Africa Flashcards
Head, Nok, Nigeria. c. 500 BCE-200 CE.
Sudanese & Nigerian, 1000 BCE-300 CE, farmers, smelters, earliest sub-Saharan sculpture
over life-size, originally full-length, terra cotta, head of woman, frontally facing, mouth open, flared nostrils, 3 sections of hair pulled up- gives idea of cultural dress
triangle, D-shaped eyes unique to Nok- to allow air to pass when firing, so dries evenly- ironically, led to European idea that African art inferior b/c only abstract
Crowned Head of a Yoruba Ruler, From Ife, Nigeria. Yoruba, 12th-15th century CE.
zinc brass, made through lost-wax process
“discovered” 1910 by Leo Frobenius- believed to be from lost island of Atlantis- b/c stereotype that African art non-naturalistic & primitive
natural features + parallel scarfication- re-consideration of African art
would have been attached to wooden mannequin and dressed (like Athenian statutes)
same age/features in multiple heads= concept of physical perfection, ruler’s beauty & moral character
idealization of ruler’s features like Roman emperors
Horseman, Old Jenné, Mali. 13th-15th century CE. Terra cotta, height 27-3/4”
Jenne was wealthy city, major urban Islamic center
formed of rolls of clay, low fired red slip, long cyllindrical form unique to Jenne, also seen in Ancient Greece
long, oval head, jutting chin, painted oval eyes, short pants, helmet w/ chin strap- importance of warrior culture, power, & authority
man’s ability to control horse & people, long history of equestrian statutes- Middle East & in Rome
Great Friday Mosque, Jenné, Mali. Showing the eastern and northern façades.
Koi Konboro- King- converted to Islam, transformed palace to first of 3 mosques in city- 13th c., rivaled Kaaba at Mecca, made of adobe brick (sundried clay & straw), like S. American Inca
traditional style, hypostyle hall, interior space, modeled on Muhammad’s house in Medina, courtyard; qibla wall facing Mecca, mihrab center niche; later rulers had razed re-built in austere style, back to original 1906-7
“marketplace” facade, 3 towers, finials= ostrich eggs=purity/fertility; engaged columns= buttresses
torons=projecting wood beams, support for scaffolding to re-plaster annually
Crucifix, Kongo. Early 17th century CE
(bronze, 10 1/2”)
King Nzinga aNkuwa coverts to Christianity in 1491, makes state religion, trades cloth, copper, salt, ivory, slaves w/ Portuguese, brought Catholic missionaries w/ religious objects- they choose living/triumphant Christ over suffering Christ
mirror European prototypes, re-stated in African terms: central figure flanked by supporting, like warrior chiefs and attendants in African sculpture, hands/feet stylized like local African art; flanked figures clapping hands= common gesture of respect in Congo
hierarchy of scale of figure size= central hegemony
Twin Figures (Ere Ibeji) Nigeria. Yoruba culture, 20th century (wood, 7 7/8”)
Yoruba have highest rate of twin births; twins more delicate, greater mortality; dead child continues to live in spirit world, parents can care for, comfort, reach with art
diviner recommends image to be made of dead twin to grieving mother, for spirit to dwell within;
schematic forms of head, breasts, eyes- asethetic preference for abstraction, like Nok
sculpture finished- mother brings artist gifts, dances home w/ child, feeds/dresses, spirits appeased, helps surviving family
similar to relics in Catholic tradition, retain power of dead
Five Masks In Performance, Dossi, Burkina Faso. Bwa culture, 1984 (wood, mineral pigments, fiber)
part of adolescent initiation rite- “kidnapped,” stripped of clothes, sleep on ground, learn dances, taught world of nature spirits through masks, memorize stories (like Pacific NW)
boys dance, wear costumes they made, girls sing- like Papua, New Guinea- men perform, women audience
masks represent animal forms: crocodile, hyena, hawk, serpent- initiation encoded symbolically
e.g. crescent=moon under which initiation held; x=scarification; zigzags= path of ancestors; white triangle= bull-roarer who recreates spirit voices; hook=hornbill bird, intermediary b/w life & death; at end- now man, ready to join tribe
Spirit Spouse (Blolo Bla), Ivory Coast. Baule culture, early-mid 20th century (wood, glass beads, gold hollow beads, plant fiber, white pigment, encrustation- 19 1/4”)
if trouble bearing children/getting married, go to diviner- advises image of spirit spouse made so spirit inhabits
naturalistic, rounded musculature, details of hairstyle, jewelry, scarification
dress, wash, feed, caress, annoint image to appease spirit
similiar form & function to Yoruba Twin Figures
Julie Mehretu, Dispersion, 2002 (ink & acrylic on canvas- 90” X 144”)
born Ethiopia- work explores search for African identity, layered canvases, large-scale paintings/wall drawings
looks like architectural plans for airports, passenger terminals- conduits for people to congregate, pass through- comment on dispersion of African people
obscure elements w/ cartography, weather maps, calligraphy, graffiti- random lines, bright colors- looks like AbEx but symbolic
implosion/explosion: complexity of identity (coming, going, belonging)- identity of those who left continent?
