ARTH-212 – History of World Art 2
Instructor: Ann Porter
Office: 304A
Phone: 642-6275
E-mail: AnnPorter@bhsu.edu
Pages 916 to 939 Art of Africa
Lega People
Bwami Mask, page 925
Kongo and Songye People
Nkisi Nkonde, page 926
Zaire, Angola, Congo
The most prolific art form from this area is the nkisi objects, which come in all shapes, mediums, and sizes.
The stratification of Kongo society resulted in much of the art being geared toward those of high status, and
the nkisi figures were one of the only forms available to everyone. Nzambi was the supreme god for all in the
Kongo Kingdom, and the intermediary representations included land and sky spirits and ancestor spirits, all
of whom were represented in nkisi objects. When an individual encountered hardship and feared that a spirit
had been offended, it would be necessary to consult a diviner (nganga), who would often instruct the afflicted
to add medicines to certain nkisi in order to achieve well-being. Although the Portuguese attempted to
Christianize the Kongo peoples as early as 1485, for the most part people either resisted entirely or
incorporated Christian iconography into their own religions.
http://www.uiowa.edu/~africart/toc/people/Kongo.html
Ashanti People, Ghana
Kente Cloth, page 928
Finial, page 916
Ga People, Ghana
Coffins from Ghana, Going into Darkness, page 56-71, page 124-126
For the Ga tribe in coastal Ghana, funerals are a time of mourning, but also of celebration. The Ga people believe that
when their loved ones die, they move on into another life -- and the Ga make sure they do so in style. They honor their
dead with brightly colored coffins that celebrate the way they lived.
The coffins are designed to represent an aspect of the dead person's life -- such as a car if they were a driver, a fish if their
livelihood was the sea -- or a sewing machine for a seamstress. They might also symbolize a vice -- such as a bottle of beer
or a cigarette.
Ablade Glover, an artist who works with the carpenters, says the coffin acts as a home in the afterlife, so it must be
beautiful. But he laments that after putting so much time into creating the coffin, it gets hidden underground.
"By the end of the day, they are going to bury this thing, which has taken so much time, so much energy…" he says.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://69.41.227.74/GHP/img/pics/38639894.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.ghanaw
eb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/photo.day.php%3FID%3D52081&h=265&w=250&sz=13&tbnid=bJiuz7LTKg4J:
&tbnh=107&tbnw=101&start=3&prev=/images%3Fq%3DCoffins%2Bfrom%2BGhana%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3
DG
Inuba Entering the Community, page 935 Kuba people from Congo
http://www.gailmartingallery.com/africa/A157-2web-s.jpg
http://www.marlamallett.com/Kuba_Raffia_Weaver-Congo.jpg
http://antiquarius.photoflex.net/images/graphics/info/learn/lectures/kuba-rug.jpg
Body Painting & Performance Art
Wodaabe (Bororo) People, from Niger, Decorated Skin pages 124-125
At the end of the rainy season, a magnificent celebration called the Geerewol marks the climax of the year for
the Wodaabe. For seven days, men participate in a series of charm and beauty dances judged solely by
women. During the week, women single out the most desirable men. As part of the ritual, Wodaabe men
decorate their faces to appeal to the women spectators.
http://www.geocities.com/robdcx/picsmd/school/wodaabe_crossed.jpg
http://allafrica.com/photoessay/fespaco_2003/
Scarification, Decorated Skin pages 132-137, 146-147, 166-167
Scarification is a permanent form of body decoration that perfects the body in much the same way as
cosmetic surgery. It involves puncturing or cutting patterns and motifs into the dermis or upper levels of skin.
When the cuts heal, scars remain. Different tools produce different types of scars, some subtle, some
pronounced. For example, cutting the skin with a razor and then pulling the skin up with a fishhook or thorn
yeilds large, raised keloids (scars). Soot, used as a sterile irritant, can be rubbed into the open wounds to
make the scarring even more prominent.
