Gorecki1
Justin Gorecki
ARTH:1049
Wendy Parker
16 November 2015
Colonial Oppression of the Lega
Selfishness is a trait that can cause others to suffer. This suffering usually happens due to a selfish entitywho takes without giving. The tragedy of selfishness rears its head in the Colonial era in Africa. The Lega people in the Congo were exploited by way of colonialism for Belgium’s profit.This was not all that happened to the Lega people; their way of life was under threat as well. Theinnate selfishness of colonialism in the Congo caused the almost total destruction of the Bwami society and thus the traditional Lega art style, including the Lukwakongo mask (fig. 1); however, their metaphors survived due to the abstract nature of their art.
The Bwami society plays a central role in the structure ofLega society, and it provides moral guidance to the community. Bwami is an organization that permeates the entirety of Lega society across all of their villages. According to African art history author Monica Visona, Bwami is a “philosophical society, [which] teaches principles of moral perfection through proverbs, dances, and the presentation of objects in special contexts.” The society is voluntary and is divided into separate grade levels.[1]It is mainly concerned with maintaining moral order. Some examples of the types of morals that are taught within the Bwami society are: “filial respect, marital fidelity, non-violence, and cooperation.”[2]One can view the society as a traditional, educational entity with political power. A member of Bwami has the freedom to advance to different grade levels until they reach the highest level.[3]
To better understand how Bwami metaphors are traditionally taught, one must first come to know the objects that display these metaphors themselves. Since “the Bwami society is the context for the production of most Lega art work, which includes ivory and wooden statuettes and masks,” Bwami uses these art objects to teach initiates as well as the general public their beliefs.[4]
The Lukwakongomask (fig. 1) fits the role of one of these teaching art objects. It is an ambiguous mask and because of this it can take on many different meanings. The mask itselflooks like an abstracted version of a human face with a beard extending from the chin. This carved wood mask is eight by five inches with the beard hanging down roughly sixteen inches. The face of the Lukwakongo is concave with the eyes being thin convex, horizontal football shapes with small horizontal slits in the middle. The main part of the face is carved away from the rest of the head to form a concave portion where the eyes, mouth, cheeks, and chin are formed. This concave part of the face is a light wood colored brown with white bordering the eyes and nose. The white splotches bordering the eyes and nose are painted on using pigment. The nose is long and thin and extends down from the convex forehead, forming the middle part of the heart-shaped face. The mouth is slightly off-center and is carved into the main part of the face, which contrasts directly with the two convex eyes. The mouth and eyes are all roughly the same size. Overall, the piece is quite symmetric at first glance; however upon closer inspection one would notice that one eye is slightly larger than the other one. Also, the whole mask appears to be slightly tilted. Beneath the wooden portion of the mask is a long beard about twice the length of the head. It is composed of blonde plant fibers. The fibers are all hanging from a band which rests directly below the chin. There is linear emphasis on the nose and eyes, with the line of the nose being vertical with the slits of the eyes having emphasis on the horizontal. Overall, the mask lacks detail, but that is only so it can take on many different forms within the context it is used.
The reason this type of maskhas such an abstract, simple style is twofold. First, the abstract form of the mask allows the Bwami society to place many different meanings onto the mask depending on how it is used. Second, the abstract form of the mask is analogous to the abstract concepts it can represent. The mask takes on different meanings depending on the context it is used in. For example, Lukwakongothat are “hung on a fence or placed on the ground may be a reminder of war and destruction.”[5] The Lega call the masks in this context “skulls of the Banamuningi, a legendary group wiped out by its enemies.”[6] In a different context,“masked initiates are referred to as tumbukutuor ndoku, insects that all look alike, to emphasize the spirit of oneness and solidarity which guides them.”[7] Both of these examples, amongst many others show that the same mask can take on radically different meanings. This can only be achieved due to the abstract form of the mask. If it were detailed, the specifics of the mask would not allow for such different meanings. It must be abstract and simple in order for it to function as a teaching tool of a variety of lessons. In addition, the example of the Lukwakongo mask makes it clear that Bwami art objects are used to teach positive morals. Each of the lessons taught with the Lukwakongomasks either display thoughtful warnings, or insightful values. A modern onlooker would view Bwami as a force of good in the Lega society based on the preceding facts.
