histart 208

enduring myths of african art - blier

• contains a few myths about african art and its qualities

• myth: africa is timeless and primal

  • ignores the stylistic shifts over time, reinforces stagnance

• myth: african art is bound by place

  • africa has been divided by colonialism, tribes and their artistic influences have moved around the continent and the world

• myth: art is communitarian

  • there is narrative flow and interexchange between cultures; tribes interacted and there were also significant political systems that have shaped africa (kingdoms)

• myth: tribal africa

  • the word “tribe” implies a lack of change, diminishes the variety of groups ad fluidity between cultures and political systems

• myth: intuitive african art

  • artists reference/learn from their own culture’s art history and are also inspired by foreign artists as well

  • scholars ignore islamic/christian/european influences in african art because they don’t believe it to be “pure”

• myth: art for art’s sake

  • myth that there is no word for art in african language

  • belief that african art is only seen as art because it’s been elevated as such by the west

  • art can have a functional purpose, artists can and should be celebrated for their craftmanship

europe, african art, and the uncanny - gates

• european modernity comes from / imitates black and african art and culture

• europeans appropriated black art through music, visual art, etc.

• “primitivism” seen as closely related to modernism (binary of white/black, modern/primitive)

• pablo picasso is known for his appropriation of african art — denied it for the majority of his career

ituri women reading - thompson

• women are the primary creators of art (pongos) and architecture (mongulu)

• mbuti art is intertwined with music

• art is used in rituals and ceremonies

• yeyi / diyenge: wordless, vibratory communion with forest

• kanga beere: “to cancel words”

• hocketing: vocal / artistic technique of artists singing rhythms that interrupt each other

gee’s bend reading - chave

• martha jane pettway — made quilts in the 80s

• quilts were used to stay warm, covered windows and floors, sewn from old clothing and patterns

• quilts were turned into an art exhibit without the permission of the artists, they never received compensation for it

• should people’s crafted utilitarian items be treated as art? chave argues no

  • turning these objects into art erases the context of the object (diminishes the personal use of object, erases memories and sentimental value)

  • utilitarian items should be valued in their own right, should not be labeled as ‘high art’ to be respected as craft

  • “is high art something to aspire to?”

the fetish and the imagination of europe - mcclusky

• principles of nkisi and nkondi

  • nkisi: sacred medicine which hide souls and protect people from diseases

    • require guidance from nganga (priest)

    • nails bind nkisi to the person

    • can bind agreements

  • nkondi: hunter, specific nkisi with protective nature

• fetish: used often to describe nkisi and other african objects

• europeans have described the Congo as dark and mysterious, used fetishism and accusations of cannibalism as justification for resource extraction and colonization

• missionaries target these objects

• Laman invited people to actually talk about what nkisi are used for and the actual purpose was discovered and widely shared in 1974

• dikenga: analogy of the soul and the path of the sun

gundaker reading

• Creating a vocabulary/principles for understanding yard work of African American houses

• Not “junk,” but intentional landscapes (spiritual, communal, familial, etc.)

  • Uses formal/visual analysis, paired with textual evidence, to determine these

  • Some principles: redundancy, allusion, and proximity

  • Connections between yard work iconography (symbolism/imbuing things with meaning) and
    those from Kongo

  • Wrapping around thresholds and objects to seal intentions (i.e., pea vines around a grave to avenge a murder) parallels nkisi nkondi

mirzoeff reading

• author challenges the idea that photography is observed truth or transcendent art

• truth is a matter of perspective or understanding agendas with photography

• Photography as a tool in constructing European colonial vision of Africa

  • Creation of a landscape (think back to Gundaker, Arrowsmith’s maps), which justifies colonial/imperial activities and exploitations

• Disciplinary Gaze:

  • “Heart of darkness” to be conquered; Leopold sees all, owns all, controls all
    (objectification - to turn into an object of possession

• Reformist Gaze

  • Free producers (in Congo), improve the market, shift from anachronistic colonial model of government to a modern colonial government (technology as control)

• Anthropological Gaze

  • Record Congo for the benefit of Western civilization (very Darwinian - evolution theory)

• Congo people were distrusting of cameras, Europeans interpreted it as a primitive response to advanced technology

harris reading

Orisha

• Orisha are recognized as spirits, deities in the Yoruba belief system, and some are believed to have been part of human culture

• Important orisha include Orunmila and Eshu, who serve as mediators between gods and humans

• Other significant orisha are Ogun, the god of iron and war, and Shango, who is associated with thunder

• Yoruba perceive twins as spirited, unpredictable, and fearless, much like the orisha

• Twin statues are called Ere Ibeji

Pavement Period Art

• During the eleventh century, Ife began to transform into an urban center

• Ife city stages intensified, creating a more complex contrast to surrounding Yoruba city-states

• The pavement period saw the construction of walled cities and the creation of artistic and archeological evidence

• Excavations suggest Ife was laid out in an orderly plan, with palaces and walls surrounding the city's center

• Paved courtyards were created with semi-circular voids and raised platforms, often decorated with pottery shards

Ogoga

• a Yoruba association, consisting of members with a council and assistance

• serves to underscore the leadership systems of royal court and society

• oversees how the power of rulers is checked

• important in criminal cases and is responsible for removing despots from office

• Ogboni employs a variety of art forms in its work, foremost among them, paired male and female figures

• Ogboni also carries meanings, for example, the fringes at the end of the cloth are divided and wrapped with threads to create seven tassels, seven being a significant number in Ogboni