Have a desire to learn about West African sculptures? Look no further! This article will to teach you how you can identify 3 types of West African sculptures.
Famous African sculptures are mostly made up of West African art. West African sculptures are popular because they are beautifully crafted and they are rich in history. These are 3 types of West African sculptures that are beautiful and important to know about.
Benin Bronze Heads, Ife Heads (Nigeria) and the Chiwara (Mali) are explored and discussed in this article.
This article gives you ways to identify 3 types of West African sculptures, by showing you some of their unique characteristics and cultural origins.
Taarifa
Taarifa means information in Kiswahili, at the foot of each image is a section headed “Taarifa” containing pertinent information relating to the image.
This post is all about west African sculptures.
3 Popular Types Of West African Sculptures For You to identify on your next visit to the museum
Benin Bronze Heads
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Head of an Oba, Edo artist Culture: Edo peoples Medium: Brass Date: 1550–1680 Size: height: 27.3 - width: 21.3 - depth: 21.9 (cm) Geography: Court of Benin Kingdom, Nigeria, West Africa Location: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States, North America
Characteristics of Benin Bronze Heads
Benin Bronzes are mostly made of bronze and brass. These African sculptures were created using the lost-wax casting technique.
A Benin Bronze Head is typically dark in colour and has a smooth and shiny texture. Most heads go down to the neck and are about the size of a human’s head.
Obas, Iyobas and important members of the Kingdom of Benin were represented on a Benin Bronze Head, often with a coral crown and neck rings.
Many Benin Bronze Heads were used in places of worship to perform rituals. Another art from the Benin Kingdom are Benin Bronze Plaques as seen in 7 Ancient African Art History Objects From Across Africa.
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Head of an Oba, Edo artist Culture: Edo peoples Medium: Brass Date: 16th century Size: height: 23.5 - width: 21.9 - depth: 22.9 (cm) Geography: Court of Benin Kingdom, Nigeria, West Africa Location: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, United States, North America
About the Benin Kingdom
The Benin Kingdom was founded about 1000 years ago in present-day Nigeria. Oral traditions say that the Benin Kingdom came out of the Ife Kingdom.
Check out 15 Types of Clothing in Medieval Africa to see royal clothing of the Benin Kingdom.
The Benin Kingdom was one of the most developed countries in West Africa. With the Oba as the king and the Iyoba as the Queen Mother.
Some of the best ancient West African sculptures come from the Benin Kingdom.
During an event called the Benin Punitive Expedition of 1897, thousands of art pieces were stolen from the Benin Kingdom by Britain.
This article, A Brief History of Africa, goes over the basics of Africa’s history.
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Memorial Head of a Queen Mother (Iyoba), Edo artist Culture: the Edo peoples Medium: Bronze; Iron; Molding; Glass Date: 16th century Size: height: 51 - width: 16 - depth: 18 (cm) Geography: Benin Kingdom, Nigeria, West Africa Location: The Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Germany, Europe, Western Europe - on loan from the National Commission for Museums and Monuments of Nigeria
© Bin im Garten / CC-BY-SA-3.0
Art pieces from the Kingdom of Benin were taken to Britain and sold around Europe and North America, mostly to museums.
In the end, the Benin Kingdom was invaded and controlled by Britain until Nigeria became an independent country.
See Oba Ovonramwen Nogabaisi (r.1888-1897) in 25 Beautiful African Royalty Outfits From The Past.
Benin Bronze Heads Today
Recently, a number of Benin Bronze Heads have been returned to Nigeria, into local museums. Benin Bronze Heads are a very important part of West African art history.
People around the world are working to return stolen art back to Africa, while educating the world about the good and the evils of history.
Ife Head
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Fragment of a Head, Yoruba artist Culture: Yoruba peoples Medium: terracotta Date: 1100-1500 Size: height: 15.2 - width: 8.3 - depth: 9.5 (cm) Geography: Ife, Nigeria, West Africa Location: Brooklyn Museum, United States, North America
© Brooklyn Museum / CC-BY-3.0
Characteristics of ife heads
Ife heads are ancient West African sculptures made of terracotta (cooked clay) and bronze as well as other materials.
Many Ife heads used to have paint, but now only small bits of colour show. What makes Ife heads so unique is how real they look, they are naturalistic.
Ife heads probably represent Ooni of Ife, often with what looks like a crown. They are nearly life-sized and it is possible that Ife heads used to be part of full-body figures.
A number of Ife heads have lines that go along the face – without crossing but following the shape of the face in a soft and round way. Ife heads usually have smaller eyes, compared to the size of the face represented on the statue.
A Brief History of Africa for People That Only Have 2 Minutes *in 7 pictures*
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The Ife Head, Yoruba artist Culture: Yoruba peoples Medium: Paint on Brass Date: c. 14-15th century Size: height: 35 - width: 12.5 - depth: 15 (cm) Geography: Ife, Nigeria, West Africa Location: British Museum, United Kingdom, Northwestern Europe
© Mustafagunes2 / CC-BY-SA-4.0
What Ife heads were used for is a great and big mystery. That is why African sculptures history is a subject that must be researched!
