Sub-Saharan AFRICAN ARTI. Introduction to AfricaII. AksumIII. IfeIV. BeninV. Sierra LeoneVI. The Wodaabe of Niger VII. The Art of Living (video)

I. INTRO TO SUB-SAHARA AFRICA An Introduction to Africa's Arts & Cultures Origins of Rock Art in Africa Rock Art in North Africa

Humans first evolved in Africa, walking upright about five million years ago, and making the first tools about two and a half million years ago using the opposable thumb.

OUR EARLIEST TECHNOLOGYMade nearly two million years ago, stone tools such as this are the first known technological invention.

Using another hard stone as a hammer, the maker has knocked flakes off both sides of a basalt (volcanic lava) pebble so that they intersect to form a sharp edge. This could be used to chop branches from trees, cut meat from large animals or smash bones for marrow fat—an essential part of the early human diet. The flakes could also have been used as small knives for light duty tasks.

Handaxe, lower paleolithic, about 1.8 million years old, hard green

volcanic lava (phonolite), 23.8 x 10 cm, found at Olduvai Gorge,

Tanzania, Africa

Long before contact with Europe, several African states, including ancient Egypt, Aksum, ancient Ghana, Mali, Songhoy, Ile Ife, and the Benin kingdom, became well known in different parts of the continent.

Other states, such as the Asante Confederation, the Bakuba and Buganda developed later.

Brass figure of a Portuguese soldier, 18th century, 43 x 20 cm, Benin, Nigeria

The centralized government systems of these kingdoms were based on the exclusive authority of the ruler, or king, whose power was often justified through religious ideology.

They were the only ones who had the power to break social rules and to take human life and could delegate it to selected dignitaries.

The centralized government systems of these kingdoms were based on the exclusive authority of the ruler, or king, whose power was often justified through religious ideology. They were the only ones who had the power to break social rules and to take human life and could delegate it to selected dignitaries.

According to legend, the Fon (King) is the brother of courageous and powerful animals. At night, he has the power to transform himself into a panther, where he haunts the forest, runs through the savana and drinks from torrents. When a panther is killed by a hunter, the Fon from Bamileke region are afraid thinking they may perish from the death of their ‘twin’.

If many of the kingship systems have now vanished, some have succeeded to survive in modern states, still playing important social, cultural and political functions in regions such as Asante, Benin and Bakuba.

Many other African peoples live outside of centralized kingdoms. These include the Nilotic peoples of the Sudan, Kenya and Ethiopia, the Koi/San of Southern Africa and the Tuareg of the Sahara.

A graduate from the University of London and an economic advisor for the

Ghanaian administration, The King of Akropong holds for the last sixteen

years the “sacred seat” of the Akuapem-Asona, one of the seven major Akan clans. To his right, his “spokesman”

carries the royal emblem, the elephant, a remembrance that his kingdom was

founded by force.Nyimi Kok Mabiintsh III – King of Kuba (D.R. Congo)

Oni of Ife (Nigeria)In 1980, Sijuwade became the fiftieth

Oni (King) of Ife, one of the most ancient African Dynasties.

Formerly, during his coronation, an Oni had to embrace the

sword of justice, and enter into his palace on a cloth stiffened by the dry blood of sacrificed men and

women.

Today the Oni is a rich businessman, with several vast

properties in Nigeria and England.

Halidou Sali – Lamido of Bibemi (Cameroon)Halidou Sali, the twelfth Lamido

(king) of Bibemi, received his kingdom in

1958.

He is a descendant of Aido Samba, one of the 42

Kings of Adamawa, who

during the eighteenth

century carried the flag for the

Jihad (holy war) of Ousman Dan

Fodio.

Oseadeeyo Addo Dankwa III – King of Akropong-Akuapem (Ghana)

A graduate from the University of London

and an economic advisor for the

Ghanaian administration, The King of Akropong holds for the last sixteen years the

“sacred seat” of the Akuapem-Asona, one

of the seven major Akan clans. To his

right, his “spokesman” carries the royal

emblem, the elephant, a remembrance that his kingdom was founded

by force.

Abubakar Sidiq – Sultan of Sokoto (Nigeria)

This photo was taken fifteen days before the death of the Sultan of

Sokoto. He had reigned for more than fifty years.

At the time of his successor’s coronation,

who was chosen by a council of “king

makers”, a conflict erupted.

