New: the 2nd edition of Within Carved Lines: The Secret Meanings of African Masks is out now. Get the book → Many peoples documented in this book build their art around a single recurring symbol. The Tabwa, scattered along Lake Tanganyika between the southeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and northeastern Zambia, built theirs around…
The towering plank masks of the Bwa people are among the most visually arresting in African art. This guide explains their origin, symbolism, and ceremony.
An African mask was never meant to exist everywhere. In traditional African societies, masks were carefully placed, moved, and stored according to clear cultural rules. These rules were not arbitrary. They reflected deep understandings of space, function, timing, and social order. This article explains where African masks were traditionally kept, why those locations mattered, and…
New: the 2nd edition of Within Carved Lines: The Secret Meanings of African Masks is out now. Get the book → Few African masks are as immediately recognizable as Kifwebe. The carved concentric lines running across the face, the tall ridged crest rising from the forehead, and the stark geometric planes have made Kifwebe one…
New: the 2nd edition of Within Carved Lines: The Secret Meanings of African Masks is out now. Get the book → Most masks in this book are worn the way you would expect a mask to be worn, over the face, or as a helmet enclosing the head. The Baga, roughly 60,000 people on the…