Tribal Art

As if carved in stone, this mask features a face with a brow bone, a thick nose and jaw. Comparatively narrow, the eyelids have a slight asymmetry. Long, rectangular ear flaps run along the face, which is topped with a crenellated horizontal crest. Abraded speckled patina.
The Ibibios are a people of West Africa, mainly present in the south-east of Nigeria (State of Akwa Ibom), but also in Ghana, Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea. Secret societies are numerous among the Ibibio settled west of the Cross River. Without a centralized government, their social organization is comparable to that of the neighboring Igbo. Ancestor worship is under the authority of the highest-ranking members of the Ekpo. The latter use masks such as the idiok, related to fallen spirits, and the mfon, ...

Consecrated by the nganga, equipped with symbolic accessories and talismans placed between the metal elements, this statuette meets the criteria of nksi objects. The Vili produced a variety of carvings for individual use nkisi, to which multiple virtues were attributed.
The Vili , the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembe, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo formed the Kôngo group, led by King ntotela . With the same beliefs and traditions, their statuary is endowed with a codified gesture in relation to their vision of the world. Present along the Gabonese coast, the Vili broke away from the Kongo kingdom in the 16th century and the Loango kingdom became a powerful state. The nganga sorcerers, both healers, were in charge of religious activities and mediation towards the God ...

This African mask Makonde would embody an ancestral spirit. The ancestors would return masked in order to mark their satisfaction following the initiation. The modeling of the face in which the features pierce gives a particular naturalism to this mask which reveals an old yellow patina covering a first flesh-colored coating. In view of the perforations on the sides, accessories (hair, textiles, etc.) had to adorn the head. Abrasions, chips and cracks. br> Height on base: 30 cm.
The Makonde of northern Mozambique and southern Tanzania wore helmet masks called lipiko during initiation ceremonies for young people. The Makonde venerate an ancestor, which explains the abundance of naturalistic female statuary. Besides the face masks worn during mapiko dances and ngoma ceremonies that ...

In African art, sculpted works or N 'Kétuok , in Bamiléké country, are distinguished by a regular use of cowries and pearls, sewn on a raffia canvas, marrying in a learned polychromy. . The latter make it possible to identify the chiefdom from which they come. These prestigious statues representing servants, were arranged alongside the royal throne on the occasion of certain ceremonies and originate from one of the nine Bangwa kingdoms located in the west of the Bamiléké country.
The body position is classic with the lower and upper limbs bent. The neck is highlighted by a series of multicolored necklaces ending in a plastron.
Among the Bamiléké as in other ethnic groups, works of art testified to their owner's place in society. Thus, the materials and shapes of the ...

The Ibeji, surrogate images in African art .
Traditionally carved from iroko, whose roots and leaves are also used for ritual purposes, this stocky "ere" (statue) figure of a twin has been vigorously carved. The massive head, from which the eyes protrude, is framed by large ears and engraved with scarification marks.
Satin patina, erosions. In the language of the Yoruba people, ibeji means twin: ibi for born and eji for two. They represent the figure of a deceased twin. This ibedji is then treated as the missing child would have been. It is the mother who must take care of him; she can wash and feed him regularly. If she dies, it is the remaining twin who takes over.
Sometimes a man would also have ibeji carved for his wife to induce pregnancy. As a carrier of ...

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.

A source of inspiration for sculptors, wild and domestic animals also form the subjects of puppet masks such as this ancient and imposing animal figure of an ox or a cow which is extended by a handle.
Matte polychrome patina, erosions and desication cracks. Height on base: 61 cm.

The Bozo , fishermen and farmers for the most part, live in the northern part of the Bambara country in the interior delta of the Niger and still remain semi-nomadic today, moving their homes according to seasonal floods. Mande-speaking people, they speak Sorogama. Within their group, we distinguish the Sorko or Sorogo, the Hain, and the Tie. Besides their remarkable masks, the Bozo and the Bambara are famous for their puppets of various sizes and frequently articulated, exhibited during the ...

Evoking a miniature stool, this cup for grinding ingredients such as tobacco, spices or pigments, is carried by four curved legs on which human features are engraved. Dark brown satin patina, locally lightened. Desication crack.
For the Dan of Côte d'Ivoire, also called Yacouba, two very distinct universes oppose each other: that of the village, made up of its inhabitants, its animals, and that of the forest, its vegetation and the animals and spirits that live there. populate. For these spirits to settle, a specific area of the forest is designated and still preserved outside the dan villages. Sacrifices are also required in order to communicate through these spirits. Different types of dan masks have been listed, each with a specific function.