Two royal families disputed the choice; the

consequence: one hundred deaths.

Hapi IV – King of Bana (Cameroon)The kingdom of Bana finds its origins in a

tragedy. In the middle of the twelfth century,

several Bamileke groups, settled in small villages around what is

actually Bana.

Legend says that one of the village chiefs,

Mfenge was accused of sorcery by the others. In order to exonerate himself, he cut off his

mother’s head and had the cadaver examined

by specialists.

Goodwill Zwelethini – King of Zulu (South Africa)

King Goodwill Zwelethini is a

descendant of the famous Shaka

Zulu, founder of the Zulu kingdom.

Shaka, founder of the Zulu kingdom. At the beginning of the ninetheenth century, Shaka was the chief of a small insignificant clan among the Bantu people.

Thinking that the survival of the Zulus depended inevitably on the subservience of the other clans, Shaka submitted the natal region to blood and fire. Between 1815 and 1828, he annihilated all tribes that were opposed to him. This troubled period referred to as Mfecan (terror), was accompanied by famine and exodus of a large part of the Bantu population. Shaka’s cruelty became legendary.

1824 European artist's impression of Shaka with a long throwing assegai and heavy shield. No

drawings from life are known

Origins Of ROCK ART in AfricaThe oldest

scientifically-dated rock art in Africa dates

from around 26,000-28,000 years ago and is found in Namibia.

Between 1969 and 1972, German

archaeologist, W.E. Wendt, researching in an area known locally

as "Goachanas," unearthed several painted slabs in a

cave he named Apollo 11, after

NASA’s successful moon landing

mission.

Quartzite slabs depicting animals, Apollo 11 Cave, Namibia, c. 25,500–25,300 B.C.E.

The first examples of what we might term "art" in Africa, dating from between 100,000–60,000 years ago, emerge in two very distinct forms: personal adornment in the form of perforated seashells suspended on twine, and incised and engraved stone, ochre and ostrich eggshell.

One of the most iconic and well-publicized sites that have yielded cross-hatch incised patterning on ochre is Blombos Cave, on the southern Cape shore of South Africa. Of the more than 8,500

fragments of ochre deriving from the MSA (Middle Stone AGe) levels, 15 fragments show evidence of engraving. Two of these, dated to 77,000 years ago, have received the most attention for the

design of cross-hatch pattern.

Fragments of engraved ostrich eggshells from the Howiesons Poort of Diepkloof Rock Shelter, Western Cape, South Africa, dated to 60,000 BCE.

Personal ornamentation and engraved designs are the earliest evidence of art in Africa, and are

inextricably tied up with the development of human

cognition.

For tens of thousands of years, there has been not only a

capacity for, but a motivation to adorn and to inscribe, to make visual that which is important.

Forests of StoneAlgeria is Africa’s

largest country and most of it falls within the Sahara Desert. It

also hosts a rich rock art concentration. Most of the sites are found in

the south east of the country near its borders

with Libya and Niger but there are also

important concentrations in the Algerian Maghreb and

in the Hoggar Mountains in the central

south.

Tuareg looking over the Tassili n’Ajjer

The most renowned of all these areas is the Tassili n’Ajjer (meaning "plateau of chasms") in the south east. Water and sand erosion have

carved out a landscape of thin passageways, large arches, and high-pillared rocks, described as

“forests of stone” by French archaeologist and ethnographer

Henri Lhote. The resulting undercuts at cliff bases have

created rock shelters with smooth walls ideal for painting and

engraving (left).

View of section of rock shelter wall containing painting of ‘La Dame Noire de Sefar’(“the Black Lady of Sefar”). Row of small stones placed in front of paintings to mark closest approach for

tourists.

Classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982 and Biosphere Reserve in 1986, Tassili n'Ajjer covers a vast area of desert landscape in southern Algeria, stretching from the Niger and Libyan border area, north and east of

Djanet, as far as Illizi and Amguid, covering an area of 72,000 sq. km.

ROCK ART SUBJECT MATTERMore than 15,000 rock paintings and engravings, dating back as far as 12,000 years are located in this region and have made Tassili world famous for this reason. The art depicts herds of cattle and large wild animals such as giraffe and elephant, as well as human activities such as hunting and dancing.

