African Arts Gallery

Minimalism for this anthropomorphic figure in black iron. Rusty patina. The populations of the same cultural region, grouped under the name " lobi", form a fifth of the inhabitants of Burkina Faso. Few in number in Ghana, they have also settled in the north of Ivory Coast. It was at the end of the 18th century that the Lobi, coming from Northern Ghana, settled among the indigenous Thuna and Puguli, the Dagara, the Dian, the Gan and the Birifor. The Lobi believe in a creator God named Thangba Thu, whom they address through the worship of many intermediary spirits, the Thil. Various sacred altars are erected around the Lobi houses. The sanctuary of the family home is called the Thildu, where tribal sculptures of wood, iron or brass, statues of ancestors and batebas are grouped.