African Arts Gallery

The African art sculptures of bobo, Bwa, Kurumba and Mossi, living in Burkina Faso, frequently take up and combine stylized elements borrowed from humans, animals or insects. It is the spirits of nature that are supposed to determine the well-being and prosperity of an individual, and adversity will be seen as the result of neglect scars of collective rites. An African mask decorated with polychrome diamonds symbolizing the magical amulets of the Bobo, it sports a female figure at the top linked to the geniuses of the earth. The masks are repainted with each new dance season. These heavy masks, usually designed around a hemispheric helmet with a horned crest or growth, occurred during agricultural rituals to restore the balance of the land. Their significance was revealed during the initiation of young boys. The Mandingo people, most of whom live in eastern Burkina Faso, but also in southern Mali, the culture of Bobo Fing is similar to that of the Bambara. They are organized in led by elders' councils. In each village altars are erected under the authority of the blacksmiths, priests of the cult of Dwo, but the Bobo also worship secondary spirits and those of the ancestors. In addition to objects carved from wood, they also make fibre-leaf masks that they will wear at ceremonies to establish a relationship with the spiritual world. The most important wooden masks are the sacred masks (molo and nwenke), the masks that accompany them (nyaga) and those of entertainment (Bole, sing. bolo).