African Arts Gallery

Ex-collection of Belgian African art.

Used in the rituals associated with the cult buanga bua bukalenge , this male figure representing an ancestor bears abundant facial and body scarification, a common practice in late 19th century Central Africa. These marks were signs of beauty with symbolic value, revealing extraordinary physical and moral qualities. The concentric circles suggest not only great stars, but also hope. " These statues of warriors, whose right-angled arms would be associated with vigor, participated in the investiture and funeral of chiefs. Scaled granular patina. Cracks of desiccation.
Lulua Lulua is a generic term, referring to the large number of heterogeneous peoples that populate the region near the Lulua River, between the Kasai and Sankuru ...

Statuette depicting a Yoruba priestess, whose cheeks are incised from vertical scarifications "kpélé", breasts classically stretched over an offering cup. Its body displays traditional tribal marks, and the wearing of jewelry indicates its status as a dignitary.
Patine very slightly satin.
The Yoruba society has several associations whose roles vary. While the egbe society is strengthening social norms, the aro unites farmers. The gelede has more esoteric and religious aims. The notables come together in a society called susu . Offering cups, some of which were used to store kola nuts or others present for visitors, were once located in the royal palaces of the Ekiti and Igbomina regions of the country Yoruba.The kingdoms of Oyo and Ijebu were born following the ...

Ex-German tribal art collection.
The stylized African art of the forest tribes
Cubic volumes and sharp features make up a certain dynamic for this primitive metoko statue, whose characteristics are similar to Thengola sculptures. A face cut in flat, with hollowed-out orbits in the heart, is divided into two tones taken from the spots painted on the character's body, reminiscent of the bichrome of Gabon's masks. The feet sink into a circular base. Cracks. This male cult effigy is from the Metoko and Lengola, located in the center of the Congolese basin between the Lomami and Lualaba rivers, peoples of the primary forest dedicated to the worship of a single God, rare monotheism in Africa. Their company, Bukota, welcoming both men and women, is the equivalent of the association ...

The barrel-shaped abdomen of this sculpted figure standing on straight legs conceals the mystical charge called "Bonga". The whole is wrapped in fabric, lined with small bundles of twigs and feathers, circled with wicker. The central mirror would be associated with divinatory powers. The face is streaked with Teke facial scarifications.
Established between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Gabon, the Téké were organized into chiefdoms whose chief was often chosen from among the blacksmiths. The head of the family, mfumu, had the right of life or death over his family, the importance of which determined his prestige. The chief of the clan, ngantsié, kept the great protective fetish tar mantsié which supervised all the ceremonies. It is the powerful sorcerer healer and diviner ...

This sculpture of African art hemba commemorating a local chief, intermediary between men and gods, stands out thanks to its imposing head and the treatment of the body. Velvety grey-brown patina, erosions and cracks.

Generally made in iroko, these ritual sculptures were venerated by a particular clan and stored in rooms for funerary use in the chief's house.
The Hemba, established in the south-east of Zaire, on the right bank of the Lualaba, were for a long time subjected to the neighboring Luba empire, which had on their culture, their religion and their art a certain influence. Ancestor worship, whose effigies have long been attributed to the Luba, is central to Hemba society. Genealogy is indeed the guarantor of privileges and the distribution of land. All aspects ...

More rounded than the known versions, our subject adopts compacted proportions, a barrel-shaped bust resting on thick, crenellated limbs of which the penis constitutes the central point. The broad head with salient features forms a softened version of the "hornbill beak" masks for which the Lwalwa are famous.
Patina of use, old, matte. Abrasions and cracks.
The Lwalwa live between Angola and Zaire, between the Kasai River and the Lweta. Historically having a matrilineal society, the Lwalwa, or Tukongo in Angola, after being influenced by Luba and Songye, adopted a patrilineal system within their political organization. and rudimentary social. They worship the spirits of hunting and nature. The nkaki male mask, carved from mulela wood, is one of the four types of masks ...

Protective figures of this type were made according to the instructions of the Nganga ngoombu and the sponsor of the object, then activated using rituals and incantatory formulas. Desication cracks, erosions.
Hierarchical and authoritarian, made up of formidable warriors, Yaka society was governed by lineage leaders with the right to life and death over their subjects. Hunting and the prestige that results from it are nowadays an opportunity for the Yaka to invoke the ancestors and to resort to rituals using charms linked to the "khosi" institution. The youth initiation society is the n-khanda, which is found among the eastern Kongo (Chokwe, Luba, etc.), and which uses various charms and masks for the purpose to ensure a vigorous lineage. The Suku and Yaka ethnic groups, which are ...

