4/8 Warm- up #1
We’ve briefly talked about masks before in art class.
But in your own opinion,
What are masks used for?
Where have you seen masks?
Why do people where them?
When are they worn?
Are they in your own culture? Explain.
Draw a mask that you have seen before.

African Masks: Nigeria
African masks art objects were, and are still made of various materials, included are leather, metal, fabric and various types of wood. They’re considered amongst the finest creations in the art world and are highly sought after by art collectors.

During celebrations, initiations, crop harvesting, war preparation, peace and trouble times, African masks are worn by a chosen or initiated dancer. It can be worn in three different ways: vertically covering the face: as helmets, encasing the entire head, and as crest, resting upon the head, which was commonly covered by material as part of the disguise. African masks often represent a spirit and it is strongly believed that the spirit of the ancestors possesses the wearer.

Shown here is the Epa
Mask carved by the
Yoruba people. Epa masks are carved from soft and light-wooded trunks of the e’ruku tree.
Other Nigerian Masks…

Ife Art
Ife art opens our eyes to the astonishingly realistic human figures cast in metal or terra cotta more than half a millennium ago in the ancient West African city-state of Ife
(pronounced EE-fay).
The finest were made between the 11th and 15th centuries, when the Ife kingdom was at the height of its power.
Important people were often depicted with large heads because the artists believed that the Ase was held in the head, the Ase being the inner power and energy of a person.

For your project, you will….
- Complete TWO sketches in your DW of a Nigerian Mask using line, shape, and patterns.
- Draw one FINAL sketch on designated paper to transfer onto your piece of metal.
- Think about all of the characteristics of African and Nigerian masks; who would wear your mask and when? What is the purpose of your mask?
- Learn about metal embossing and how to do this using the materials provided
- Complete a backing for your metal mask using Nigerian motifs of shapes and patterns.

Today:
-Look through Nigerian and African mask images in the
PowerPoint, the books, on the cabinet, and online.
-- Complete TWO sketches in your DW (half page each) of a Nigerian mask using characteristics from the images.
Focus on patterns, shape, texture, unity.
-- Decide on a final mask and complete a final sketch.
Keep it simple yet bold and creative.
-- If you finish, in your DW begin to describe your mask.
Who would wear it, when, why, where? What materials would you make it out of?
--Write a narrative story about your mask.