The art of sub-Saharan Africa has a long history, although
it is difficult to reconstruct precisely because many works, being made from
wood and earth, have disappeared without a trace and archaeological
excavations, which could enrich our knowledge of the region, are still rare.
To fully appreciate the meaning of these artworks, it is
necessary to relate them to the forms of life, societies and religion or
beliefs that led to their creation or use.
Although they may vary from place to place, some elements
seen to be recurrent and common to all African artistic tradition, statues are
often figures of ancestors or deities and sacrifices offered to them to
maintain communication with the other world, between gods and human, between the
prescribed notion of the living and the dead.
Those Masks which are brought into the village from the
forest are also displayed during invitation rites believed to guarantee social
order, importing the value of community and punishing transgressors. The
fertility of women and the fields is a recurrent theme expressed by Art. In
societies with no writing system art offered material support for word, thus
facilitating for the transmission of traditions.
While
much attention is often paid to the forms, objects and themes of Art culture in
Africa, it is very clear that the Artwork is almost never created solely for
pleasure. These works are not the expression of the artist’s free imagination
nor are they intended for the individual enjoyment of the collector. Far more ambitiously, their creation and
purpose is to contribute to the order of the world – the well-being of the
community and to maintaining life.