Painted rock art depicting five red figures, from Jabbaren, Ajjer Plateau, Djanet, Tassili, Algeria

The area is especially famous for its Round Head paintings which were first described and published by Henri Lhote in the 1950s. Thought to date

from around 9,000 years old, some of these paintings are the largest found on the African continent, measuring up to 13 feet in height.

A 7,000-year-old painting from Tassili n’Ajjer in southeastern Algeria in the central Sahara (at that time a verdant savanna) is one of the earliest and finest surviving examples of rock art. The painter depicted a running woman with convincing animation and significant detail. The dotted marks on her shoulders, legs, and torso probably indicate that she is wearing body paint applied for a ritual. Her face, however, is featureless, a common trait in the earliest art. The white parallel patterns attached to her arms and waist appear to represent flowing raffia decorations and a raffia skirt. Horns—shown in the twisted perspective, or composite view, typical of prehistoric art—are also part of her ceremonial attire. Notably, the artist painted this detailed image over a field of much smaller painted human beings, an indication of why it is often so difficult to date and interpret art on rock surfaces, as subsequent superimpositions are frequent. Nonetheless, scholars have been able to establish a rough chronology for African rock art, an art form that continues to this day.

Running Horned WomanTassili n’Ajjer, Algeria, ca. 6000–4000 bce

AFRICAN QUIZ1.The OLDEST SURVIVING art in Africa was done on

A) CanvasB) PapyrusC) Rocks

Running Horned WomanTassili n’Ajjer, Algeria, ca. 6000–4000 bce

II. THE KINGDOM OF AKSUMAksum was a major naval and trading power from the 1st to the 7th centuries C.E. As a civilization it had a profound impact upon the people of Egypt, southern Arabia, Europe and Asia, all of whom were visitors to its shores, and in some cases were residents.

At its height in the 4th and 5th centuries C.E. Aksum extended throughout the regions lying south of the Roman Empire, from the fringes of the Sahara in the west, across the Red Sea to the inner Arabian desert in the east.

The Aksumites developed Africa’s only indigenous written script, Ge’ez. They traded with Egypt, the eastern Mediterranean and Arabia.

Very little is known about Aksum… Written scripts existed, but no histories or descriptions have been found.

A portion of the Ezana Stone, erected by King Ezana (ruled 330-356 AD) to commemorate his conversion to Christianity. It is written in Ge'ez.

Solomon and ShebaThe Queen of Sheba and King Solomon are important figures in Ethiopian heritage.

Traditional accounts describe their meeting when Sheba, Queen of Aksum, went to Jerusalem, and their son Menelik I formed the Solomonic dynasty from which the rulers of Ethiopia (up to the 1970s) are said to be descended.

Aksumite Coins

Coins have a unique significance in the history of Aksum. They are particularly important because they provide evidence of Aksum and its rulers. The inscriptions on the coins highlight the fact that Aksumites were a literate people with knowledge of both Ethiopic and Greek languages.

Gold coin, c. 270-300 C.E., gold, Aksumite, modern Ethiopia.

Obverse showing head and shoulders bust of King Endubis facing right, wearing headcloth with rays at forehead and triangular ribbon behind, framed by two wheat-stalks. Disc and crescent at top.

For the most part, gold coins were inscribed in Greek and often intended for exports, while silver and copper coins were insribed in Ge’ez (Aksumite script).

With the replacement of gold coins with copper ones, the craftsmen of Aksum started using specialized techniques of gilding, which was unique to the kingdom and involved gold leaf being added to crowns and other symbols to enhance the appearance, and most probably the value, of coins.

Coin of King Joel, 6th century C.E., Aksum, modern Ethiopia

The large cross on the reverse of the coin symbolizes the country's shift to Christianity. This took place during the fourth century when a traveller named Frumentius converted Aksum's ruler, King Ezana. The old religious symbols of the sun and the moon no longer appeared on coins and were replaced with a cross, which was enlarged over the years.

The religious symbolism on these coins had strong political implications, as it aligned Aksum's religious identity with its main trading partners, Rome and later Byzantium.

2. The Aksumites developed Africa’s only indigenous written script.

T or F ???

III. IFE Ife is the spiritual heartland of the YORUBA people living in Nigeria, the Republic of Benin and their many descendants around the world.

It is the birthplace of some of the highest achievements of African art and culture, combining technical accomplishment with strong aesthetic appeal.