Scarification, an important body art for people of many sub-Saharan African cultures, often communicates
elements of the cultural system and religious beliefs of the community. Scarification may also exhibit the
enduring emotional states of the wearer, such as sorrow or well-being. Among the Baule people of the Ivory
Coast, scarification is the ultimate mark of civilization; without these designs, a person is not considered a
member of the community.
http://www.uihealthcare.com/depts/medmuseum/wallexhibits/body/bodyalterations/bodyalterations.html
CONTEMPORARY ART
Flag for a New World Power, page 937
El Anatsui from Ghana
Known for its delightful aesthetic qualities, uli was once widely found throughout much of Igboland. In former days it was
practiced by women who decorated each other's bodies with dark dye in preparation for village events, such as marriage,
title taking, and funerals, and sometimes for market days that were particularly important to Igbo women traders. Uli
designs on the body lasted about a week. Most uli designs were named and often differed among Igbo regions. Some uli
were abstract with zigzag patterns and concentric circles, while others stood for household objects, such as a stool or pot.
Many represented animals, including the python or lizard. Others took the form of plants, such as yam leaves, or celestial
bodies, the crescent moon, and stars. Still others signified cutting and other processes. Igbo women also painted uli murals
on the walls of houses and compounds. Four colors were created from natural substances: black from charcoal, reddish
brown from a dye derived from the camwood tree, yellow from soil or a tree bark, and white from clay. After the British
arrived in Igboland at the beginning of this century, some uli mural painters produced blue from a commercial laundry
additive. The aim of uli was not to express a specific message but to beautify the female body and architecture. In Igbo life,
the aesthetics of beauty is equated with morality. The strong linear qualities of uli lack perspective yet balance positive and
negative space. Uli compositions are often asymmetrical and frequently painted spontaneously. Except for uli on some
shrine walls and those created in conjunction with some community rituals, these paintings generally are not considered
sacred.http://africa.si.edu/exhibits/uli.htm
http://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/LGweb/images/1972_24_172.jpg
http://www.ethnicarts.org/nss-folder/pictureslibrary/El%20Anatsui.jpg
http://www.artasauthority.com/images/El%20Anatsui.jpg
http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=90472&rendTypeId=4
Magdalene Odundo
Magdalene Odundo’s story begins in Kenya where she lived by the sea in Mombasa. Her father’s work as a journalist took
the family to India. Later coming to England as a student and to art school with the original intention of training in graphic
design. A shift of interest to ceramics includes a journey through Ghana and Nigeria in the 1970’s to see village pottery
traditions at first hand and study at Farnham School of Art (now the Surrey Institute) during 1976-1979. Then a period of
work for the Commonwealth Institute as a kind of roving artist in residence before taking an M.A. in ceramics at the Royal
College of Art between 1979-1982.
Magdalene Odundo’s single minded dedication towards making and to building an international career
and reputation combined with a commitment to education has produced a unique body of work, highly
sought by collectors by an artist highly tuned to what young artists are themselves producing around the
world. Museums are amongst her collectors but also a source of access to objects and experience.
http://www.uam.ucsb.edu/Media/odundo_6.GIF
http://www.ceramic.dk/Dansk/M.Odundo2-l.jpg
http://www.ceramic.dk/Dansk/MOdundo2-l.jpg
Julie Mehretu, page 938
http://graphics.boston.com:80/resize/bonzai-fba/Globe_Photo/2008/05/22/1211513415_6943/539w.jpg
http://cn.cl2000.com/bbs/img/image77191s.jpg
Art to remember for Exam:
Bwami Mask, 28-8
Power Figure (Nkisi Nkonde), 28-9
Flag for a New World Power, 28-21
Dispersion, 28-22
Vocabulary to remember for Exam:
Nkisi, Nkondo, Bilongo, diaspora
Bibliography:
Text
Groning, Decorated Skin; Thames & Hudson, 1997
Meyer, Black Africa; Terrail, 1992
Secretan, Going into Darkness; Thames & Hudson, 1995