Afr|ca

Afrlcan arL ls exLremely varled and Lhe dlverslLy of sLyle reflecLs Lhe varleLy of culLures on Lhe conLlnenL
lL ls dlfflculL and rlsky Lo aLLempL Lo caLegorlze Lhese varlous arLs and Lhelr uses Powever LhaL ls
exacLly whaL l wlll aLLempL Lo do 1he soclal ldeologlcal or rlLual conLexL of Afrlcan arL ls vlLal Lo Lhelr
culLures vlsual arL ls powerfully connecLed Lo muslc dance drama prayer and poeLry
ln Afrlca arL ls noL merely decoraLlve 1he aesLheLlc1 funcLlon of arL common ln Lhe WesL ls noL
necessarlly lmporLanL ln Afrlcan ArL All Lhelr arL was orlglnally creaLed as parL of an overall cusLom for
lnsLance masks (and many oLher arLlfacLs eLc) are used as parLs of masquerades noL slmply Lo be
placed ln a publlc museum Lhls ls where we see Lhem ln Lhe sLaLes Also noL all Afrlcan arL ls meanL as
publlc arL some are for prlvaLe ceremonles

1hey value LradlLlon over lnnovaLlon 1he human flgure ls Lhe prlnclpal sub[ecL sculpLure ls Lhe favored
medlum Afrlcan arLlsLs are regarded as professlonal skllled (usually ln parLlcular medlum le wood
meLal ceramlcs) CfLen heredlLy or casLe ls Lhe decldlng facLor of who wlll become arLlsLs
MosL Afrlcan arL draws on Lhe energy LhaL ls lnherenL ln naLure Lhe gods and ancesLral splrlLs Some
sLyllsLlc feaLures of Afrlcan arL are
AbsLracLlon ls mosL ofLen preferred Lo naLurallsm
ConflguraLlon placemenL and proporLlon may be an lmporLanL key Lo undersLandlng lor example Lhe
head ls ofLen larger or one flgure ln a group may be larger Lhan Lhe oLhers
LxaggeraLlon of llmbs or feaLures may also relnforce symbollc lmporLance Such as huge yes or breasLs
Wooden pleces ofLen reflecL Lhe Lree Lrunk or wood from whlch Lhey are carved
1he use of added maLerlalsbone shell feaLhers sacrlflclal maLerlal eLc ls ordlnarlly lnLended Lo
helghLen Lhe splrlLual poLency of Lhe ob[ecL
JA1 IS DIS1INC1LVLL "AIkICAN" A8CU1 1L AIkICAN
"UMANI1ILS 1A1 JL AkL S1UDING?
1 8ody uecoraLlon scarlflcaLlon

8ody palnLlng
!ewelry and dress
1hls same Lype of decoraLlon (or paLLernlng) ls seen on ArchlLecLure
Pousehold Cb[ecLs
Muslcal lnsLrumenLs
2 SculpLure flgures and masks
J Cral LlLeraLure 1be 5oojoto
4 Masquerades Muslc

uance
8lLual
erformance
rayer
Mask and cosLume ensemble
1he mosL obvlous characLerlsLlcs shared by mosL Afrlcan ArL
INNCVA1ICN CI ICkM
1here ls an lmpresslve dlverslLy of arL LradlLlons among Lhe peoples of Afrlca Afrlca offers evldence of a
larger conLlnenLwlde concern wlLh arLlsLlc lnnovaLlon and creaLlvlLy
VISUAL A8S1kAC1ICN
1here ls a preference ln mosL of Afrlca for varled forms of vlsual absLracLlon 1hls creaLes a forceful
vlsual lmpacL
SCUL1UkAL kIMAC
MosL of Lhe arL from Afrlcan counLrles ls Lhreedlmenslonal and ls carved molded or consLrucLed When
Lhese sculpLures whlch lnclude masks are used durlng masquerades eLc Lhey span Llme as well as
helghL breadLh and depLh becomlng fourdlmenslonal
LkICkMANCL
MosL vlsual arL forms were flrsL seen ln a performance conLexL 1he prlmary performances are
masquerades LhaL lnclude dance and muslc Many groups perform wlLh Lhelr arL and Lhe compleLe
performance becomes arL
UMANISM]AN1kCCMCkISM
Afrlca ls home Lo Lhe flrsL humans Whlle humans are Lhe prlmary sub[ecLs of mosL arL porLrayals of
anlmals are ofLen lncluded ln masquerades and oLher arL Many famlly symbols (ln facL mosL) are of
anlmals
LNSLM8LL]ASSSLM8LAGL
An lsolaLed sLaLue or oLher Afrlcan work ls rare and excepLlonal MosL works are assembled LogeLher as
ln a shrlne or mulLlcharacLer masquerade Many works Lhemselves are composlLe havlng been made
from dlverse meanlngful maLerlals
MUL1ILI CI1 CI MLANING AND IN1LLLLC1UAL CCMLLkI1
ulfferenLlal meanlngs exlsL concurrenLly and harmonlously wlLhln Lhe same work glvlng lL an even larger
(broader) sense of symbollc and lnLellecLual groundlng Lhan lL oLherwlse mlghL have


