Similar Posts
Kuba Kingdom: Art, Masks, and the Legacy of Central Africa’s Greatest Empire
The Kuba Kingdom of present-day DRC produced extraordinary art and governance. Explore their mask traditions and historical impact.
The Dan Mask of West Africa: Purpose, Symbolism, and Regional Variations
Found among the Dan people of Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia, these masks are among the most expressive in African art history.
Why African Masks have horns?
New: the 2nd edition of Within Carved Lines: The Secret Meanings of African Masks is out now. Get the book → I have had to answer the question, why do African masks have horns? Is it a sign of evil or good. In this article, I will discuss the depths of African masks and what…
Vili Masks: A Police Force in Paint, on the Atlantic Coast
New: the 2nd edition of Within Carved Lines: The Secret Meanings of African Masks is out now. Get the book → Most masks on this site are built to communicate with ancestors, spirits, or the dead. Vili masks did that too, but they were also handed a much more immediate, secular job: keeping order at…
What It Means to Own an African Mask Outside Africa
New: the 2nd edition of Within Carved Lines: The Secret Meanings of African Masks is out now. Get the book → Owning an African mask outside its place of origin is not inherently wrong—but it does come with responsibility. African masks were created within specific cultural systems. When they leave those systems, their meaning does…