African Arts Gallery

French collection of African tribal art
Moba works are easily identifiable thanks to the minimalist aspect of a summary size. The reduced works were intended for the family altar. The yendu tchitcheri measuring less than 25 cm serve as a personal talisman.
Only the sons of diviners were authorized to sculpt this protective effigy. The Tchitcheri sakwa (pl. of Tchicherik) represent an ancestor symbolized, founder of the clan, by a human body with an abstract face.
It was initially planted in the ground.
It is supposed to increase the magical power of the family or community altar.
Litt.: "The soul of Africa", S. Diakonoff.; "Africa" ​​Ed. Prestel.

African Art Collection Amadeo Plaza Garcés.
Antique Gelede face mask depicting a large head. The masks were repainted for each new ceremony, which seems to have been the case. Vestiges of its costume are attached to the contours.
Abrasions of use, cracks. In Nigeria, also in Benin, this African mask worn on top of the head is used for the joyful dances of the Gelede society, and on the occasion of the funerals of its followers. These masks are produced in pairs, each with a specific name.
The Gelede country in Nigeria pays homage to mothers, especially the oldest among them, whose powers are said to be comparable to those of the Yoruba gods, or orisa , and ancestors, osi and who can be used for the benefit but also for the misfortune of society. In the latter case ...

African mask of initiation, Mbuya, with large notched eyelids, an upturned nose, and an open mouth with sharp teeth. It has a natural fiber cap. Height on base: 45 cm.
The Pende Westerners live on the banks of the Kwilu, while the Easterners have established themselves on the banks of the Kasai downstream of Tshikapa. The influences of the neighboringethnic groups, Mbla, Suku, Wongo, Leele, Kuba and Salempasu have been imprinted on their large sculpture of tribal art. Within this diversity the realistic Mbuya masks, produced every ten years, have a festive function, and embody different characters difficult to differentiate without their costume, including the fumu chief. > or ufumu, the soothsayer and his wife, the prostitute, the jester, tundu, the possessed, etc... Mbuya ...

This African mask evoking a young woman was worn during the closing ceremonies of the Mukanda initiation. This mask was supposed to promote hunting, fertility, and harvests. Dark reddish-brown patina. Chips and abrasions.
Of Lunda origin, the Lwena (or even Lovale, or Luvale) emigrated from Angola to Zaire in the 19th century, pushed back by the Chokwe. Some became slave traders, others, the Lovale, found refuge in Zambia and near the Zambezi in Angola. Their society is matrilineal, exogamous and polygamous. The Lwena became known for their honey-colored sculptures, embodying figures of deceased ancestors and chiefs, and their masks linked to the initiation rites of mukanda. This mask is engraved with circular patterns associated with ethnic scarifications. These details ...

Intended to be worn by an initiate of higher rank, this African mask represents the female ancestor mwana pwo. It extends here with a very unusual flat and circular headdress. Height on oak base (black color on request): 34 cm.
In eastern Angola, African Chokwe pwo masks, among the numerous akishi masks (sing: mukishi, indicating power) of African Chokwe art, embody an ideal of beauty, Mwana Pwo, or the Pwo woman and appear today during festive ceremonies. Joined to their male counterparts, chihongo recognizable by their large tray-shaped headdress, the pwo are supposed to bring fertility and prosperity to the community. The characteristic patterns present on the forehead, and sometimes on the cheekbones, are part of the Chokwe aesthetic canons but also served as public markers ...

French collection of African tribal art . It is through different secret societies that the Bambara initiates will acquire their knowledge, including that of the Kore, targeting the elders and during which this mask intervenes. The society of the Kore is divided into eight classes of initiates, the sixth of which is that of the hyenas, or surukuw.

Abraded lumpy patina of use. Desiccation cracks. Missing parts.
Established in central and southern Mali, in a savannah area, the Bambara, "Bamana" or "unbelievers", as the Muslims have named them, belong to the large Mande group, with the Soninke and the Malinke. The Bambara nyamakala artisan groups, more specifically the blacksmiths called numu, are in charge of sculpting ritual objects, endowed with nyama, occult energy. ...

The masks of the Chokwe, Luda, Luvale/Lwena, Luchazi and Mbunda clans are called "makishi" (sing. likishi) in Zambia. This name comes from "kishi", a Bantu concept that evokes the manifestation of a spirit or an ancestor. These agents of social, moral and spiritual order, forming a panel of different characters, sociable, aggressive, or unpredictable, in fact embody the spirit of an illustrious ancestor (male or female), their appearance manifesting itself mainly during rites mukanda, including circumcision, during which their true identity must remain hidden from the eyes of the profane.
Ocher brown velvety patina, abrasions.
Of Lunda origin, the Lwena emigrated from Angola to Zaire in the 19th century, repelled by the Chokwe. When some became slave traders, other groups ...