From the 12th to the 15th centuries, Ife flourished as a powerful, cosmopolitan and wealthy city-state in West Africa, in what is now modern Nigeria. It was an influential centre of trade connected to extensive local and long-distance trade networks which enabled the region to prosper.

Ori-olokun sculpture which sits at the entrance of the ancestral city of Ile Ife.

The ancient city is home to beautifully preserved artworks in bronze and terracotta which holds the potential for authentic ethnological studies of Yoruba culture, these are on show in its museum of Ife antiquities located in the Kings palace at Enuwa Square Ile Ife.

SculptureThe artists of Ife developed a refined and highly naturalistic sculptural tradition in stone, terracotta, brass and copper and created a style unlike anything in Africa at the time.

The technical sophistication of the casting process is matched by the artworks’ enduring beauty.

The human figures portray a wide cross-section of Ife society and include depictions of youth and old age, health and disease, suffering and serenity.

Ife Head, c. 14th-15th century, brass, 35 cm high, Ife, Africa

According to Yoruba myth, Ife was the center of the creation of the world and all mankind. Ife was home to many sacred groves

located in the city’s forests.

Other Ife sites have revealed spectacular pieces with royal associations, including the only known complete king figure and an exquisite terra-cotta head, possibly portraying a queen both from Ita Yemoo.

IFE TODAYToday Ife remains a major spiritual and religious centre for the Yoruba people. Some of its shrines and groves are still in use and rituals to key gods are performed regularly. Works of art from Ife have become iconic symbols of regional and national unity, and of pan-African identity.

The "Ori Olokun" head was chosen as the logo for the All-Africa Games held in Lagos in 1973 and has been adopted as the logo of numerous commercial, educational and financial institutions. Such images have become universal symbols of African heritage.

3. _________ is the spiritual heartland of the YORUBA people living in Nigeria, Benin, and their many descendants around the world.

YORUBA Aesthetics:“Goodness & Beauty” in Art & Life

“YORUBA” (definitions)• A Distinct ETHNIC GROUP

• A LANGUAGE

• A RELIGION

Yoruba Religion

PolytheisticDeities called “Orisha”AltarsPriests & PriestessesDivination Practices

Yoruba “Babalawo” (Priests/Priestesses)

“Divination Tray”

Yoruba SOCIETY

Yoruba Religion: Sacred Symbol: “INTERLACING Symbol”

Balance 2 parts of existence: 1) Physical (body)2) Spiritual (soul)

Ceremonial Dagger Sheath

“ORISHAS”

• Olorun• Onile• Shango

ALTARS

YORUBA ART

“Ibegi” (twins) Figures

Portrait Busts

Yoruba Beadwork & COLOR THEORY

Throne Symbolism:

Nature ImageryOrisha FacesInterlacing Symbol

Yoruba COLOR THEORY

1) “Fun-Fun” = cool, aloof, analytical

2) “Pupa” = warm, passionate, tempermental

3) “Dudu” = down-to-earth, practical, nurturing

“Beads both CONCEAL & REVEAL.”

Priest’s Bottle Flask

Metaphysical Basis of Yoruba Art

• “ASE”: Spiritual & Creative ENERGY

• “ORO”: Source of “Ase”• Olorun’s Creation of 3

seminal elements:1) Wisdom2) Knowledge3) Understanding

2 TYPES OF BEINGS: Heavenly & Earthly

Carrie Mae Weems, Slave Coast Series, 2003(installation views)

IV. THE KINGDOM OF BENINUntil the late 19th century, one of the major powers in West Africa was the kingdom of Benin in what is now southwest Nigeria.

When European merchant ships began to visit West Africa from the 15th century onwards, Benin came to control the trade between the inland peoples and the Europeans on the coast.

The kingdom of Benin was also well known to European traders and merchants during the 16th and 17th centuries, when it became wealthy partly due to trading in slaves.

When the British tried to expand their own trade in the 19th century, the Benin people killed their envoys.

So in 1897 the British sent an armed expedition which captured the king of Benin, destroyed his palace and took away large quantities of sculpture and regalia, including works in wood, ivory and especially brass.

Some of these things came from royal altars for the king’s ancestors, but among them were a large number of cast brass plaques made to decorate the wooden pillars of the palace.