Despite its relatively secretive nature, Bwami is not an isolated entity; during the era of colonialism, many outsiders were able to observe and report the society. The colonial officers generally held negative perspectives toward the Bwami. According to an official report from 1916, “Bwami’s most serious offense … is that it hampers all efforts of regrouping people and propagating Western ideas.”[8] From this one can see a western colonial officer who wishes to spread the ideas of his own society onto a foreign one. However, due to the fact that the Bwami society was deeply ingrained in the Lega people at the time, the organized collective was able to resist outsider influences and maintain their own ideals. According to Legascholar Daniel Biebuyck, “Bwami can act effectivelyagainst slave raiding, colonial administration, and missionary activity, and can prevent the introduction and spread of new ideas.”[9]Since the Bwami could effectively resist outsider influences, it makes sense that Westerners who would want to exert their influence on the Bwami would be frustrated by its very existence.
Other colonialists tried to spin the narrative to demonize the Bwami society. Colonial reports claim, “[Bwami’s] power must be destroyed” on the basis that it is “only a vulgar exploitation of the native.”[10] Since scholars have done objective research into the Bwami society, we know that such a claim is completely off basebecause Bwami actually teaches the Lega positive values through ritual. These brash claims were only made to advance the interests of the colonials. Scholars at UCLA claim, “Under that early colonial rule the Bwami society, with its ritual activities, was seen as a threat to the government and an obstacle to those interested in collecting ivory.”[11] From these two examples of colonials attempting to further their own interests with absolutely no regard to the indigenous people’s culture, philosophy, or society, one can see that the Lega people’s way of life was under threat from unwelcome outside influences.
Not only was the Bwami attacked by certain colonials, it was completely abolished as well. Bwami was officially outlawed in 1933 and formally abolished in 1948.[12]Here we see the cost of colonialism in the form of repression of a tradition and way of life. An outside influence came to their land, it exploited the land for its resources, it exploited their people for workers, and it abolished Bwami in order to circumvent Bwami’s natural resistance to its own influence.The self interest of the colonials is what caused such injustices to be committed. A main goal of colonialism isto gain wealth and bring it home to the mother country from a different land. This selfish nature of colonialism can be seen especially in Legaland, where colonials caused great despair within the Lega people for their own gain.
Not only did colonials’ selfishness cause political injustice, it also caused great humanitarian crimes. Since colonialism is an ideology in which the central governing body is mainly concerned with self, the Belgian colonials had no regard for the people of foreign countries. The treatment of the Lega people during the colonial era was horrific, and only carried out for the gain of Belgium. The main reason Belgium was even involved in the Congo and thus Legaland is that King Leopold II was displeased with his own kingdom. To Leopold, his native Belgium was much too small a domain to rule over, so he wanted to expand his kingdom.[13]“His drive for colonies… was shaped by a desire not only for money but for power.”[14] Leopold’s drive to expand the Belgian empire is based solely around selfish interests. The money that was to be made in the Congo was mainly sourced from rubber. As a result of Leopold’s selfish attitude, policies were instated that if “a village refused to submit to the rubber regime, state or company troops . . . shot everyone in sight to get their message across to the neighboring villages.”[15] This policy was not the end of violent acts carried out in the name of profit. European officers would demand that there be proof of the killings. Proof was provided in the form of a severed right hand, sometimes cut from the wrist of a living person.[16] These tragedies were all carried out purely to send a message, so that other villages nearby would submit to colonial rule. These injustices carried out in the name of selfishness and profit are irrevocably evil due to such a large loss of life.