Collection of French African art. Rare bust female figure from the Baga. Delicately sculpted, the features compose a subtly concentrated physiognomy. Beneath a ringed neck, the swollen bust, draped in canvas, conceals a magical charge. The decoration of cowries refers to fertility and material wealth. Slightly satin nuanced patina. Desication cracks.
Mixed with the Nalu and the Landuman, the Baga live along the coasts of Guinea-Bissau in areas of swamps flooded six months a year. These Baga groups settled on the coast and living from rice growing are made up of seven sub-groups, including the Baga Kalum, Bulongic, Baga sitem, Baga Mandori, etc.... Along with the extinction of male initiations since the 1950s, women's societies organize danced ritual ceremonies during which ...

Thesetribal statues, ritual charmsbelonging to lineages and providing protection against enemies, were made according to the instructions of the Nganga ngoombu and the sponsor of the object. These sculptures were then activated using rituals and incantatory formulas, and additions in the form of talismans. The headdress is that of the land chiefs. Beautiful shiny dark brown patina, abrasions.
Hierarchical and authoritarian, made up of formidable warriors, Yaka society was governed by lineage leaders with the right to life and death over their subjects. Hunting and the prestige that results from it are nowadays an opportunity for the Yaka to invoke the ancestors and to resort to rituals using charms linked to the "khosi" institution. The youth initiation society is the n-khanda, ...

This African sculpture of naturalistic type, allowing, according to the Yoruba, communication with the afterlife, depicts one of the many female goddesses, the goddess of the earth Onilé ("owner of the House") linked to the powerful Ogboni society among the Yoruba Egba and Ijebu. She could also symbolize Orunmila, goddess of divination.
Intended to be enthroned on an altar, she was venerated by members of the powerful Ogboni, or Osugbo, society responsible for justice.
Grainy polychrome patina.
Centered on the veneration of its gods, or orisà, the Yoruba religion relies on artistic sculptures with coded messages (aroko). The kingdoms of Oyo and Ijebu arose following the disappearance of the Ifé civilization and are still the basis of the political structure of the ...

It was during initiation rites that this figure appeared accompanied by its feminine complement Itea. They also welcomed the souls of the recently deceased before their departure for the afterlife, then were then abandoned in the forest. Pastille patterns and perforations punctuate the matte surface, while the face encrusted with cowries and teeth is divided into two colours. Abrasions and cracks.
The Metoko and the Lengola, whose ritual sculptures are very similar, are peoples of the primary forest dedicated to the worship of a single God, a rare monotheism in Africa. Their society comprising three ranks, the Bukota, structured daily life and welcomed both men and women. It represents the equivalent of the Bwami association of the Lega. The sculptures played a role during ...

In African art, the Metoko, Baleka-Mituku, are part of the Mbole group and are established on the left bank of the Zaire River in the DRC

Like the Léga, a satellite ethnic group, they are endowed with a system of patrilineal filiation and a hierarchical society, the bukota equivalent to that of the bwami of the lega.

This type of statue was representative of the rank and status of the person who owned it. After the initiation rites they could be placed on the tombs of initiates who had reached the highest ranks. They would then have served as a temporary receptacle for the soul of the deceased so that he could see for himself the quality of the funeral that was given to him. The ceremonies completed, the deceased left his wooden representation and the statue, which had ...

Ex-Belgian African tribal art collection.
Lualaba province had several similar ethnic groups with similar associations. The Mboles are known for their statues embodying, according to D. Biebuck, hanged, named ofika . The lilwa , an association with dogmatic initiation rites, had a custom of judging and condemning to hanging those guilty of violations of the imposed rules. These offences ranged from murder to adultery to breaking the secrecy surrounding the lilwa . Disgraced, the bodies of convicts had no funeral sat and were buried in the forest. It was during the final ceremonies, presided over by a notable isoya , that these statues were exhibited, presented lying on a litter box. The sculptor endowed his character with a resigned and suffering face thanks to the rectangular, ...

Figured seated, hands placed around the umbilicus, the male figure offers integumentary ornaments illustrating the Baoulé concept of beauty, a constant in African art.
Glossy black patina.
Kaolin highlights.
About sixty ethnic groups populate Côte d'Ivoire, including the Baoulé, in the center, Akans from Ghana, people of the savannah, practicing hunting and agriculture just like the Gouro from whom they borrowed ritual cults and masks carved. Two types of statues are produced by the Baoulé, Baulé, within the ritual framework: The Waka-Sona statues, "being of wood" in baoulé, evoke a assié oussou, being of the earth. They are one of a type of statues intended to be used as medium tools by Komien seers, the latter being selected by the asye usu spirits in order to ...

