Chapter 37: Africa, 1800 to 1980

Preview: Traditional art forms continued to be practiced in Africa into the 19th century, including sculptures venerating ancestors and reliquaries, and objects in the service of African kings. African sculptors in the 19th century were masters of figural woodcarving, developing a range of styles but retaining the traditional hierarchy of scale; excellent examples of these sculptures come from Kongo, Dogon and Baule. In the 20th century, the names of African artists are more frequently known, and some artists, such as the Asante sculptor Osei Bonsu, gain considerable fame. Traditional African art in this period ranges from figural and architectural sculpture, to masks, costumes and jewelry, symbols of royal power including crowns, thrones, and scepters. A contemporary African artwork in which traditionalism and modernism unite is the Dogon togu na or “Men’s house of words.”

Key Cultural Terms: asye usu, waka sran, ogoga

Key Art & Architectural Terms: nduen fobara, reliquary, mbulu ngulu, bieri, bocio, pfemba, nkisi n’kondi, kente cloth, akua’ba, linguist’s staff, Satimbe, mbari house, togu na

Lecture Notes:

Introductory Notes:

AFRICA, 1800 TO 1980

19th Century:

  • Ancestral screen (nduen fobara), Kalabari Ijaw, Nigeria, late 19th century
  • Medium, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

San:

  • Stock raid with cattle, horses, and encampment, rock painting, San, from Bamboo Mountain, South Africa, mid-19th century
  • Medium, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:
  • Magical “rain animal,” rock painting, San, fromBamboo Mountain, South Africa, mid-19th century
  • Medium, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Fang and Kota:

  • Reliquary guardian figure (biere), Fang, Gabon, late 19th century
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:
  • Reliquary guardian figure (mbulu ngulu), Kota, Gabon, 19th or early 20th century
  • Medium, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Bamum:

  • Throne and footstool of King Nsangu, Bamum, Cameroon, ca. 1870
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Fon:

  • Akati Akpele Kendo, Warrior figure (Gu?), from the palace of King Glele, Abomey, Fon, Republic of Benin, 1858-1859
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Kongo:

  • Yombe mother and child (pfemba), Kongo, Democratic Republic of Congo, late 19th century
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:
  • Nail figure (nkisi n’kondi), Kongo, from Shiloango River area, Democratic Republic of Congo, ca. 1875-1900
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Chokwe:

  • Chibinda Ilunga, Chokwe, from Angola or Democratic Republic of Congo, late 19th to 20th century
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Dogon:

  • Seated couple, Dogon, Mali, ca. 1800-1850
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Baule:

  • Male and female figures, probably bush spirits (asye usu), Baule, Côte d’Ivoire, late 19th or early 20th century
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

20th Century:

Benin:

  • Royal ancestral altar of King Eweka II, in the palace in Benin City, Nigeria
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Asante:

  • Osei Bonsu, Akua’ba (Akua’s child), Asante, Ghana, ca. 1960
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:
  • Osei Bonsu, two men sitting at a table of food (linguist’s staff), Asante, Ghana, mid-20th century
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Yoruba:

  • Olowe of Ise, doors from the shrine of the king’s head in the royal palace, Ikere, Yoruba, Nigeria, 1910-1914
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:
  • Olowe of Ise, veranda post, Akure, 1920s
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Senufo:

  • Senufo masqueraders, Côte d’Ivoire, photographed ca. 1980-1990
  • Description, function & significance:
  • Ancient Mother, Senufo, early 20th century
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:
  • “Beautiful Lady” dance mask, Senufo, Côte d’Ivoire, late 20th century
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Dogon:

  • Satimbe masquerader, Dogon, Mali, mid- to late-20th century
  • Description, function & significance:

Mende:

  • Female mask, Mende, Sierra Leone, mid- to late-20th century
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Kuba:

  • Bwoom masquerader, Kuba, Democratic Republic of Congo, photographed ca. 1950
  • Description, function & significance:
  • Ngady Amwaash mask, Kuba, Democratic Republic of Congo, late 19th or early 20th century
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:
  • Kuba King Kot a-Mbweeky III during a display for photographer and filmmaker Eliot Elisofon in 1970, Mushenge, Democratic Republic of Congo
  • Description, function & significance:

Samburu:

  • Sumburu men and women dancing, northern Kenya, photographed in 1973
  • Description, function & significance:

Igbo:

  • Ala and Amadioha, painted clay sculptures in an mbari house, Igbo, Umugote Orishaeze, Nigeria, photographed 1966
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Contemporary Art:

  • Togu na (men’
  • Materials, scale:
  • Description, subject & stylistic features:
  • Function & significance:

Concluding notes:

Exercises for Study:

1. Define the following terms, associate them with a specific culture and describe their function:

asye usu

nkisi n’kondi

mbulu ngulu

2. Discuss the function and subjects represented in the ancestral screen (nduen fobara), Kalabari Ijaw, Nigeria (37-1).

3. Compare and contrast the following pair of artworks, using the points of comparison as a guide.

A. Bieri, Fang, Gabon (Fig. 37-4); mbulu ngulu, Kota, Gabon (Fig. 37-5)

  • Cultures:
  • Stylistic features:
  • Function & use:

B. Nail figure (nkisi n’kondi), Kongo (Fig. 37-9); Osei Bonsu, Akua’ba, Asante (Fig. 37-14)

  • Materials:
  • Subjects:
  • Function & use of objects:
  • Users of objects:

C. “Beautiful Lady” dance mask, Senufo (Fig. 37-18); female mask, Mende (Fig. 37-20)

  • Materials:
  • Subjects:
  • Stylistic features:
  • Function & use of objects:
  • Users of objects: