African art
African art refers to works of visual art, including works of sculpture, painting, metalwork, and pottery, originating from the various peoples of the African continent and influenced by distinct, indigenous traditions of aesthetic expression.
While the various artistic traditions of such a large and diverse continent display considerable regional and cultural variety, there are consistent artistic themes, recurring motifs, and unifying elements across the broad spectrum of the African visual expression. As is the case for every artistic tradition in human history, African art was created within specific social, political, and religious contexts. Likewise, African art was often created not purely for art's sake, but rather with some practical, spiritual, and/or didactic purpose in mind. In general, African art prioritizes conceptual and symbolic representation over realism, aiming to visualize the subject's spiritual essence.
Ethiopian art, heavily influenced by Ethiopia's long-standing Christian tradition, is also different from most African art, where Traditional African religion was dominant until the 20th century. African art includes prehistoric and ancient art, the Islamic art of West Africa, the Christian art of East Africa, and the traditional artifacts of these and other regions. Many African sculptures were historically made of wood and other natural materials that have not survived from earlier than a few centuries ago, although rare older pottery and metal figures can be found in some areas. Some of the earliest decorative objects, such as shell beads and evidence of paint, have been discovered in Africa, dating to the Middle Stone Age.
Masks are important elements in the art of many people, along with human figures, and are often highly stylized. There exist diverse styles, which can often be observed within a single context of origin and may be influenced by the intended use of the object. Nevertheless, broad regional trends are discernible. Sculpture is most common among "groups of settled cultivators in the areas drained by the Niger and Congo rivers" in West Africa. Direct images of deities are relatively infrequent, but masks in particular are or were often made for ritual ceremonies. Since the late 19th century, there has been an increasing amount of African art in Western collections, the finest pieces of which are displayed as part of the history of colonization.
African art had an important influence on European Modernist art, which was inspired by their interest in abstract depiction. It was this appreciation of African sculpture that has been attributed to the very concept of "African art", as seen by European and American artists and art historians.
West African cultures developed bronze casting for reliefs, like the famous Benin Bronzes, to decorate palaces and for highly naturalistic royal heads from around the Bini town of Benin City, Edo State, as well as in terracotta or metal, from the 12th–14th centuries. Akan gold weights are a form of small metal sculptures produced from 1400 to 1900; some represent proverbs, contributing a narrative element rare in African sculpture; and royal regalia included gold sculptured elements. Many West African figures are used in religious rituals and are often coated with materials placed on them for ceremonial offerings. The Mande-speaking peoples of the same region make pieces from wood with broad, flat surfaces and arms and legs shaped like cylinders. But in Central Africa the main distinguishing characteristics include heart-shaped faces that are curved inward and display patterns of circles and dots.
Definitions
Some definitions of African art include the artistic production of African diasporas, such as African-American art, Afro-Caribbean Art, and Latin American art inspired by African traditions. However, African art does not usually encompass the artistic traditions of North Africa, which have been predominantly influenced by distinct artistic traditions, such as Punic art, Greco-Roman Art, Islamic Art, and other styles originating beyond Africa. As a result of geographic factors, namely North Africa's proximity with the Mediterranean and the natural boundaries, such as the Sahara, separating North Africa with the rest of continent, the influence of indigenous African forms of art would have been lower by comparison.Thematic elements
In Western African art there is a particular focus on expressiveness and individuality. The art of the Dan people is an example of this, and it has also extended its influence beyond the continent.The human figure has long been the central subject of most African art, and this emphasis has influenced certain European artistic traditions. For instance, during the fifteenth century, Portugal engaged in trade with the Sapi culture near the Ivory Coast in West Africa. The Sapi artists produced intricate ivory salt cellars that merged African and European design elements—most notably through the inclusion of the human figure, which was typically absent in Portuguese saltcellars. In African art, the human figure can symbolize the living or the dead, represent chiefs, dancers, or various trades, serve as an anthropomorphic image of a deity, or fulfill other votive and spiritual functions. Another recurring theme is the intermorphosis of humans and animals, blurring the boundaries between species to convey symbolic meaning.