The Humanities
What does the word Humanities mean?
What are the various Humanities?
Why do we have to study the Humanities?
The Humanities are designed to enhance students' knowledge, understanding, and appreciation oI
people and their respective cultures. When studying the Humanities we
analyze the history and social issues through accomplishments oI people who have shaped
civilization and its institutions.
Here are two of the many reasons we study the humanities
I: The Practical Reason:
In our communities, commercial enterprises, and personal lives, we need women and men who can
think, reason and communicate clearly; who understand the complexity oI problems and who can
look beyond a "quick Iix"; who are willing to question that which is taken-Ior-grant-it; who
recognize and assess the ethical consequences oI decisions; who are resourceIul, creative and open to
innovations and change; who cultivate their imaginations; and who can critically evaluate and
appreciate alternatives. The Humanities Ioster these skills and insights. Our democratic society
depends on them and they enrich our personal lives. Employers consistently list communication
skills (both written and oral), critical thinking, and interpersonal competence as the most important
criteria Ior employment. College graduates will be expected to communicate eIIectively with other
experts, collaborators, and the general public.
I: The Human Reason
Study in the humanities and Iine arts develops an understanding oI what it means to be humanthe
struggles and aspirations, comedies and tragedies, and achievements and Iailures oI human beings;
wrestles with the basic questions that conIront all human beings in the course oI their livesidentity,
beauty, courage, love, truth, justice, and morality; and examines the dreams, traditions, and cultural
expressions oI peoples throughout time who have wrestled with these same questions. To understand
what it means to be human, one must understand oneselI in relation to the natural world and in
relations to others, reIlect on ideas and conIront presuppositions Irom one`s own world and other
cultures, and respond creatively (Illinois General Education Core Curriculum Document 15).
couple oI things to note while studying:
The Iirst is a term called thnocentrism. thnocentrism is deIined as to impose upon the art oI
another culture the meanings and prejudices oI our own.
For instance look at the Iollowing pictures.
Each oI these are sculptural works or art, but each has extremely diIIerent Iormal characteristics. The
work on the leIt is Irom ancient Greece and the work on the right is Irom the Dogon people oI Irica.
well-known and well-educated scholar Kenneth Clark compares the two in his Iamous book,
(written in the 1960`s) Civilisation.
' I don`t think there is any doubt that the (Greek) Iigure embodies a higher state oI civilization than
the Dogon. They both represent spirits, messengers Irom another world that is to say Irom a world oI
our own imagining. To the Irican imagination, it is a world oI Iear and darkness, ready to inIlict
horrible punishment oI the smallest inIringement oI a taboo. To the Hellenistic imagination, it is a
world oI light and conIidence, in which the gods are like ourselves, only more beautiIul, and descent
to earth in order to teach men reason and the laws oI harmony.
He couldn`t be more wrong on more levels.
It`s important to recognize that what we think we see expressed by the particular Iormal treatment oI
a subject is sometimes the result oI prejudice, and oIten the result oI our conventional expectations.
The best light in which Clark`s reading oI the Irican mask can be seen is to think oI it as the
maniIestation oI a convention oI Western thinking.
Clarke`s Iailed to acknowledge the second Iactor: the artist`s intention. Why was this piece oI art
created? What was it used Ior? Fortunately, it Iorces us to be more perceptive and less narrow-
minded.
nother term that needs to be discussed at the beginning oI our course is:
esthetics--an awareness of beauty of that quality in a work of art or other manmade or
natural form that evokes a sense of elevated awareness in the viewer.
To be eIIective art and (the other humanities) has to reIlect certain ideals oI beauty. This ideal is set
by and Ior the civilization that creates and uses these arts. They develop their own aesthetics.
In this course we learn to understand and appreciate the literature, art, religion, philosophy, dance,
music, (everything created by humans) and aesthetic ideals
concerning many oI the cultures oI West Irica, India, China and Japan. By doing this, we will
develop a state oI elevated awareness Ior these cultures that are not immediately evident in our daily
lives. Or are they?