This African sculpture naturalistic, allowing according to the Yoruba communication with the afterlife, features as a maternal figure one of the many female goddesses, the earth goddess Onilé ("owner of the House"), guarantor of longevity, peace, and resources, and linked to the powerful Ogboni society among the Yoruba Egba and Ijebu. It could also symbolize Orunmila , goddess of divination.
Intended to be enthroned on an altar, she was worshipped by members of the powerful Ogboni, or Osugbo, society in charge of justice.
Satin polychrome patina, abrasions.
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 demise of the Ife ...

This type of hybrid African mask called ogbodo enyi which means "spirit of the elephant", refers to the strength and endurance of the majestic pachyderm. Thanks to its exceptional characteristics, the elephant is associated with a symbolism of political and spiritual power.
These masks are recognizable by their atypical shapes in projection. The top of the mask features a sculpted head.
Two-tone patina. Desication cracks.
In the northeast of the Igbo region, these masks were worn only by men during annual festivities, including the New Yam Festival, who wore them on their heads and waved them to rapid solitary dances.

African statuette depicting a founding ancestor and mythical hero, Chibinda Ilunga, wearing the chipangula, an attribute of chiefs. The chiefs had a major function in the propitiation rites intended for hunting and the fertility of women.

Peacefully settled in eastern Angola until the 16th century, the Chokwé were then subject to the Lunda empire from which they inherited a new hierarchical system and the sacredness of power. Three centuries later, they ended up seizing the capital of the Lunda weakened by internal conflicts, thus contributing to the dismantling of the kingdom. The Chokwé did not have centralized power but large chiefdoms. It was they who attracted artists wishing to put their know-how at the exclusive service of the court. The artists created so many ...

Ex-Belgian collection of African art African statuette associated with the ancestor and mythical hero, founder of the ethnic group, Chibinda Ilunga. The head, with oversized palms and feet, has a noble headdress with curved side wings (cipenya-mutwe), wicker frame covered with fabric, brass, leather, and pearls. The chief had taught his people the art of hunting.
Brilliant nuanced brown patina, erosions and desiccation cracks.
The Tschokwe, of Bantu culture, had established themselves in eastern Angola, but also in the Congo and Zambia. Following different alliances, they mingled with the Lunda who taught them hunting. Their social organization also affected Tschokwe society. The Tschokwe, however, ended up dominating the Lunda, whose kingdom was dismantled at the end of ...

Singular African statuette whose anatomy is feminine but whose head represents a chief from the Moxico region, wearing the chipangula cheffale. The chiefs indeed had a major function in the propitiation rites intended for hunting and the fertility of women. Applications of castor oil and coloring plant decoctions were generally applied to Chokwe sculptures.
Glossy patina, minor cracks.

Peacefully settled in eastern Angola until the 16th century, the Chokwé were then subject to the Lunda empire from which they inherited a new hierarchical system and the sacredness of power. Three centuries later, they ended up seizing the capital of the Lunda weakened by internal conflicts, thus contributing to the dismantling of the kingdom. The Chokwé did not have centralized power ...

Private collection of a Belgian gallery owner whose identity will be communicated to the buyer.

African art among the Songye is distinguished in particular by the Kifwebe masks, also known by the plural Bifwebe, which were produced at the same time by the Luba and the Songye. The term Kifwebe designates both the mask itself, the society of masks and the mask wearer belonging to the male secret society bwadi bwa kifwebe, responsible for social control. These masks come in three variants: the masculine (kilume), generally decorated with a high crest, the feminine (kikashi) with a very low or even absent crest, and finally the largest symbolizing power (kia ndoshi).
Equipped with holes on their outline, these African masks allow you to attach a costume during the most ...

Ex-Belgian collection of African art.
Small pear-shaped container with a cap, intended to contain powder for wooden rifles. This black powder was imported from Europe, making it a luxurious commodity carefully preserved. This powder, to which magical virtues were also attributed, often complemented the ingredients of ritual fetishes. Decorative motifs are engraved on the sides of the object. Matte brown patina.
The Solongo cultures of Angola and Yombé were largely influenced by the Kongo kingdom from which they borrowed the naturalist statuary and religious rites, in particularly by means of carved fetishes nkondo nkisi.