These men took part in the expedition made by the British in 1897. In the background you can see the palace roof with a snake made of

brass slithering down it.

The plaques were most sought after and were bought by museums across Europe and America—you can see the plaques at the British Museum, in Chicago, Vienna, Paris and a large collection can be viewed in Berlin.

The arrival and the reception of the bronze plaques caused a

sensation in Europe. Scholars struggled to understand how African craftsmen could have

made such works of art, putting forward some wild theories to

explain them.

Quickly, however, research showed that the Benin

bronzes were entirely West African creations

without European influence, and they transformed European

understanding of African history.

Brass plaque showing the Oba of Benin with attendants, 16th century, 51 x 37 cm

Although frequently described as 'Benin Bronzes' most plaques are made of leaded brass in varius composiitons.

As decorations for the halls of the king’s palace, the plaques were designed to proclaim and glorify the prestige of the king, his status and achievements.

There are over 900 plaques of this type in various museums in England, Europe and America.

They are thought to have been made in matching pairs and fixed to pillars in the Oba's palace in Benin City.

Many plaques show images of Portuguese men and they seem to have been made during the 16th and 17th centuries as their costumes show.

Although Benin had no gold to offer, they supplied the Portuguese with pepper, ivory, leopard skins and people, who were taken as slaves to work elsewhere in Africa and in the Portuguese colonies in Brazil. Many of these people were captives taken in the wars in which the Benin people conquered their neighbors far and wide and made them part of the kingdom, or they were sent by the conquered local chiefs as tribute to the king.

Benin & the PortugueseTrade with the Portuguese probably encouraged the growth of brass casting in Benin at this time. Although West Africans invented the smelting of copper and zinc ores and the casting of brass at least as long ago as the 10th century, they themselves did not produce enough metal to supply the casting industry of Benin city, which gave such splendor to the king’s palace.

The Portuguese found a ready market for brass ingots, often made in the form of bracelets called "manillas."

Brass manilla (bracelet), 19th century C.E.

The plaques show how the people of Benin

perceived the Portuguese traders

and their soldiers, with their pointed noses,

thin faces and beards and strange clothes.

Their presence on the decorations of the

king’s palace shows how the Portuguese

were regarded as symbols of the king’s wealth and power, to

which their trade contributed so much.

This Portugese soldier wears a typical 16th century European costume, with steel helmet and sword, and he carries a flintlock gun.

Guns were new to the people of West Africa when the Portuguese arrived. So Africans traded them from Europeans and learned to make them for themselves, to help them in their wars against other peoples who still only had hand weapons or bows and arrows.

Sometimes the king of Benin even employed Portuguese soldiers, like this man, to fight as mercenaries in his wars.

Figures of Europeans such as this Portuguese soldier were kept on royal altars or on the roof of the royal palace in Benin city.

Another important symbol on plaques are

LEOPARDS. These show that the king is also master of the tropical forest which covered most of Benin until

recent times. The leopard is king of the forest, just as the Oba of

Benin is king of the city and villages where his people

live. The king used to keep leopards, which were paraded on important

occasions like mascots, and he sometimes killed them as

sacrifices to his gods.

This figure represents the king with bead ornaments fringed with bells upon his dress. His legs are here shown, and the fish issue from his sides. In each hand he is swinging a

leopard as before, the leopards wearing collars with small hawk-bells, which would suggest that

they are tame.

Throughout West Africa people tell stories and proverbs about all kinds of creatures, wild and domestic, and many of them have characters which

reveal important human qualities, in these cases usually those of the king. So crocodiles, the "policeman of the waters," when shown on a plaque

probably stand for the king’s authority to punish wrongdoers, whilst the python was the king of snakes, and the messenger of the god Olokun.

Oba with Attendants

A great number of people played their own parts in the ritual pageantry, as chiefs and officials, craft guilds or representatives of local communities.

Even more were involved as craftworkers producing splendid costumes and ritual paraphernalia for the king and chiefs, like those shown in many of the plaques, or as farmers supplying food for the feasts.

Many of the plaques probably represent events or characters from these annual ceremonies, some of which the king of Benin still carries out today.

A procession, with king flanked by attendants who shade him from the sun with their shields. They are dressed in fine cloth worked in elaborate patterns, whose colorful appearance we can only now imagine. Smaller figures, whose size as well as their scanty clothing shows their lesser importance, carry a ceremonial sword and the kind of circular box

used to present gifts.

