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What makes African art authentic?
For decades, there has been a consensus around authenticity for African art: a genuine object is one that was made by a “traditional” artist for a “traditional” use and was used to fulfill its intended purpose. Conferring authenticity on African art has long been a uniquely Euro-American preoccupation.
What is unique about Dogon sculptures?
The most distinctive subject rendered by Dogon sculptures is that of a single figure standing with raised arms. This posture has usually been interpreted as a gesture of prayer—an effort to link earth and heavens—and it has been suggested that it may represent an appeal for rain.
What were Dogon sculptures traditionally made from?
DOGON, Cast Metalwork, Mali Made by the complex traditional lost-wax process, these are all small enough to be cast solid. The Dogon used metal for their most important ritual objects as well as everyday objects, farming implements and weapons.
What is the origin of Dogon art?
Early history is informed by oral traditions, which claim that the Dogon originated from the west bank of the Niger River (10th to 13th centuries). They emigrated west to northern Burkina Faso, where local histories describe them as kibsi.
What does it mean for something to be authentic in the African art market?
The criteria for the authenticity of art objects, other than the primitive arts, are generally determined at once by the artist, the place of creation, as well as the materials used and, when necessary, the technique of craftsmanship.
What is African authenticity?
African authenticity is in this sense fundamentally an ongoing cultural, socioeconomic, and political process of self-definition. Culture espouses an ideology of authenticity—nostalgically articulated around the idea of Africa as “home,” or the homeland to which all black people must return one day.
What are Dogon sculptures?
Dogon art is primarily sculptural and revolves around religious values, ideals, and freedoms. Dogon sculptures are not made to be seen publicly and are commonly hidden from the public eye within the houses of families, sanctuaries, or the hogon (a spiritual leader of the Dogon people).
What do the dogons believe?
While some villages have adopted Islam or Christianity, a large percentage of Dogon are animists who believe in the importance of a synergy between the spiritual world of gods and ancestors, and the living world of plants, people, and animals.
Why are the Dogon famous?
The Dogon are best known for their religious traditions, their mask dances, wooden sculpture, and their architecture.
What does the Dogon mask symbolize?
Dogon masks, such as this one called kanaga, are worn primarily at dama, a collective funerary rite for Dogon men. The ritual’s goal is to ensure the safe passage of the spirits of the deceased to the world of the ancestors.
What are Dogon masks made out of?
Following a death, Dogon peoples bury the dead immediately. They dance emina, masks carved from wood and woven from hibiscus fiber, as part of a sequence of rites that are conducted for men long after they are buried.
Where are the Bamana people located?
The Bambara (Bambara: ߓߡߊߣߊ߲, romanized: Bamana or ߓߊ߲ߡߊߣߊ߲ Banmana) are a Mandé ethnic group native to much of West Africa, primarily southern Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Senegal.
When did the Dogon tribe start?
In Mali, West Africa, lives a tribe of people called the Dogon. The Dogon are believed to be of Egyptian decent and their astronomical lore goes back thousands of years to 3200 BC.
What makes an art object authentic to a particular culture?
A work of art is authentic when executed in the style, with the materials, and by the production process that are essential attributes of the genre. Cultural authenticity derives from the artistic traditions created by the artists of the ethnic group.
How do you authenticate an African mask?
Check the back of the mask for wear, including the holes for fastening the mask on the face. The wearer does a lot of moving in his dances, and contact between body and wood can leave sweat and oil stains. 2. Look for wear from forehead, cheeks, chins and noses.
How does Yinka Shonibare challenge the idea of authentic African art?
When a teacher asked him why he was not creating ‘authentic’ African pieces, Shonibare began to explore the idea of authenticity. And by deliberately restricting the size of the vibrant fabrics, he could create an opposition to the work of the traditional large-scale abstract artist.
Is authenticity a quality?
Authenticity is the quality of being genuine or real. You might question the authenticity of your eccentric uncle’s photo of a UFO. The word authenticity is the state of something being authentic, or legitimate and true.
How old is the Dogon sculpture?
How old does this figure look to you? Although the Dogon peoples live along the relatively isolated Bandiagara Plateau, their art attests to the long history of interaction among various groups in the region. Carbon-14 dating of artworks from this area spans 1000 years.
Where is the Dogon tribe located in Africa?
Dogon, ethnic group of the central plateau region of Mali that spreads across the border into Burkina Faso.
How many pairs of nommo are depicted in Dogon art?
Although Dogon mythology recounts four pairs of Nommo twins, only three are represented here, which could refer to the fact that Amma punished one pair of the twins for misbehaving and disrupting the order of the universe shortly after its creation.
Who is the first god in Africa?
Mbombo, also called Bumba, is the creator god in the religion and mythology of the Kuba people of Central Africa in the area that is now known as Democratic Republic of the Congo. In the Mbombo creation myth, Mbombo was a giant in form and white in color. The myth describes the creation of the universe from nothing.
What do the Dogon tribe eat?
Their main crop is millet, planted at the start of the rainy season. Other crops include rice, beans, peas, peanuts, and sesame.
What do the doors of the granary teach us about Dogon religiosity?
Dogon Granary Doors frequently have carved primordial beings, ancestors, Kanaga masks, sun lizards and scenes of life that symbolically serve to protect the entrance. These figures represent the eight ancestors of mankind in the Dogon story of creation.
What language do Dogon people speak?
Dogon language, language of the Niger-Congo language family spoken by some 600,000 Dogon people in northeastern Mali to the east of Mopti and along the border between Mali and Burkina Faso.
What does the wooden granary door depict?
Doors of these granaries are often adorned with impressive carvings of animals or people which serve as invocations of deities or spirits, or as symbols of status. The stored grain is considered “safe” when it is guarded by the ancestors whose images are depicted on granary doors.