The work of a sculptor from the Agni ethnic group, a sub-group of the rich and famous Akan tribe present in Côte d'Ivoire and southern Ghana, this African statue sits on an Akan stool. This sculpture belonged to Comian female members of secret societies, endowed with magical gifts, and ensured communication with the spirits of ancestors and geniuses established in the afterlife. Golden patina encrusted with kaolin.
Desication cracks. The Portuguese came into contact with the Akan at the end of the 15th century and quickly settled in the coastal region in order to develop the gold trade there. The artistic expression of the Agni, living in the east of Côte d'Ivoire, is marked by the influence of the lagoon populations composed mainly of the Attyé, Akyé, and Ebrié, and that of the ...

The "inverted doubles" in the sculptures of African tribal art of the Baule
. Male figure representing a carefully detailed standing figure.

About sixty ethnic groups populate the Ivory Coast, including the Baoulé,in the center, Akans from Ghana, people of the savannah, practicing hunting and agriculture just like the Gouro from whom they borrowed ritual cults and sculpted masks. Two types of statues are produced by the Baoulé , Baulé, in the ritual framework: The Waka-Sona statues, "being of wood" in Baoulé, evoke an assié oussou, being of the earth. They are part of a type of statues intended to be used as a medium tool by the diviners komien , the latter being selected by the spirits asye usu in order to communicate revelations from the beyond. The second type ...

African art and statues of the Baoulé
A voluminous head with multiple braided shells, facial and body scarifications, a protruding umbilical, muscular legs adapted to agricultural work, characterize this effigy male baoulé. The soft, sainy surface is locally encrusted with ritual anointing residues. Kaolin chipped on the seat. Desication cracks. Two types of statues are produced by the baoulé in the ritual framework: the statues Waka-Sona , " being wood " in baoulé, evoke a asssousou , be of the earth. They are part of a type of statues intended to be used as a medium tool by the komiefoué soothsayers , the latter being selected by the spirits asye usu ("genies of the earth") in order to communicate the revelations of the afterlife. The second type of statues are the spouses of the ...

Intervening among the Ashanti and the Fantis of Ghana, the African doll statuettes Akuaba (plural Akua'mma) form stylized amulets supposed to increase the fertility. The flat and circular head remains a constant. A mark of beauty, the ringed neck symbolizes prosperity.
Brown patina with orange reflections.br /> Carried on the backs of women, these statues are also accompanied by various rites, such as the ingestion of a potion, or the placing of the object on the family altar. After the birth of the child, the sculpture is used as a toy, and sometimes still offered to the healer in order to witness its effectiveness.

Used among the Ashanti and Fantis of Ghana, African doll statuettes Akuaba (plural Akua'mma) are amulets used by women Ashanti to promote fertility. Usually stylized, this statuette is an exception. Only the flat and circular head remains a constant. A mark of beauty, the often ringed neck also symbolizes prosperity.
Dark satin patina, old and discreet restoration on one foot.
Carried on the backs of women, these statues are also accompanied by various rites, such as the ingestion of a potion, or the placing of the object on the family altar. After the birth of the child, the sculpture is used as a toy, and sometimes still offered to the healer in order to witness its effectiveness.

An arched back, extended by long arms whose hands caress a triangular face. The subject with the head bristling with pimples rests on chubby, packed limbs, surmounted by the disc bordering the hips. The stylistic conventions of mambila statuary translate here into expressive sculpture. Grainy matte patina, kaolin residue and pink highlights. Cracks, chips.
Despite their small number, the thirty thousand Mambila (or Mambila, Mambere, Nor, Torbi, Lagubi, Tagbo, Tongbo, Bang, Ble, Juli, Bea)(the "men", in Fulani), settled in the northwest of Cameroon, have created a large number of masks and statues easily identifiable by their heart-shaped faces. Although the Mambila believe in a creator god named Chang or Nama, they only worship their ancestors. Their leaders were buried in ...

Altar figure consisting of four stylized subjects placed side by side. This type of figure refers to the myths of Dogon origin. Grainy matte patina, minor cracks.
The African tribal statues of the Dogon can also be the object of worship on the part of the whole community when they commemorate, for example, the foundation of the village. These statues, sometimes embodying the nyama of the deceased, are placed on altars of ancestors and take part in various rituals, including those of the sowing and harvesting periods. However, their functions remain little known.