The Gospel of St. Mathew Ethiopia Parchment 17th century

This photograph shows an Ethiopian man revealing a painting from the Gospel. It is in an alterpiece format, which is very European, but the construction of the wood frame, the style of the painting, and the concealment of the imagery is unique to the Ethiopian aesthetic. -Bold outlines and geometric designs are expressed in high-contrasting black and red...colors used in their secular artforms as well. Ethiopian words describe his divinity on the facing page on the right. -Abstracted, flattened facial features & columnar mass of the human figure mimic their traditional carved sculpture.

*Civilizing Hero (Chibunda Ilunga) Congo 16"x 6"x6" Wood, Human hair, hide 19th-20th century

Wooden Effigy Statues are memorials to ancestral Chiefs. This figure depicts their mythical ancestor, warrior hero, Chibunda Ilunga (Civilizing Hero) -It shows him as a Powerful man, exaggerated muscles give him monumental status, beyond the small scale of the piece -He epitomizes the balance of power and refinement that is characteristic of Chokwe court art. His large, spreading hands, muscular shoulders, and aggressive posture with bended knees, epitomize the strength and vigor of a HERO OR KING -The sweeping curves and swelling volumes of the distinctive headdress, depict an actual Chokwe crown made of cloth-covered basketry. -Human Hair adds more "life" (activates the figure) serving as his beard.

Kenya (East Africa)

Worship: Honor spirits of the dead with elaborate burial Traditions Art Form: Funerary Posts carved for prominent community members, erected in an area outside the cemetery to appease deceased ancestors without disturbing other spirits. Faces of Funerary Posts are often naturalistic & expressive, but not intended as portraits.

The Yoruba People

a communities and kingdoms of Benin and Ile-Ife sprang up between the 11th and 12th centuries. Artforms included the traditional clay and wood sculptures. But the foremost crafts produced was the skill of working with the metal casting process. Metals like brass and bronze were highly valued within the Yoruba & Benin Kingdoms. The Yoruba developed their own style of Portraiture making in terracotta, stone, and wooden heads. Later, they applied these skills to the creation of cast-metal portrait heads and figures. They used the Lost-wax method of casting large, hollow figures in bronze, copper, brass, etc.

• Nkisi Nkondi , Congo Wood, metal, glass, & mixed media collected 1905, 38" tall

i to find solutions for the village problems. The name, which means something like "hunter," is used because the priests use such works to, "hunt" for solutions to village problems and search for wrongdoers, including those who do not keep sworn oaths. It is really interesting that priests use these statues to solve problems in the village. If a villager wants to become a "hunter" he has to swear an oath to the priest and drive a nail into the statue's body to blind himself of spiritual forces. When the "hunter" has found a solution to the village problem, the nail that he drove into the statue is removed to signify that the problem is no longer an issue.

*Staff Handle Congo Ivory, 4" high 19th-20th century

is carved ivory that is meant to be a handle for a staff. This type of staff would belong to a chief. This staff would be passed down from generation to generation and would suggest a political power. It is not the reasoning behind the ceremony, but rather the initiation ceremonies are symbolized by a staff similar to the one pictured. If the ancestors did not pass down their reign there would be no staff. The staff appears to be a woman because of fertility beliefs. The staff is passed from one generation to the next and new generations would not be produced if it weren't for women. Central Africa cares vastly about fertility and appreciates their women and their ability to bestow children. The figure on top of the staff has its hands resting on its thighs to represent obedience. It's texture is smooth and red, from being rubbed with palm oil capturing the softness of human flesh. Also, the head is turned over the shoulder to signify watchfulness. These attributions are claimed by the staff's new owner.

Great Zimbabwe, c. 15th C. CE

is the largest ancient stone structure south of the Sahara Desert. The ruins of this complex of massive stone walls cover almost 1,800 acres of present-day southeastern Zimbabwe. The Great enclosure was once a thriving art center during the Middle Ages- housing many great treasures and a space for trade.

Harriet Powers (1837-1911)

known as the "mother of African-American quilting," Born into slavery in Athens, Georgia. -One of her quilts was purchased by the Smithsonian Institution in 1898. These techniques and her notable style for bold use of these techniques in storytelling demonstrates both African and African American influences; The use of appliquéd designs to tell stories is closely related to artistic practices in the republic of Benin, West Africa.

Nkisi Nkondi

mixed media, effigy sculptures known as power/hunter figures used to "hunt" for solutions to domestic & group problems. Kongo power figures were the collaborative creations of sculptors and ritual specialists in an effort to harness the powers of the dead in the service of the living.

Funerary Posts (Kenya)

serve as visual mediators between living world & ancestral realm. Offerings of coconut oil, chickens, and goats might be given to the spirit residing in the pole. A Properly consecrated pole and a well-conducted ritual that appeased the deceased ancestor without disturbing the other spirits was considered to be a source of vitality and harmony for the community.

* Harriet Powers, Pictorial quilt pieced, appliqued, and printed cotton embroidered with yarns, c. 1895-8

she illustrates a series of scenes from the bible, as well as moments from local folklore. Examples: Panel 4. Adam and Eve in the garden. Eve tempted by the serpent. Adam's rib by which Eve was made. The sun and the moon. God's all-seeing eye and God's merciful hand. Slide 90 Last Panel: The crucifixion of Christ between the two thieves. The sun went into darkness. Mary and another woman weeping at his feet. The blood and water run from his right side

Oni

the Ancestral, first King of Ife, is regarded as "the father" of all Yoruba.

Ivory (Central Africa)

this material is a precious commodity used for carving ceremonial objects. Both ivory (from Elephant tusks) and wood carving were popular artforms and worship included beliefs that deceased ancestors could link the living with the spirit world. Political powers are passed down from these ancestors and from one chief to another through initiation ceremonies often symbolized by staffs with ornate, carved handles. In this region, ivory was a precious commodity, whose movements via trade was strictly controlled by Congo Kings. -By commissioning ceremonial objects to be crafted from this precious material, the Congo Chief/King ensured that both spiritual and political powers would be passed down from the ancestors to him.

Central Africa

vast, fertile region diverse in climate from Rainforests to open savannas. The Democratic Republic of Congo is our focus area of art-making. Vast Region of diverse climates, from rainforests to open and wooded savannas.

Ile-Ife

was the most important art center in Nigeria, especially for Metal Smith guilds. In Yoruba, Ile means "homeland" and is looked upon as the spiritual center of the Yoruba people