About the Ife Empire
The Ife Empire was founded thousands of years ago in what are today the countries of Nigeria and Benin.
It was the first Yoruba empire. The leader, or king, of the Ife Empire was called an Ooni of Ife.
The Ife Empire was an extremely rich, strong and influential empire. People from Ife did business across the great Sahara desert using glass beads as money!
Taarifa
Memorial Head of a King or Dignitary, Yoruba artist Culture: Yoruba peoples Medium: terracotta Date: 12-15th century Size: (approximate) height: 17 - width: 9.5 - depth: 10 (cm) Geography: Ife, Nigeria, West Africa Location: The Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Germany, Europe, Western Europe
The Ife Empire ended in around 1420 giving way to the Oyo, Ijebu and Benin Kingdoms.
In 1938, almost 20 Ife heads were discovered by accident in the city of Ife. Many more Ife heads, as well as pieces of other statues, have been found in and around Ife!
Ife Heads Today
Ife still exist as a kingdom. Its numerous languages, including Yoruba, are still spoken throughout Nigeria.
What a great thing for places like Nigeria to have remains of past civilizations like the Ife + others. Novels about human history educate us about the world in which we live in, have you read Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe?
Read on Nigerian Sukur Stone Buildings that are over 500 years old (!) in 17 Impressive Buildings Out Of The Africa Architecture Scene!
7 Enlightening Novels about Africa Book List for the Cultured Reader
Chiwara
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Dance Headdress (Ci-wara), Bambara artist Culture: Bambara peoples Medium: Wood; Metal; Ferrous nails; Accumulated material Date: 19-20th century Size: height: 72.4 - width: 30.5 - depth: 7 (cm) Geography: Mali, West Africa Location: Brooklyn, United States, North America
Characteristics of the Chiwara
The Chiwara is an object made out of wood by the Bambara people. It is taller than you think, probably. Some are more than 1 meter tall!
A Chiwara can be horizontal, vertical or abstract and male or female. Most are more long (pointing up) and than they are wide, unless they are horizontal.
Antilopes and pangolins with rounded shapes sticking up and outward are what are represented on a Chiwara.
Chiwara means working wild animal in Bambara, where farming is important. The Chiwara are used for dances and rituals, that is why sometimes there is hat at the bottom of the statue.
7 Treasured Medieval and Ancient African Art History Objects Found *Across* The Continent of Africa
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Zoomorphic Mask, Bambara artist Culture: Bambara peoples Medium: Wood; Coton; Vegetable fibers; String Date: 19-20th century Size: height: 50.3 - width: 19 - depth: 24 (cm) Geography: Bamako, Mali, West Africa Location: Musée du Quai Branly, France, Western Europe
© Ji-Elle / CC-BY-SA-3.0
The Chiwara has a magnificent form that has been (and still is) admired by people all around the world. Many artists like Pablo Picasso and Arnold Newman have been inspired by the Chiwara and other Bambara art like the N’tomo Mask.
About the Bambara
The Bambara Kingdom was founded and made strong by Biton Coulibaly in 1712. It ended 149 years later, today there is a people called Bambara.
The Bambara are an ethnic group with over 6 million people spread out throughout West Africa, mostly in Mali, Senegal and the Gambia.
Mansa Musa from Mali was the richest person ever – 10 Eye-Opening African History Truths & Facts
Bambara is one of the official languages of the country of Mali, people across the country speak it even without being Bambara.
Fifty-Four Pictures Of Traditional African Clothing By Country
Taarifa
Dance Headdress (Ci-wara), Bambara artist Culture: Bambara peoples Medium: Wood Date: 19-20th century Size: height: 84.1 - width: 25.4 - depth: 7.6 (cm) Geography: Mali, West Africa Location: Brooklyn Museum, United States, North America
© Brooklyn Museum / CC-BY-3.0
The Chiwara Today
This article teaches that the Chiwara, and art, can be used to make places beautiful but also – and most importantly – to educate people.
What can you teach with your art?
The Dogon ethnic group from Mali have buildings called Togunas that are so low you can only crouch or sit in them, one reason for that is that there is less violence when people argue. Click here or here (or both ;)) to see a Toguna.
Try drawing one of the West African sculptures and share it with somebody !
Taarifa
Headdress (Ci-wara Kun), Bambara artist Culture: Bambara peoples Medium: Wood; Metal; Pigment Date: 20th century Size: height: 27.9 - width: 56.5 - depth: 6.4 (cm) Geography: Mali, West Africa Location: Brooklyn Museum, United States, North America
© Brooklyn Museum / CC-BY-3.0
Visit a local museum this week! maybe you’ll spot the West African sculptures
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