Visual abstraction: African artworks often prioritize visual abstraction over naturalistic representation. This stylistic tendency stems from the widespread use of generalized and codified forms, which reflect cultural values, spiritual beliefs, and artistic conventions rather than realistic depictions.
Scope
The study of African art until recently focused on the traditional art of certain well-known groups on the continent, with a particular emphasis on traditional sculpture, masks and other visual culture from non-Islamic West Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa with a particular emphasis on the 19th and 20th centuries. Recently, however, there has been a movement among African art historians and other scholars to include the visual culture of other regions and time periods. The notion is that by including all African cultures and their visual culture over time in African art, there will be a greater understanding of the continent's visual aesthetics across time. Finally, the arts of the African diaspora, in Brazil, the Caribbean and the south-eastern United States, have also begun to be included in the study of African art.Materials
African art is produced using a wide range of materials and takes many distinct shapes. Because wood is a prevalent material, wood sculptures make up the majority of African art. Other materials used in creating African art include clay soil. Jewelry is a popular art form used to indicate rank, affiliation with a group, or purely aesthetics. African jewelry is made from such diverse materials as Tiger's eye stone, Hematite, Sisal, coconut shell, beads and Ebony wood. Sculptures can be wooden, ceramic or carved out of stone like the famous Shona sculptures, and decorated or sculpted pottery comes from many regions. Various forms of textiles are made including Kitenge, mud cloth and Kente cloth. Mosaics made of butterfly wings or colored sand are popular in West Africa. Early African sculptures can be identified as being made of terracotta and bronze.Traditional African religions
have been extremely influential on African art forms across the continent. African art often stems from the themes of religious symbolism, functionalism and utilitarianism. With many pieces of art that are created for spiritual rather than purely creative purposes. The majority of popular African artworks can be understood as the tools, such as the representative figurines used in religious rituals and ceremonies. Many African cultures emphasize the importance of ancestors as intermediaries between the living, the Gods, and the supreme creator. Art is seen as a way to contact these spirits of ancestors. Art may also be used to depict Gods and is valued for its functional purposes. For example, African God Ogun who is the God of iron, war, and craftsmanship.However, it is important to note that the arrival of both Christianity and Islam have also greatly influenced the art of the African continent, and the traditions of both have been integrated into the beliefs and artwork of traditional African religion.
History
The origins of African art lie long before the recorded history. The region's oldest known beads were made from Nassarius shells and worn as personal ornaments 72,000 years ago. In Africa, evidence for the making of paints by a complex process exists from about 100,000 years ago and of the use of pigments from around 320,000 years ago. African rock art in the Sahara in Niger preserves 6000-year-old carvings. Along with sub-Saharan Africa, the Western cultural arts, ancient Egyptian paintings and artifacts, and indigenous southern crafts also contributed greatly to African art. The abundance of surrounding nature was often depicted through abstract interpretations of animals, plant life, or natural designs and shapes. The Nubian Kingdom of Kush in modern Sudan was in close and often hostile contact with Egypt and produced monumental sculptures mostly derivative of styles that did not lead to the north. In West Africa, the earliest known sculptures are from the Nok culture, which thrived between 1,500 BC and 500 AD in modern Nigeria. Its clay figures typically feature elongated bodies and angular shapes.More complex methods of producing art were developed in sub-Saharan Africa around the 10th century, some of the most notable advancements include the bronze work of Igbo Ukwu and the terracotta and metalworks of Ile Ife Bronze and brass castings, often ornamented with ivory and precious stones, became highly prestigious in much of West Africa, sometimes being limited to the work of court artisans and identified with royalty, as with the Benin Bronzes.
As Europeans explored the coasts of West Africa, they discovered a wide range of functional objects that Africans used for cultural, social, and economic purposes. Oath devices, for instance, were essential to securing business relationships during the era of the Atlantic slave trade. Though these works of craftsmanship followed their own aesthetic principles, they were regarded as tools of sorcery by European travel writers and reduced to a category of "fetish," which was understood to be outside the realm of art.