African Art

African art combines the visual image with spiritual beliefs and social purpose. As an art object, the mask is a piece of sculpture that represents the cultural attitudes embodied in the meaning or content of the object. The image of the Sowei mask, carved in wood as most African masks, is an example of an anthropomorphic mask. As sculpture, the mask is three-dimensional and usually carved from one whole piece of wood using a special tool, an adze, to create the basic shape.

Although maskers are generally men, this mask is worn over the head of a female elder of the Sande women's society. The mask is both representational (a young woman) and symbolic. Masks may represent spirits such as ancestor spirits, or an ideal. The Sowei mask represents the ideals of female beauty and virtue of the Mende tribe of Sierra Leone and Liberia, and communicates the aesthetics of that particular group. The Sowei mask has a smooth surface, signifying youthfulness. According to Susan Vogel, a youthful ap

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Category: Arts - A