Despite the physical and societal damage that had been dealt by colonials, Bwami ideology and art managed to stick around throughout the terror. “The society continued to exist—hidden and perhaps in altered forms—and to produce initiation objects.”[17]Bwami’s resilience allowed for their sustained existence, despite the fact that “[colonial officers] may have targeted the artists, who then chose to forgo Bwami commissions.”[18]This type of behavior from the colonials essentially eliminated the production of traditional Lega art. The displays and performances done with the Lukwakongo mask would all but disappear as a result of this type of targeting.
One would expect that the end of Bwami and their art would mean an end of the ideas that they hold, especially since Bwami was the mechanism for teaching Lega ideals. This may seem like a given, but one must remember that ideas can be expressed in a variety of ways. Bwami’s ideas were able to survive by adapting to its surroundings.To provide a counter to colonial targeting, Bwami produced objects that were even more abstract and Western so that they would not be sought out by officers. “New materials often took on double meanings. Biebuyck records a light bulb being used with the saying ‘He who seduces the wife of a great-one, eats an egg with rotten odor.’”[19] By using this seemingly innocent object, Bwami members were able to teach their metaphors without fear of becoming victims of colonialism. This proves that theBwami are both resilient and innovative with their ideas.They abstracted a lightbulb in order to match their saying that has to do with an egg. The fact that the ideas of the Bwami persisted in this way proves just how resilient those human beings were in the face of evil. The Lega were able to carry on as their own people without completely succumbing to foreign ideals.
It is known that the Bwami was eliminated, on paper,by the Belgian colonial force. As a result, traditional Lega art such as the Lukwakongo started to disappear. However, Bwami was able to keep propagating its own ideas in that it abstracted its art forms even further. The loss of a tradition is a social tragedy and was mainly caused by the selfishness of another nation. Selfish actions can go so far as to harm other beings. Selfish behavior, especially on a national scale is not conducive to producing a harmonious environment. It exploits the other, for one’s own gain. Selfishness breeds sorrow, and sorrow is something that humans should want to avoid at all costs.
Bibliography
Biebuyck, Daniel P. Lega Culture: Art, Initiation, and Moral Philosophy among a Central African People. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1973.
Cameron, Elisabeth L. "Art of the Lega: Meaning and Metaphor in Central Africa." African Arts 35, no. 2 (2002): 44-65, 92.
Hochschild, Adam. King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1998.
Visona, Monica Blackmun, “Societies of the Lega, the Bembe, the Mbole, and the Azande.” In A History of Art in Africa, Monica Blackmun Visona, Robin Poyner, and Herbert M. Cole,414-418. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2008.
Figure 1:Lukwakongo mask: made by
theBwami society of the Lega people
who reside in the Democratic Republic
of the Congo. It is made of carved wood,
plant fiber and pigment.
University of Iowa Museum of Art
The Stanley Collection, X1986.571
[1]Monica Blackmun Visona, “Societies of the Lega, the Bembe, the Mbole, and the Azande.” in A History of Art in Africa, Monica Blackmun Visona (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2008), 414.
[2]Elizabeth Cameron "Art of the Lega: Meaning and Metaphor in Central Africa," African Arts 35, no. 2 (2002): 48
[3]Visona, “Societies of the Lega,” 414
[4] “Lega,” Art & Life in Africa - The University of Iowa Museum of Art, last updated 2014, (accessed October 16, 2015).
[5] Daniel Biebuyck, Lega Culture: Art, Initiation, and Moral Philosophy among a Central African People (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1973), 213.
[6] Ibid., 213.
[7] Ibid., 213.
[8] Ibid., 61.
[9] Ibid., 67.
[10] Ibid., 61.
[11]"Art of the Lega: Unit 2: Art as a Link to the Past," Fowler Museum at UCLA, (accessed October 16, 2015).
[12]Cameron "Art of the Lega,” 63.
[13]Adam Hochschild,King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa. (Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1998),38.
[14] Ibid., 39
[15] Ibid., 165
[16] Ibid., 165
[17]Cameron, “Art of the Lega,” 63.
[18] Ibid., 63
[19] Ibid., 63