Oba with Europeans Oba in the centre, dressed in a loin-cloth with a plaited border

and a close-fitting, sleeved upper garment, covered with

cylindrical beads. He is accompanied by two attendants, as well as

representations of long-haired Europeans which are shown

either side of his head.

Showing the ruler flanked by two attendants is a typical pictorial

composition of brass and ivory works from Benin. One interpretation of it is as a reminder of the heavy burden of kingship. This is based on the myth of Oba Ewuare (about 1440-1470) one of Benin’s famous

warrior kings, who having stolen the coral-bead regalia of Olokun, god of the

sea, felt the heavy weight of the spiritually-charged regalia symbolizing

the kingship and related obligations, and asked the people to help him carry it.

BENIN CRAFTSIn the palace of the Oba (king) lived guilds of specialists such as leopard hunters, astrologers, drummers and craftspeople who produced brass, ivory, wood sculptures, embroidered textiles and leather fans for the Oba, his chiefs and priests.

Ivory armlet, c. 15th-16th century, 10.5 cm in diameter, Edo peoples, Benin, Nigeria

This ivory armlet e is worn by the Oba of Benin in ceremonies. The Oba is represented on the

armlet with mudfish legs and his hands raised to the sky, thus linking him with the great god

Olokun, ruler of the sea. The mudfish has symbolic significance among the Edo people as it

can live on land and sea. Similarly, the Oba is invested with divine powers from the spiritual

world above and the secular world below.

This type of mask was worn by the Oba, probably around his neck, during the the Emobo ceremony.

The pendant is said to represent Queen Mother Idia, mother of Oba Esigie who ruled in the sixteenth century.

The top of the pendant is decorated with heads representing the Portuguese, symbolizing Benin's alliance with and control over Europeans.

The Portuguese continued to appear in Benin art long after they had disappeared from Benin itself.

Ivory mask, 16th century, 24.5 x 12.5 x 6 cm, Edo peoples, Benin, Nigeria

4. Benin bronze (brass) technology developed by learning from Portuguese artists who taught West Africans how to do it.

T or F ???

V. SIERRA LEONE SOWEI MASKS—unique to

the region around Sierra Leone—are worn by senior members of

the all-female Sande Society during rite-of-passage ceremonies that signify a girl’s transition to

adulthood.

Sowei helmet mask, collected in 1886, raffia palm fibre and cotton wood, 43 x 25 cm, Sierra Leone

Masquerade performances play an important symbolic role in the Sande Society. The mask is worn by the ndoli jowei

("the sowei who dances") along with a black raffia and textile

costume which completely conceals her identity.

Traditionally, the ndoli jowei appears at specific stages of the period of transition at events that

are accompanied by music, dancing and singing.

She is regarded as both a physical manifestation of the spirit of the

Sande Society and an embodiment of its powerful medicines.

Numerous enigmatic sculptures carved in stone have been found over a wide

area of Sierra Leone and western Liberia. Most of these sculptures are in

human form.

The Mende people who occupy the largest area where they have been

discovered call them nomoli meaning "found spirit"; they are characterised by their bulging eyes and flaring nostrils.

The Mende regard them as "rice gods" and make offerings to them to increase

their harvest yields.

NOMOLI – MENDE PEOPLE

Stone head (mahe yafei), 16th - 18th century, Kisi people,steatite or soapstone, 24 x 10 x 17.5 cm, Sierra Leone

STONE HEAD (MAHE YAFEI), Qisi people

Larger, pedestal heads such as this one, appear to form a sub-group of the figures described above. This magnificent head carved from steatite is rendered in a naturalistic style. It stands on a solid pedestal base with its head tilted majestically backwards. The elaborate hairstyle with top knot and the representation of earrings is beautifully captured. Other heads of this type are carved with beards or moustaches and some are depicted wearing nose-rings. Such attributes suggest that these heads represent people of status, possibly chiefs or community leaders.

COTTON HAMMOCK, VAI PEOPLE

Cotton hammock, early 20th century, Vai people, cotton, 213 x 125 cm, Sierra Leone

Hammocks made for a male or female chief in Sierra Leone in the early twentieth century.

Men and women of status in Sierra Leone used elaborate hammocks as a key means of

transport in inland areas.

