African art is characterized by emphasis on the human figure,
sculpture, performance art, and nonlinear scaling.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE [ edit ]
Discuss the elements of human figure, sculpture, performance art, and nonlinear scaling found in
Ancient African art.
KEY POINTS [ edit ]
The human figure has often been the primary subject matter of African art, and this emphasis
even influenced certain European traditions.
African artists tend to favor three-dimensional artworks overtwo-dimensional works.
An extension of the utilitarianism and three-dimensionality of traditional African art is the fact
that much of it is crafted for use in performance contexts, rather than in static ones.
Often a small part of an African design will look similar to a larger part.
TERM [ edit ]
votive
Dedicated or given in fulfillment of a vow or pledge.
Give us feedback on this content: FULL TEXT [edit ]
Art of Ancient Africa
African art constitutes one of the most diverse legacies on earth. Though many casual
observers tend to generalize "traditional" African art, the continent consists of a wide
diversity of people, societies, and civilizations, each with a unique visual culture. The
definition may also include the art of the African Diasporas, such as the art of African
Americans. Despite this diversity, there are some unifying artistic themes when considering
the totality of the visual culture from the
continent of Africa.
Most African sculpture was historically in
wood and other organic materials that
have not survived from earlier than at
most a few centuries ago;
older pottery figures are found from a
number of areas. Masks are important
elements in the art of many peoples, along
with human figures, often highly stylized.
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There is a vast variety of styles, often
varying within the same context of origin depending on the use of the object, but wide
regional trends are apparent; sculpture is most common among groups in West Africa. Direct
images of deities are relatively infrequent, but masks in particular are or were often made for
religious ceremonies. African masks were an influence on European Modernist art, which
was inspired by their lack of concern for naturalistic depiction.
Emphasis on the human figure
The human figure has always been one of the primary subject matters for most African art,
and this emphasis even influenced certain European traditions. For example, in the fifteenth
century Portugal traded with the Sapi culture near Côte d'Ivoire in West Africa, who created
elaborate ivory saltcellars that were hybrids of African and European designs. This was most
notable in the addition of the human figure, as the human figure typically did not appear in
Portuguese saltcellars. The human figure may symbolize the living or the dead; it may
reference chiefs, dancers, or various trades such as drummers or hunters. It may even be
an anthropomorphic representation of a god or have other votive functions. Another common
theme is the inter-morphosis of human and animal.
African artworks also tend to favor visual abstraction over naturalistic representation. This is
because many African artworks generalize stylistic norms. Ancient Egyptian art, also usually
thought of as naturalistically depictive, makes use of highly abstracted and regimented visual
canons, especially in painting, as well as the use of different colors to represent the qualities
and characteristics of an individual being depicted.
Emphasis on sculpture
African artists tend to favor three-dimensional artworks over two-dimensional works. Even
many African paintings or cloth works were meant to be experienced in three dimensions.
House paintings are often seen as a continuous design wrapped around a house, forcing
the viewer to walk around the work to experience it fully. Decorated cloths are worn as
decorative or ceremonial garments, transforming the wearer into a living sculpture. Distinct
from the static form of traditional Western sculpture, African art displays animation, a
readiness to move .
Nok rider and horse 53 cm tall (1,400 to 2,000 years ago)
The Nok culture appeared in Nigeria around 1000 B.C. and vanished under unknown circumstances
around 500 AD in the region of West Africa. This region lies in Northern and Central Nigeria. Its social
system is thought to have been highly advanced. The Nok culture was considered to be the earliest sub­
Saharan producer of life­sized Terracotta.
Many West African figures are used in religious rituals and are often coated with materials
placed on them for ceremonialofferings. The Mande-speaking peoples of the same region
make pieces of wood with broad, flat surfaces and arms and legs are shaped like cylinders. In
Central Africa, however, the main distinguishing characteristics include heart-shaped faces
that are curved inward and display patterns of circles and dots. A sculptural style from East
Africa is pole sculptures, carved in human shapes and decorated with geometric forms, while
the tops are carved with figures of animals, people, and various objects. These poles are then
placed next to graves and are associated with death and the ancestral world.
Emphasis on performance art
An extension of the utilitarianism and three-dimensionality of traditional African art is the
fact that much of it is crafted for use in performance contexts, rather than in static ones. For
example, traditional African masks and costumes very often are used in communal,
ceremonial contexts, where they are "danced. " Most societies in Africa have names for their
masks: this single name incorporates not only the sculpture, but also the meanings of the
mask, the dance associated with it, and the spirits that reside within. In African thought, the
three cannot be differentiated.
Nonlinear scaling
Often a small part of an African design will look similar to a larger part. Leopold Senghor,
Senegal's first president, referred to this as "dynamic symmetry. " William Fagg, the British
art historian, compared it to the logarithmic mapping of natural growth by biologist D'Arcy
Thompson. More recently it has been described in terms of fractal geometry.