Mask with a particularly naturalistic model allowing the skeleton of a face to be imagined. Missing on one ear. Reddish brown patina encrusted with ocher deposits.
Height on base: 33 cm.

In the southern coastal region of Tanzania, around Dar-es-Salaam, a relatively homogeneous group produced most of the artistic productions. It includes the Swahili, Kaguru, Doé, Kwéré, Luguru, Zaramo, Kami. The second region is made up of a territory covering southern Tanzania to Mozambique, where some Makonde and the Yao, the Ngindo, Mwéra, and Makua live. In the North-East of Tanzania, the Chaga, Paré, Chamba, Zigua, Massaï, Iraqw, Gogo, and Héhé have an artistic production presenting similarities with Malagasy and Batak art, which could be explained by commercial exchanges by Sea ...

Justice rituals and African Fang masks. The protruding forehead, extended by a powerful nose, dominates here the flatness of the face in which the eyes and the mouth are incised. The engraved motifs, referring to the scarifications in use, are enhanced with pink ocher and black. An exceptional patina of use is partially flaking, erosions mark the contours.

Dense wood, dry abraded patina. Cracks of desiccation.
The appearance of these masks coated with kaolin (the white color evokes the power of the ancestors), in the middle of the night, could cause dread. This type of mask was used by the male ngil society in northwestern Gabon, southern Cameroon, and Equatorial Guinea. This secret society was in charge of initiations and fought against witchcraft.
The ngil ...

Sculpture evoking a female ancestor whose massive head wears a tiara incised with bars. At the back of the head, the hairstyle is organized in a cruciform element. The body is proportionally compacted, the hands joining the abdomen. Usually made of iroko, these ritual sculptures were venerated by a particular clan and stored in a funerary room in the chief's house. Locally matted patina. Desiccation cracks, missing parts. The Hemba, established in southeastern Zaire on the right bank of the Lualaba, were long subject to the neighboring Luba empire, which had a definite influence on their culture, religion, and art. Ancestor worship, whose effigies have long been attributed to the Luba, is central to hemba society. Genealogy is indeed the guarantor of privileges and land ...

Streaked with vertical marks, the face of this human figurine has half-closed eyes stretched towards the temples, like some of the traditional masks of the group. The posture is rectilinear, the bust however hardly inclined forward, and the tips of the fingers rest on the pelvis. A hole on the top of the head has been filled in, suggesting that a horn must have been inserted. Lustrous patina, golden brown. Tribe of the Tabwa group, the Rungu are established in a region between the D.R.C. (Democratic Republic of Congo), Zambia and Tanzania. Under the influence of the neighboring Lubas and Bemba, the Rungu produced prestigious objects for dignitaries, stools, combs, spoons and scepters, frequently decorated with figures of couples or twins evoking the primordial ancestors. Their ...

The therapeutic figures of the Kasongos, used by healers, were inspired by Songye fetishes. The magical charge, composed of ingredients of various origins, was inserted into the head cavity. The very dense wood is inlaid with metal like the Songye fetishes. The head of this stocky character, established in a quasi-crouched posture, is a Kasongo specificity. Matt patina. Abrasions, erosions and cracks.
The Kusu established on the left bank of the Lualaba have borrowed the artistic traditions of the Luba and the Hemba and possess a caste system similar to that of the Luba . The Kasongos form a Kusu subgroup, now scattered among the Luba, Songye, and Hemba. The singiti statues were kept by the fumu mwalo and honored in ceremonies during which sacrifices were ...

A golden, lustrous surface accompanies this OviMbundu bust sculpture. The top of the head is encrusted with ritual materials. This fetish was associated with female initiation rituals, linked to fertility, or played a role during divinatory ceremonies. The rectangular arms extend from short fingered hands under a small chest. The head, offering an oval face with fine features, wears a hairstyle pulled back. Orange patina, dark traces of ritual anointing, desiccation cracks.
It is on the Benguela plateau in Angola that the Ovimbudu, Ovimbundu, have been established for several centuries, made up of farmers and breeders. Forming the largest ethnic group in Angola, they belong to Bantu speakers, such as Nyaneka, Handa, Nkhumbi, and other groups from the region of Huila, or ...

