Tribal Art

br>Close systems of Sudanese regions in tribal art.
The door is made of four planks. Schematized anthropomorphic figures refer to the ancestors and are also associated with traditional sculptures linked to fertility. Beautiful locally abraded matte patina.
Upper Volta, Burkina Faso since independence, is made up of the descendants of the invaders, horsemen who came from Ghana in the 15th century, named Nakomse, and the Tengabibisi, descendants natives. Political power is in the hands of the Nakomsé, who assert their power through statues, while the priests and religious leaders are from the Tengabisi, who use masks during their ceremonies. Animists, the Mossi worship a creator god named Wendé. Each individual would have a soul, sigha, linked to a totemic animal.

The closing systems of the Sudanese regions in African art
This old Dogon door evokes the rich Dogon cosmogony. According to Dogon mythology, the first inhabitants of the Bandiagara area crossed the river on the back of a crocodile. The door is made of three vertical planks held together by a lintel and large metal staples.
The motifs present on the doors in Mali, apart from their decorative value, are intended to deter the intruder, whether human or animal, from entering. The locks, like the doors, are cut in wood chosen according to the function of the building in which they will be used. Because each plant is attributed specific virtues.
Beautiful patina of use rather clear, locally abraded.

Door made up of three panels to which horizontal slats are nailed. The central motif represented is the African mask of the Bwa symbolizing the hornbill or nwo bird. Saurian figures, also sculpted in low relief, refer to the spirits of nature. The dark patina was usually obtained from charcoal and gum tree pods.
Desication cracks, erosions.
A population established on both sides of the Black Volta in Burkina Faso and Mali, the Bwa are divided into three endogamous castes: blacksmiths, griots and farmers. The Bwa believe in a god Difini creator of the world, who later abandoned it to his son Do. Do, whose emblem is an iron rhomb named alive, is supposed to intervene during funerals and agrarian rites. The sheet masks are made by the villagers, only the Bwa of the South, the ...

Old Dogon attic shutter, fitted with its lock. It is made up of two panels joined by metal staples that solidify copper plates. The lock bears fine linear patterns. Grainy brown patina, ocher inlays.
The motifs present on the doors in Mali, apart from their decorative value, are intended to deter the intruder, whether human or animal, from entering. The locks, like the doors, are cut in wood chosen according to the function of the building in which they will be used. Because each plant is attributed specific virtues.

African Art Dogon.
Human and animal bas-reliefs, relating to the rich Dogon cosmogony, alternate on the abraded surface of this old shutter, the contours of which are bordered by a frieze of diamonds. Natural matte patina.
Desication cracks, erosions.
Among the Dogon, the Nommo, the mythical ancestor, is said to have founded the eight lineages of Dogon and instilled weaving, the art of blacksmithing, and agriculture in their human descendants.
The figures may symbolize previous generations, mythical ancestors, but the owners of the attic are also frequently featured. The motifs present on the doors in Mali, apart from their decorative value, are intended to deter the intruder, whether human or animal, from entering. The locks, like the doors, are cut in wood ...

Door carved with numerous motifs referring to the Senufo pantheon. The Kpélié mask of the Poro society occupies a central place. The door is equipped with an antropomorphic lock. Matt patina, residual inlays of kaolin. Indigenous restorations.
Representations of hybrid beings, the African masks zoomorphic masks of the Senufo are worn by members of the Poro society, the institution that controls political and economic life. Their function is to honor elders or appear at funerals, hence their name, poniugo, "funeral head." Living in a reserved neighborhood, the senufo sculptor, whose training lasted seven years,began by making everyday objects, and then, gradually, sported sculptures of increasing size. Initiatory rituals completed his training.

Figurative panel carved with symbolic naturalist motifs, aimed at protecting the chief's house. Represented naked, the female figure presents the half-closed female gaze, named "zanze". These statues were usually part of a fertility cult and were kept in a room in the chief's house.
Medium brown satin patina.
Desication cracks and abrasions.

The Western Pende live on the banks of the Kwilu, while the Eastern settled on the banks of the Kasaï downstream from Tshikapa. The influences of neighboring ethnic groups, Mbla, Suku, Wongo, Leele, Kuba and Salempasu imprinted on their large tribal art sculpture. Within this diversity, the Mbuya masks, realistic, produced every ten years, take on a festive function, and embody different characters, including ...

The closing systems of the Sudanese regions in African art. This panel is formed by an assembly of two vertical boards. Anthropomorphic figures, highly graphic, associated with the rich Dogon cosmogony, enliven the naturally desiccated surface. The figures may symbolize previous generations, mythical ancestors, but the owners of the attic also frequently appear. Light patina. The motifs on doors in Mali, apart from their decorative value, are intended to dissuade intruders, whether human or animal, from entering. The locks and doors are carved in wood chosen according to the function of the building in which they will be used, because each plant is attributed particular virtues.

