The Bwa and Nuna live in the dry savannah land of central Burkina Faso. Like other peoples in this area, the Bwa and Nuna seek the help of powerful spirits who live in the wild forests, bush country, and rivers surrounding their villages. Wishing to control these forces and enlist their help against the powers of destruction, the Bwa and Nuna create masks that make the spirits visible and put them in touch with the people. Nuna animal spirit masks depict the nature spirits associated with such powerful animals as the hawk, buffalo, and crocodile, which live in the forests and rivers near the village. The masks are owned by families and clans who enlist the spirits to help and protect them. Dancing these masks on market days and at funerals and initiation ceremonies honors the spirits and brings forth their blessings. The photo at the left, taken by Christopher Roy, shows a fish mask (foreground) and a crocodile mask dancing on market day in the town of Dossi
Nuna animal masks follow a general stylistic pattern. They have large round protruding eyes, surrounded by concentric circles, and a short triagular shaped snout. Decorative geometric patterns cover the whole surface. The masked dancers perform at market days, funerals, and initiations. Accompained by drummers beating the special rhythm of each mask and greeted by the audience with songs, each dancer gives a solo performance, while the rest look on. The buffalo masker begins by standing motionless in the center of the dance circle while "staring" into the distance, as if perceiving a possible threat in the distance. Suddenly, the dancer moves forward, stamping his feet and violently tossing his head up and down, in defiance of any perceived danger. Performing before a large audience in this fashion is the way Nuna families and clans honor the powerful animal spirits living in the world around them and gain their protection and blessings.
Carved wooden masks among the Nuna represent protective spirits that take animal form, such as the hawk. This hawk mask is carved with an animal snout instead of the round mouth which is typical of the style made by their neighbors, the Bwa, from whom the Nuna borrow many of their masks. The hawk's wings display geometric patterns that refer to moral principles. The zigzag lines flanking the face signify the "path of the ancestors," a difficult moral path that all people must follow if they are to succeed in life. The checkerboard pattern represents ignorance and knowledge, dark and light. The mask honors the spirit of the hawk in order to obtain its protection and blessings. The dancer wearing the mask imitates the movements of a hawk in flight, rotating the mask around his face and swooping his body from side to side in a vigorous dance, follwing the special rhythm of the drumers standing nearby.
Tall plank masks such as this one, called Nwantantay, represent flying spirits from the bush. These spirits have no natural shape and hence are portrayed in abstract geometric form. The spirits embodied in the masks bless the families that own the mask and dance it in public. The patterns on the mask have meanings known only to initiates: the large Xs refer to the sacrification marks on the foreheads of initiated men; the checkerboard pattern represents the separation between good and evil, wise from stupid, male from female; the large white crescent on top of the plank denotes the "moon of the masks" that shines during the seasons when the masks perform.
Admired for their delicate beauty, the famous white-face masks of the Punu people have appealed to Western museum collectors for over a century. The okuyi or mukudj mask portrays Punu ideals of feminine beauty: elegant coiffure, rounded forehead, highly arched eyebrows, almond shaped eyes, narrow face, and small chin. The sculptured line between the nose and ears on this mask represents an ornamental chain of jewelry. The mask's white color signfies both beauty and spirituality, for Punu femine beauty is associated with the whiteness of the spirit world. Worn by a dancer on six-foot tall stilts, the performer's graceful acrobatic feats of bending and twisting are admired by all. The mukudj dance is experienced as an awesome expression of mystical forces, performed by men who have obtained the power of spirits to perform their spectacular dances. Danced at times of public celebration and at funerals, one Punu elder has said that the mukudj dance "is the symbol of Punu culture that is eternal, that is enduring."
Female Mask,Nimba
Baga peoples, Guinea
Wood
The Nimba mask, one of the most massive used in Sub-Saharan Africa, symbolizes the power of life-giving fertility. It portrays the Baga vision of woman in her most powerful, beautiful, and socially impressive form. Her flat pendant breasts show that she has nurtured many children. Intricately braided hair in parallel rows, with a high crest down the center, and decorative facial scarification embellish her beauty. Nimba appears annually at the time of planting and harvesting rice. Strong men compete for the honor of wearing the heavy wooden headdress; the rest of the body is covered in raffia. Moving vigorously to the accompaniment of drums, the dancer shows his strength and grace, while women sing and throw rice. According to one elder, "Nimba is strength, the joy of living, the love of the beautiful and the attachment to our customs."
The goli kplekple mask is one of several that appear in the Goli spirit dance. It represents a minor spirIt associated with the junior rank of male dancers who perform before the more important masks appear. In keeping with its low status, this mask is made in a simple disk-shaped design and lacks the more complex form and ornamentation that the Baule admire in their important masks. Considered a mischievous mask, the youthful dancer playfully chases young women around the village, goaded by their songs.
The antelope is admired for its beauty, strength, and courage. It is the symbol of the hard-working farmer in the dry agricultural region which the Dogon inhabit. The masked dancers strike the ground with sticks, imitating a strong antelope vigorously pawing the ground, evoking the diligent farmer hoeing his fields. The dancers belong to a society of masks, called Awa,which is composed of young men who perform at funerals and end-of-mourning ceremonies to chase away the ghostly spirits of the departed to the wild bush outside the village
The crocodile's body is covered with scales in the form of a checkerboard pattern, which represents the separation between knowledge and ignorance. The crocodile maskers dance in pairs, with fluid undulating motions.