Carved in a dense wood, this seat figures a human head, offering sketchy features, and carrying a cup that forms the circular seat. Patina of use, significant erosion and cracks from desiccation. Living in the east of the Luba kingdom on the banks of the Mbujimayi, and having adopted part of the Luba culture, the Kanyok, Kanioc, or Bena Kanioka, created prestigious objects, such as water pipes, neck rests, sticks, and stools, and are especially famous for statuettes represented in different postures, made of dark wood and wearing bun hairstyles.  According to the Kanyok religion, the human being is composed of three parts: body, soul and spirit.  They believe in a supreme being called Tang a Ngoy.  The initiation of young people traditionally included, in addition to circumcision, the ...

Ex Belgian African art collection. Rectangular neckrest, dense and massive, adopting cephalomorphic handles. Patina of use, veined wood, glossy.
The Tabwa ("to scarify" and "to write") constitute an ethnic group present in the southeast of the DRC, around Lake Tanganyika. Tribes in this region, such as the Tumbwe , worship ancestors mipasi through carvings held by chiefs or sorcerers. Simple cultivators with no centralized power, the Tabwa federated around tribal chiefs after coming under the influence of the Luba. It was mainly during this period that their artistic current was expressed mainly through statues but also masks. The Tabwa practiced ancestor worship and dedicated some of their statues to them. Animists, their beliefs are anchored around the ngulu , nature ...

Ngala statuary bears the influence of groups from the northwest of the Democratic Republic of Congo, such as the Ngombe and the Ngbandi. Probably originating from Sudan, the Ngala settled on the shores of Zaire. Wise traders, they also became famous for the art of blacksmithing and the production of weapons and metal coins. Their traditionalist nyanga doctors provided magical charms to promote hunting and fertility. Figurative sculptures related to mythical ancestors are used in cults similar to the yanda, with large statues forming clan emblems. Their musical instruments, also very diverse, are often anthropomorphic.
A balanced morphology composed of linear planes for this statuette represented in a rectilinear posture. The whole could skillfully indicate vigor and courage. His ...

Protective metal fetish, melted by the gan blacksmith using the lost wax technique. It is an individual statuette embodying the spirit of the "genies" and kept on oneself permanently. Old patina of use, grainy. Neighboring people of the Lobi in southwestern Burkina Faso, the Gan or Kaa (Kaaba pl.), form a "relic people" according to Madeleine Père, living within a wooded savanna. Their king "Gan Massa" is elected by the notables from different villages. Hypotheses diverge as to their origins. According to some, they could be of Akan origin, coming from Ghana, the Koulango and the Lhoron having preceded them in the region.

Ref : "Bronzes Gan" Maine Durieu, ed. Sepia

Cephalomorphic headdress with a handle, a figurative chief's insignia marked by Tschokwe influence. The headdress would be of the "guhota sanga" style worn around the 1950s . (p.7 "Pende" Z.S. Strother - ed. 5Continents) Black glossy patina.
The Western Pende live on the banks of the Kwilu, while the Eastern have settled on the banks of the Kasai downstream from Tshikapa. The influences of the neighboring ethnic groups, Mbla, Suku, Wongo, Leele, Kuba, and Salempasu have been imprinted on their extensive tribal art sculpture. Within this diversity the Mbuya masks, realistic ,produced every ten years, have a festive function, and embody different characters, including the chief, the diviner and his wife, the prostitute, the possessed, etc.... The masks of initiation and those ...

Carved in dense wood, the sculpture features a woman whose head is turned towards the child she is carrying. A great softness emanates from this figurative scene treated in rounded volumes, and faces with peaceful physiognomies. Mahogany patina with a golden satin finish, kaolin residue.
Inspired by Christian religious subjects, this African sculpture of a saint draped in a stole, carrying a child on her side, reflects the impact of the Christianization of Kongo. When these objects were not made for a local parish, they were frequently reused in fetish cults for diviners and chiefs. Statuettes of a virgin in fact formed the tops of canes of authority mvwala.
The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembé, the Bwende, the Yombé, and the Kôngo formed the Kôngo ...

Basketry helmet, topped with an animal figure rising from a cap. Textile underlines the contours of the headdress, and girdles the head of an animal. The latter is streaked with intersecting lines. Velvety matt patina. Piece collected in 1986 on the Bandiagara cliff.
The Dogon people are renowned in African tribal art for the myths and beliefs relating to their cosmogony.
His population is estimated at about 300,000 souls living southwest of the Niger loop in the Mopti region of Mali (Bandiagara, Koro, Banka), near Douentza and part of northern Burkina (northwest of Ouahigouya).More than 80 types of masks have been listed, the best known of which are the Kanaga , Sirigé , Satimbé , Walu . Most of them are used by the circumcised initiates of the Awa society, during funeral ...