Ref. : “Maternity in black African art” Massa; “Tribal Art of Black Africa” Bacquart.

Ex-Belgian collection of African art Accompanying the circumcision rites in the Ivindo valley, this type of African mask had the role of entertaining or impressing by begging for donations for the young people invited to the ceremonies. The wearer's costume was made of raffia fibers. Grainy matte patina. Chips, drying cracks.
The Mahongwe, Obamba, Shamayé and Sango form with the Kota a group with similar rites and society. It is in the eastern part of Gabon that they live among the forests.

In African art, the Marka, Maraka in Bamana, Warka, or Sarakolé, are Muslim city dwellers of Soninke origin, established in the south of Niger, scattered since the end of the Ghana empire in Mali, Mauritania and Senegal. They now speak Bamana and have adopted a large part of the Bambara traditions, such as the Ntomo and the Kore, initiation societies that used masks during their ceremonies. The sculptors of African art Bambara and Marka are part of the Numuw, who are not tied to an ethnic group and are free to settle wherever they wish.
The faces joined by their headdress form an arched helmet mask. The straight nose surmounts a narrow mouth that fits into a pointed chin. Hammered metal plates incised with decorative motifs, specific to marka sculptures, adorn the ...

French collection of tribal art.< br>This sculpture is an African mask associated with the naja snake with dilated pupils. Old piece, matte patina abraded and cracks from desiccation. African serpentine initiatory mask used mainly by the Bulongic (village of Kifinda), Baga subgroup of the Guinean coast, its size can reach up to 2.50 m. These masks were divided into two groups called Mosolo kombo and Sangaran, each with specific functions. Their design took shape in an esoteric context, at night in the heart of the forest. Privileges of initiated men, embodying a spiritual entity, the Baga Sangaran masks only attended circumcision, every 24 years according to ethnologist Denise Paulme. During some dances the mask was placed on the head, held in balance by a bamboo structure and by ...

French collection of African art. African mask characteristic of the Yoruba style, which was worn on the top of the head. The animal subject, the rooster, is linked to sacrificial rites. A particularity in African art, the Gelede cult has entered contemporary heritage, on the basis of ancestral traditions: UNESCO has listed it in the ICP (Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity) in 2008.
Matte polychrome patina. Erosions and cracks.
The ceremonies of Gelede, Efe, are mainly practiced in the western Yoruba kingdoms. They are used as part of masquerades dedicated to women in their maternal dimension, and more particularly to the "Supreme Mother", whose identity varies from city to city. ...

French collection of African tribal art African mask of the Punu type. Abraded matte patina, desiccation cracks.
The white masks of Gabon, itengi, (pl. bitengi) were associated with the various secret societies of Gabon, including the Bwiti, Bwete, and the Mwiri ("to lead"), the latter having several levels of initiation, to which all Punu men belonged, and whose emblem was the caiman (hence, for some, the motif with saurian scales). These powerful secret societies, which also had a judicial function, included several dances, including the leopard dance, the Esomba, the Mukuyi or the Okuyi depending on the location, an acrobatic dance on stilts, remaining the most widespread. In some villages, at dawn or dusk, the Okuyi was accompanied by songs in an esoteric language that only ...

Animal sculptures in African art.
African statuette coated with hair or fibers, embodying the spirit of a monkey.
The Boulou ethnic group Fang, live in Cameroon, on the border of Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Congo, on a vast plateau within the equatorial forest near the Bakwele whose habits and customs are comparable. Like the Fang of Southern Cameroon with white masks of justice, the Boulou also used the ritual of Ngil to counter witchcraft and poisoning. The future initiates, following their integration into the secret society, identify themselves with the Ngi, fierce iconic gorilla. The Ngil society, which included the execution of sorcerers, was banned by the colonial administration. Not compulsory but reserved for some, initiation to ngil was very ...

This African facial mask, topped with a frontal crest, adopts the canons of traditional sculpture, as well as the curvilinear motifs associated with the scarifications of the ethnic group. According to Rik Ceyssens in "Congo Masks" (p.156. ed. M.L.Félix) and as attested by the sketches of H.M.Lemme who accompanied Frobenius on his travels in the Congo, this pattern of looped scarification was widespread among various Luluwa sub-groups in 1905. The Bakwa also sported this type of tribal scarring. These masks are used during circumcision rites and at funerals of notables. Satin patina. It was in the south of the Democratic Republic of Congo that the Lulua , or Béna Lulua ,from West Africa settled. Their social structure, based on castes, is similar to that of the Luba. They ...