Tribal Art

Italian African tribal art collection.
An angular forehead punctuates the diamond hairstyle of this African Lwalwa mask. The gaze is pierced with rectangles in a subtly concave face and the mouth projects under the powerful nose. The Mfondo and Nkaki masks, with their barely dissimilar nasal profile, are difficult to distinguish, but the Mfondo would have a nose reminiscent of a hornbill beak.
Reddish brown patina often from berries (Bixa orellana). Orange highlights. Indigenous restoration at the top. Desication cracks.
The Lwalwa live near the Kasai River, between Angola and Zaire. Historically having a matrilineal society, the Lwalwa after having been influenced by Luba and Songye, adopted a patrilineal system within their rudimentary political and social organization. The male mask nkaki, carved in wood mulela in red or brown color according to ML Félix ("100 People of Zaire and their sculpture") is one of the four types of masks produced by the privileged caste formed by their sculptors: These craftsmen, according to their merits, can become leaders and organize dances, including the balango, (also bangongo) during which acrobatics are performed by young people dancers. These masks, appearing at night to protect women, are exhibited or worn during initiation ceremonies, or to appease the spirits after an unsuccessful hunt.