These hammocks had a heavy wooden frame with a cloth canopy to protect them from the sun and the hammock was supported on the heads of four

bearers. The slung part of the hammock was made from between three to five strips of woven cotton sewn together edge to edge to form a wide cloth. The ends were doubled over to form a loop through which the carrying poles were

inserted.

5. SOWEI MASKS are worn by senior members of the Sande Society during rite-of-passage ceremonies for GIRLS or for BOYS?

VI. The WODAABE of Niger, West Africa

Wodaabe “Gerewol Celebration”

Dancing the Yaake at a Gerewol

Wodaabe = a “nomadic” people - Sahel Desert (West Africa)

Tribe of Wodaabe NOMADS traveling across the desert in Niger

“NOMAD”:NounA member of a people who have no permanent abode and travel from place to place to find fresh pasture for their livestock.

AdjectiveRelating to or characteristic of nomads.

no·mad  /ˈnōˌmad/

Once a year in a few select locations, the Wodaabe gather to celebrate the fantastic tradition of GEREWOL, often referred to in the popular press as a “Male Beauty Pageant.”

A nomadic life in the desert

Here come the boys…

Primping for the “Pageant”

VANITY is celebrated in Wodaabe culture and at the Gerewol, their beautiful men prepare themselves painstakingly…

When adorned and ready, the men begin their dance marathonin which they mimic the magical WHITE EGRET (bird)

Wodaabe women like tallness, white eyes & teeth, facial symmetry in their men -- so BOTH DANCE & MAKEUP ACCENTUATE THESE FEATURES

IDEAL MALE BEAUTY,

Wodaabe-style:

1.Tall and athletic: Ostrich plumes and pompoms emphasize height2.Narrow face: Decorated with red ochre 3.Wide eyes: Black eyeliner made from charred egret bones4.Facial symmetry: Enhanced with black, yellow and white patterns 5.Aquiline nose: White clay arrow stripe to look more streamlined

6. Long braids and cowrie shells: Symbolize fertility and wealth

7. White and regular teeth: Bared and emphasized with black lipstick

8. Good dancer: Beaded necklaces and bodices jangle against chest in time to the beat

Everyone comes to a Gerewol expecting to join in

During these dances, the MEN stand shoulder to shoulderand slowly move round the circle as they dance.

Behind the men stand the eligible WOMEN of the tribe who wait until their favorite beaux passes by, at which point they tap him on the shoulder to

signal their interest.

Poised to pull

The YAAKE dance, however is the one every man wants to excel in.  It’s the dance that they spend the most time preparing for…

any man who is chosen as the most attractive in a Yaake line up will never be short of female amorous attention.  

Preparation involves the application of elaborate makeup derived from colorful desert plants and clay…

… the women of the tribe plait their men’s hair with pin point precision:

In Wodaabe culture it is the responsibility of the MEN to beautify themselves TO APPEAL TO THE WOMEN -- a practice that defies a world-wide tradition of the reverse.

The Competing Line-Up (Yaake Dance)

Opposite the dancers stands a judgmental FEMALE entourage:

Of these women 3 are specially chosen as a jury to pick the most attractive male

Wodaabe WOMEN are strikingly beautiful

They beautify themselves withfacial scarification & tattoos

Men dance the YAAKE Dance

Meet the JUDGES:

At the height of the dance, each of the three girls shuffles painfully slowly down the line of dancing men with her arm up and head bowed and upon reaching her winner, drops her arm to point him out.

Decisions, decisions!

Walking the line...

... she turns…

and she CHOOSES!

http://humanplanet.com/timothyallen/2011/01/gerewol_wodaabe_niger_bbc-human-planet-deserts/

Click HERE to see a 2-minute clip of the Gerewol from Human Planet‘s ‘Deserts: Life in the Furnace

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/humanplanetexplorer/life_events/courtship#p00d8tt5

The Wodaabe MENS’ DANCE MIMICS the magical WHITE EGRET:

So… what’s the DIFFERENCE between HUMAN-MADE beauty & the beauty of the NATURAL WORLD?

VII. The Art of Living VIDEO QUIZDIRECTIONS for Quiz numbers 6 - 10:While watching the video take BRIF NOTES AS FOLLOWS:6 -- 8: WODAABE Gerewol Celebration9 -- 10: DOGON Dama Mask Celebration