ROLES OF WOMEN

IN AFRICAN ART



Student Exhibition
by
Jayne F. Matricardi



Introduction

African art, when first seen in the United States, was displayed in "curiosity cabinets" in natural history museums. Far from being considered art, the objects were valued for their strange, exotic, and "primitive" natures. Because the objects did not follow the classic aesthic conventions of the Greeks, they were considered ugly and raw. Later, in the twentieth century, African art was rediscover by avant garde critics and artists. (Seiber 14) In 1915 in Paris the world saw the first exhibit of African art not African artifacts. Seen in a new context, the gallery, the objects were considered beautifully primitive, and honest. The once ugly African aesthetic had a huge impact on the Western world's new modern aesthetic. The African art had not changed, but the Western perception of it had.

The Western perception of African Art is still changing today. Currently griant leaps are being made regarding museums' roles in the displaying and labeling of African art. For example, more is being done to include the cultural context of the objects. Incorporation of the cultural context gives viewers a greater understanding of the objects and it also provides a meaningful connection to the viewer's everyday life.

Most pieces of African art have strong moral connotations which directly relate to today's society. The African concept of "family" contains universal values. The family in Africa is most important. And, the future of the family lies in the children so great care is taken in the raising and teaching of children. The benefits of studing the African family is becoming more widely known. The title of Hilary Clinton's new book, "It takes a Village", is taken from an African proverb meaning that the whole village must be involved in the raising of children. And, the whole village reveres the women who bear the future generation.

The ability to produce and raise healthy children is primary. Without exception, an African woman's most important role is that of mother. This being the case, much African art emphasizes images of women, children, and fertility. Yet, this is not the only role African women play in their society. This exhibit examines various roles of women as portrayed in African art. The roles I will discuss are the African woman as : the first mother, a bearer of good luck, a revered ancestor,a vessle, porcreator, protector,and initiation figure.








The Exhibition





Woman as First Mother

Mother of the Tree of Life




















Woman as a Bearer of Good Luck

Mother of Twins





The birth of twins in most societies is a highly celebrated event. However this was not always the case. For example the Ibo people at one time felt that twins should be feared, that they were unnatural to humans, and that double births were fitting only to animals.

Yet the Bambara, and Yoruba societies, exemplify the more common, positive attitude towards twins. Twins bring good luck to themselves, their family and the whole village. So, they are treated with great care and the mother of the twins is especially revered as a bearer of good luck. Often special gifts, food, clothing, or money is given to the mother of twins so that the giver can also share in the good luck. (Walker 32).

The special Yoruba twin ibeji cult- is a domestic cult which involves the parents and the twins in many rituals beginning at birth. Many rituals also involve images of the twins made after death. If a twin dies prematurely, divination determines if a carved image of the twin if needed to contain the twin's half soul. It is treated as it would have been in life. The reason for the images is the palacation of the spirits of dead twins. If a dead twin sees that it is cared for after death, it will send more children to the mother (Brain 200).

This Yoruba sculpture depicts a mother with her twins closely at her side and a hand gently placed atop each twin's head. Her fecundity is displayed in her full breasts. Her long strong neck, elaborate hair, and well-formed features display the Yoruba concept of beauty.









Woman as a Revered Ancestor

A Spririt Mask







This is an example of a spirit mask. These masks are known for white painted faces, delicate stylized features, and elaborate hairstyles. Different sources cite various reasons for the distinctive white skin. In "African Women African Art" , Roslyn Walker discusses two possibilities: that the white face represents the loss of color exhibited by skin in death, or that it represents a return of ther woman to the spirit world. The latter posibility relies on the fact that many African babies are light-skinned at birth, and it is believed that infants are gifts form the spirit world (52). Therefore, this mask is yet another example of the connections between women, life, and death.






Woman as a Vessle for the Dead

Clay Heads







These two clay heads are examples of grave sculptures made of clay to represent specific women in the society. They are memorial portraits of the women, depicting realistic features, the actual hairstyle of the women, and a general likeness which comes from the artist who knew the woman during life.

Made by women, these clay heads are a great exception to African tradition in which only men make figurative sculptures and carvings. The only other exceptions include clay pot lids of the Yoruba and carvings of the Wakemba (Walker 53).

In African religions a deceased person's soul is never fully disconnected from the human world. The souls still have powerful effects on the lives of the living and appeasement of the spirits is very important. The clay heads provide a place for the deceased woman's spirit to dwell on earth.



Woman as a Girls' Initiation Figure

Sowei Mask







This blackened wood helment mask exhibits the ideals of feminine beauty of the Mende society and the corresponding virtues inherent in the features: a high forehead (intelligence, nobility), lustrous smooth skin (moral purity and youthfullness), small mouth and ears (no indulgence in gossip), downcast eyes (quiet comteplativeness, restraint, and secretiveness), elaborately braided hair (skilled ability in cosmetics), and subcutaneous fat around her neck (health and well-being).

Overall , the mask exhibits the inner serenity and composure which women are expected to have as oppossed to the agressiveness of males. However this restraint should not be seen as submissiveness. The cool exterior of African woment masks inner strength and power. And in fact, this unseen inner strength is often considered more powerful than an outer strength. In this mask, ontop of her coiffure is a bird, difficult to read because it is missing its head and tail. According to Professor Ray in "Aesthics and Meaning", the bird "has many meanings: clairvoyance, love, fertility, power, danger, discipline, prudence, and laughter." In Yoruba society the bird is directly related to the inner power of women. This mystical power, aje , also gives women the ability to transform into nocturnal creatures and birds (Drewal 549). Rowland Abiodun, in "Women in Yoruba Religious Images" also mentions a 'bird power' which "enables women to accomplish anything they wish" (3). An extraordinary unseen feature of this mask is that it is danced by women rather than men. It is used by the women's Bundu Association of the Mende people in girls' initiation rites.







Woman as a Procreator

Akuaba Fertility Figure























Woman as a Protector

Baga Nimba







This mask honors Nimba, the Baga peoples' goddess of fertility and motherhood who is also believed to be a special protector. She protects the growth of both crops and pregnant women. So, she can be seen as protector of both the sustainance of life and life itself.

The mask shows Nimba's strength in her powerfully straight neck. Combined with strength is femininity and fecundity depicted by her prominent breasts.

This mask is danced by a young male who wears a costume of rafia (Walker 22-23).















Woman as a Boys' Initiation Figure

Pwo Mask







This mask represents the first woman of the creation myths, the primordial woman? Or does it represent a young woman? It is used to teach young boys during their initiation rites. They learn secrets about mask rituals which women are forbidden to know, sex education ( including proper ways to relate to women, and skills needed to support a family) (Walker 38).

Exactly how this mask is used inthe ceremonies is unknown. However, it probably represents the woman/mother from which every boy is taken away, a physical and mental separation, as part of the initiation rite. The boys's roles as children are killed, and they are reborn as men in society, independent from their mothers.





Bibliography



Abiodun, Rowland. "Woman in Yoruba religious Images"

Brain, Robert. "Art and Society in Africa". Longman Group Limited, New York: 1980.

Bodrogi, Tibor. "Art in Africa". Kossuth Printing House, Budapest: 1968

Drewal, Henry. "Art and the Perception of Women in Yoruba Culture"

Ray, Benjamin. "Afican Art: Aesthetics and Meaning"

Sieber and Walker, "Afican Art in the Cycle of Life". Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC: 1987

Walker, Roslyn. "African Women/African Art" African American Institute, New York: 1976.