Worn on the heads of male dancers, ci-wara headdresses are danced in male and female pairs to symbolize the fertility of land and animals. Each headdress represents an antelope, which for the Bamana is a metaphor for the successful farmer who tirelessly tills his fields.
What is the function of the Ci Wara headdress?
These headdresses, also called ci wara, are carved to honor that original mythical being. Under Ci Wara’s guidance, humans first learned to cultivate the land and became prosperous and able farmers. When humans gradually became careless and wasteful, however, Ci Wara is said to have buried himself in the earth.
Which animals have influenced the form of the Ci Wara masks?
Antelope, aardvark and pangolin are all animals that dig up the earth: antelopes cut the ground with their hooves, while both the aardvark and pangolin use their claws to open termite mounds. This makes them fitting parts of Chi Wara, the supernatural being believed to have taught the Bamana peoples to farm.
What is a Chawara?
A Chiwara (also Chi wara, Ci Wara, or Tyi Wara; Bambara: ciwara; French: tchiwara) is a ritual object representing an antelope, used by the Bambara ethnic group in Mali.
What is a Bambara mask?
N’tomo masks are used by the Bambara people of West Africa. … The mask represents the legendary ancestor of the Bambara and it is a symbol of protection. The mask is made of wood and may be covered in shells, seeds or brass.
What is chiwara mask?
The Chiwara mask is held for the persons who are the best and fastest workers of the land, and so it is passed from one person to another depending on skill and expertise. It is a high honour to be able to wear the mask and dance the ceremonial Chiwara dance.
What is the purpose of this Baule sculpture?
The Baule are noted for their fine wooden sculpture, particularly for their ritual statuettes representing ghosts or spirits; these, as well as carved ceremonial masks, were originally associated with the ancestor cult but are increasingly produced for commercial purposes.
How can we identify the antelope depicted in this Ci Wara headdress as female?
The male, identified as a roan antelope, is distinguished by its long horns and elaborate openwork mane. The female, representing an oryx antelope, carries a fawn on her back, a reference to human mothers, who carry babies on their backs as they till the fields.
Where is the Bambara tribe located in Africa?
The Bambara (Bambara: ߓߡߊߣߊ߲, romanized: Bamana or ߓߊ߲ߡߊߣߊ߲ Banmana) are a Mandé ethnic group native to much of West Africa, primarily southern Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Senegal.
What are Nok sculptures?
These artifacts are mostly terracotta sculptures of human heads, human figures, and animals. One of the identifying characteristics of Nok sculptures is the triangular or oval-shaped eyes on human faces. Human figures also often have elaborate hair styles.
What is African art mostly used for?
Traditional African art served a purpose (and does still in some cultures) as an agent of religion, social stability, and social control. Art that has a purpose is not unique to African or other non-Western cultures but occurs in Western ones as well.
What is Dogon art?
Dogon art consists primarily of sculptures. Dogon art revolves around religious values, ideals, and freedoms (Laude, 19). Dogon sculptures are not made to be seen publicly, and are commonly hidden from the public eye within the houses of families, sanctuaries, or kept with the Hogon (Laude, 20).
What are Dogon masks made out of?
Following a death, Dogon peoples bury the dead immediately. They dance emina, masks carved from wood and woven from hibiscus fiber, as part of a sequence of rites that are conducted for men long after they are buried.
Why are antelopes endangered?
“Unsustainable harvesting, whether for food or traditional medicine, and human encroachment on their habitat are the main threats facing antelopes,” says Dr Philippe Chardonnet, Co-Chair of the IUCN Antelope Specialist Group.
What tribe is the Baule mask from?
The Baule belong to the Akan peoples who inhabit Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. Three hundred years ago the Baule people migrated westward from Ghana when the Asante rose to power. The tale of how they broke away from the Asante has been preserved in their oral traditions.
What is Baule fabric?
The traditional Baule fabric is originally hand stitched, died, and woven by local Mali artisans and weavers using a tenth century set of techniques. … These textiles are versatile and great for just about anything needing bold color. This is an intricately woven fabric, which requires a gentle cleaning process.
What does the Dan mask symbolize?
Dan masks are sacred objects. Dan masks are used for protection and as a channel for communication with the spirit world. The Dan also carry small ‘passport masks’ for personal protection when they are living away from home.
Who wears the Bundu mask?
Bundu masks, created in the 19th and 20th centuries in Sierra Leone, were crafted by men but worn by women during initiation masquerades. These masks represent the importance of women in Mende society, as well as the emphasis on adhering to the ideal of a young Mende woman.
Where does the Dan mask come from?
Masks are the most important art form of the Dan people of Liberia. The Dan people refer to these masks as gle or ge, terms that refers both to the physical mask and the individual spirits the mask is believed to embody during masquerade performances.
How are masks used in Bamana?
The masks are worn while dancing, and are meant to look beautiful on a talented dancer.
What do the Dogon tribe eat?
Dogons rely on farming for food intake. Dogon people cultivate pearl millets, sorghum, rice, onions, peanuts and other vegetables. They domesticate goats, sheep and chickens to produce milk, eggs and meat.
Where do the dogons live?
The Dogon inhabit the Bandiagara escarpment in Mali.
What language do the Dogon speak?
Dogon language, language of the Niger-Congo language family spoken by some 600,000 Dogon people in northeastern Mali to the east of Mopti and along the border between Mali and Burkina Faso.
What does surrealism stand for?
: the principles, ideals, or practice of producing fantastic or incongruous imagery or effects in art, literature, film, or theater by means of unnatural or irrational juxtapositions and combinations.