Closing systems of the Sudanese regions in African art This old Dogon door evokes the rich Dogon cosmogony. According to Dogon mythology, the first inhabitants of the Bandiagara area crossed the river on the back of a crocodile. The door consists of three vertical planks held by a lintel decorated with diamond patterns. The motifs present on the doors in Mali, apart from their decorative value, are intended to deter the intruder, whether human or animal, from entering. The locks, like the doors, are cut in wood chosen according to the function of the building in which they will be used. Because each plant is attributed specific virtues. Beautiful patina of dark use, locally abraded.

French African art collection.
The closing systems of the Sudanese regions in tribal art.
The door consists of two boards assembled by staples. Anthropomorphic figures, schematized, as well as symbolic decorative motifs, appeal to the rich Dogon cosmogony. Figures can symbolize previous generations, mythical ancestors, owners of the attic also appear frequently.
Beautiful alternation of geometric volumes for this old Dogon door of unusual size. Thick black patina, locally chipped.
According to Dogon mythology, Le Nommo founded the eight lineages of Dogon and instilled weaving, blacksmithing, and agriculture in their human descendants. The patterns present on the doors in Mali, apart from their decorative value, are intended to dissuade the intruder, whether human ...

The closing systems of the Sudanese regions in African art .
This flap is formed by an assembly of two vertical boards. A double frieze of anthropomorphic figures, highly simplified, stand out from the background and enliven the naturally desiccated surface. They are related to the rich Dogon cosmogony. These motifs represent previous generations, mythical ancestors as well, but the owners of the attic also appear frequently. It was acquired by Mr. Lefevre on the Bandiagara cliff in 1959. Light patina, dark resinous residue. The shutters closed the openings of the granaries (sorghum or millet) established in high places to protect them from rodents. A ladder allowed access. The motifs on the doors in Mali, apart from their decorative value, are intended to dissuade ...

This ladder allowed access to the mil dogon attics, earth architectures distinguished by a conical straw roof. These attics are fitted at a height of an opening blocked by a shutter and allow the seeds to be stored away from rodents and insects.
Tly beautiful heterogeneous patina mate, abrased by use. Desication cracks.
The Dogon people is renowned in African art for myths and beliefs relating to its cosmogony. Its population is estimated at about 300,000 souls living southwest of the Niger Loop in mali's Mopti region (Bandiagara, Koro, Banka), near Douentza and part of northern Burkina (northwest of Ouahigouya). They produce more than 80 types of masks, the best known of which are the Kanaga, Sirigé, Satimbé, Walu. Most of them are used by the circumcised initiates of the Awa ...

The systems of closure of Sudanese regions in African art
This Dogon gate with a thick crusty patina due to ritual libations evokes by its representations the rich cosmogony Dogon. According to Dogon mythology, breasts evoking the bisexual ancestor Nommo are an allegory of fertility. The series of sculpted kambari-style figures from the south of the Bandiagara cliff hide their faces, alluding to the ceremonies of the binu priests. They often symbolize previous generations, mythical ancestors, but the owners of the attic are also frequently featured. The door consists of two panels that connect metal staples. Desication cracks.
The patterns on the doors in Mali, apart from their decorative value, are intended to deter the intruder, whether human or animal, from entering. Locks, ...

The court art of the chiefdoms of north-west Cameroon is illustrated by prestigious objects such as thrones, statues, beds, ceremonial pipes, box poles.... The style of these sculpted frames is representative of the productions of the peripheral groups, in this case the Mambila. The stylized anthropomorphic, almost geometric motifs are repeated vertically and make up a symbolic language known to the initiates of secret societies abounding throughout the region.
Despite their small number, the thirty thousand Mambila (or Mambilla, Mambere, Nor, Torbi, Lagubi, Tagbo, Tongbo, Bang, Ble, Juli, Bea) (the men, in fulani), installed in the north-west of Cameroon, have created a large number of masks and statues easily identifiable by their heart-shaped faces. Although the Mambila believe ...

The closure systems of the Sudanese regions in African art
This ancient dogon door with its lock evokes by its zoomorphic iconography the rich Cosmogon Dogon. According to Dogon mythology, the first inhabitants of the Bandiagara area crossed the river on the back of a crocodile. These are in fact shown vertically on the door. When characters are present, they symbolize previous generations, mythical ancestors, but the owners of the attic also appear frequently. The door is made up of two vertical panels around a central slat. The whole thing is maintained by horinzontal elements fixed by rafters. A frog motif, another mythical animal, adorns the lock.

The motifs on the doors in Mali, apart from their decorative value, are intended to deter the intruder, whether human or ...