African Arts Gallery

Everyday objects in African art .
Dan tribal art also presents utilitarian and prestigious objects, including the famous carved wooden spoons, Wakemia, used during festive ceremonies, and granted by the villagers to a particularly generous and hospitable woman. The woman will use it to serve the meal and will joyfully brandish it during the "dances of the hospitable woman". The spoon has an anthropomorphic handle, a female subject decorated with traditional scarifications. Crusty brown patina, ochre inlays.
Small cracks around the spoon.
For the Dan of Côte d'Ivoire, also called Yacouba, two very distinct worlds oppose each other: that of the village, composed of its inhabitants, its animals, and that of the forest, its vegetation and the animals and spirits that populate ...

Anthropomorphic spoons are recurring in tribal art. This one is distinguished by its anthropomorphic motif taking up the classic canons that value the mythical hairstyle. Though of ritual use, the spoon also quickly became an emblem of prestige.
The Mangbetu kingdom in northern Congo produced architectural works that impressed European visitors in the 19th century. Their furniture, weapons, ornaments, everyday objects and statuary were imbued with a rare aesthetic quality. The ethnologist G.A. Schweinfurth in 1870 described its symmetry and refinement, while at the same time testifying to the ritual murders and human sacrifices practiced by "the people of the elongated heads".
Height on base: 36 cm.

Belgian African art collection.
Anthropomorphic spoons are recurrent in African tribal art. This copy is distinguished by the anthropomorphic motif depicting a notable sitting with imposing presence. We find the canons of Kongo art. This type of ritual object also forms an outward sign of wealth and prestige.

Height on base: 41 cm.
Matte medium brown patina, chip on one arm, minor cracks.
The Vili , the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembe, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo formed the Kôngo group, led by King ntotela . Their kingdom reached its peak in the 16th century with the trade in ivory, copper and the slave trade. With the same beliefs and traditions, they produced statuary endowed with codified gestures in keeping with their vision of the ...

Belgian collection of African art
Anthropomorphic spoons, for ritual use or for the sole prestige of their holder, are recurrent in tribal art. This is distinguished by the kneeling figure at the top of the handle, sculpted according to Kongo canons.
The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembé, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo formed the Kôngo group, led by king ntotela . Their kingdom reached its peak in the 16th century with the trade in ivory, copper and the slave trade. With the same beliefs and traditions, they produced statuary with codified gestures in relation to their vision of the world.
Ref. : " Spoons in African art" L. ...

The anthropomorphic handle of this African spoon refers to the spirit of an ancestor. Shiny patina shaded from brown to black. Height on base: 31 cm.

Established on the sets of the ex. People's Republic of Congo (DRC) ex.Brazzaville, and not to be confused with the Bembé group from the north of Lake Tanganinyika, the small Babembé group, Béembé, was influenced by Téké rites and culture, but especially by that of the Kongo. Installed in the current Republic of Congo, the Béembé originally formed the kingdom of Kongo, with the Vili, Yombé, Bembé and Woyo. The village leader, nga-bula, was responsible for interceding with the ancestors. Hunting being a major activity, ancestors were invoked through statuettes. These idealized representations of ancestors, kitebi or bimbi ...

In addition to the famous niombo, sometimes giant anthropomorphic funerary "packages" representing the deceased, the Bwende, inspired by the Kongos and the Bembe, sculpted various prestigious objects, such as this spoon whose ample cuilleron is surmounted by a bust depicting an ancestor.
Height on base: 47 cm. Glossy orange-brown patina, desiccation cracks.

The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembe, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo constituted the Kôngo group, led by King Ntotela. Their kingdom reached its peak in the 16th century with the trade in ivory, copper and the slave trade. With the same beliefs and traditions, they produced a statuary endowed with a codified gesture in relation to their vision of the world. The Bwendé sculptures were strongly inspired ...

br> Usual objects in African art.
A functional accessory for ritual ceremonies, this sculpted spoon offers a deep cone-shaped spoon surmounted by a curved handle with a flat end. Very fine streaks adorn the surface.
Scattered throughout the Saharan region of Libya, Mali, Algeria and Niger, the Tuareg (sing: Targui), or "Veiled Men", would come from Berber pastors fleeing the Arabs in Libya in the 7th century. The targui blacksmith also sculpts wood, which is a rare material, carved objects which are often repaired to prolong their use are part of the dowry.
Ref. : "Black Africa, 1" J. Anquetil.

Belgian African art collection.
Anthropomorphic spoon-emblems are recurrent in tribal art. The handle of the spatula is sculpted with a classic cephalomorph pattern, featuring a traditionally shaven head effigy, a headband limiting the sophisticated headdress. the facial features, harmonious, are carefully modeled. Although ritual, the spoon also quickly became an outward sign of wealth.
Height on base: 56 cm.
Cracks and abrasions.
The Luba (Baluba in Chiluba) are a people of Central Africa. Their cradle is Katanga, more precisely the region of the Lubu river, thus the name (Baluba, which means “the Lubas”). They were born from a secession of the Songhoy ethnic group, under the leadership of Ilunga Kalala who killed the old king Kongolo who has since been revered in ...

Carved with singiti hemba ancestor motifs by the bwana mutombo, the handle of this prestigious spoon extends into a flat bowl. Semi-satin medium brown patina, small erosions. Height on base: 39 cm.
The Hemba have long been subject to the neighboring Luba empire, which has had a certain influence on their culture, their religion and their art. Ancestor worship is central to Hemba society. Genealogy is indeed the guarantor of privileges and the distribution of land. All aspects of the community are imbued with the authority of the ancestors. Thus, these are considered to have an influence on justice, medicine, law and sacrifices. Mastering sculpture with talent, the Hemba have mainly produced statues of singiti ancestors, embodying chiefs, local warriors, or lineage ancestors whom ...

Everyday objects in African art.
A functional accessory for ritual ceremonies, this sculpted spoon offers a deep bowl in the shape of a cone extended by a flat, curved handle. Fine parallel streaks form intersecting patterns on the matte surface. Velvety patina, abrasions from use.
Height on base: 30 cm.
Disseminated in the Saharan region of Libya, Mali, Algeria and Niger, the Tuareg (sing.: Targui), or "Veiled Men", come from Berber pastors fleeing the Arabs in Libya in the 7th century. The targui blacksmith also carves wood, this being a rare material, the carved objects which are often repaired to prolong their use are part of the dowry.
Ref. : "Black Africa, 1" J. Anquetil.

Belgian African art collection.
Anthropomorphic spoons are recurrent in tribal art. This one for rustic that it is is not less very interesting by the simplicity of its form and the sculpture. We find there the attributes of Luba art including the mythical hairstyle of this ethnic group. Traces of use and wear. Black and slightly crusty patina.
The Luba (Baluba in Chiluba) are a people of Central Africa. Their cradle is Katanga, more precisely the region of the Lubu river, thus the name (Baluba, which means “the Lubas”). They were born from a secession of the Songhoy ethnic group, under the leadership of Ilunga Kalala who killed the old king Kongolo who has since been revered in the form of a python. In the 16th century they created a state, organized as a decentralized ...