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The Magic of African Arts And Crafts |
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by HermanWheeler
Africa is well known for its art and craft works, most of these arts works are found in the form of sculptures, fabric work, decorative items, musical instruments like drums, and paintings. Most of the statues will be carved in the form of humans, which represents great leaders. They make their art work in such a way that each and every piece of art reveals their tradition and culture. Normally Africans DO NOT show affection to each other, they make their art work which resembles their culture.
The statues of animals in African art are included with human figures, to further give praise to the person being honored. For example, a horse is considered a very noble animal, and including one in a sculpture of a man or woman means that person is being held in very high regard. Most contemporary statues are made of either stone or carved of wood.
You can find many evidences which prove that African arts were found as early as 500BC, with carved rocks in Sahara and sculptures in Nigeria. People even used metals like bronze to carve statues, and they even used Ivory and terracotta to make their art look even richer. And these rich arts were reserved for royalties. People used these arts and craft works to decorate their houses. People wore hand made fabrics with full of artistic works, which reveals the wearer as a part of that art piece. They even used wall paintings to fill their houses with traditional art.
African arts and crafts mainly resembles it's tradition. Every single piece of art resembles the culture and daily life of African people. Many historical African arts can be found in museums, one of the best examples is the African Mask. African people mainly used masks at the time of wars. And they even used it in some religious occasions and also on the day of harvesting.
African people design the masks according to their place, country or tribe. You can find many different patterns of masks which are made out of ivory and woods. For example, the people of Liberia and Ivory Coast make their masks with wide foreheads; flatten noses, big lips, and pieces of rope attached to one point to make it look like hairs. And the Punu people of Congo and Gabon carve their masks usually with wood and also the hairs on the masks will be made out of wood, which resembles rich women. And they paint these masks with white color, as they believe that the masks serve them to scare of evil spirits and witches.
Other African arts and crafts used in old African traditions are African baskets. The baskets of the Etsha and Gumare tribes in Botswana are particularly famous for their beauty. While baskets are usually carried over the head, the influence of foreign cultures has modified the way baskets are carried, allowing totes to be slung around one's shoulders. The result is many gorgeous designs of African ladies' handbags which are still quite unique and appealing, using indigenous materials such as mud cloth and suede, decorated with fringes and cowries shells. Contemporary, yet still reflective of a vast heritage of African arts and culture.
About the Author: Herman has been collecting and dealing with African art and Crafts for a number of years. He has also assisted others in putting their own collections together. Visit http://www.theafticanartwheel.com where you will find an extensive resource on African art and Crafts. |
