Null Mmwo spirit society dance mask in carved wood and kaolin. Igbo, Nigeria. 20…

Description

Mmwo spirit society dance mask in carved wood and kaolin. Igbo, Nigeria. 20th century. H : 34 cm Acc.

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Mmwo spirit society dance mask in carved wood and kaolin. Igbo, Nigeria. 20th century. H : 34 cm Acc.

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Estim. 720 - 900 EUR

Rare round miniature mask of the Kifwebe society. Luba, D.R. Congo. H 12cm. With a narrow nose continuing over the forehead, protruding rectangular mouth and narrow eyes without slits with lowered lids; completely covered with curved concentric groove decoration. The Kifwebe is a society (Bwadi Ka bifwebe) in the south-east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was probably founded in the northern Shaba province (Katanga), where Songye and Luba groups intermingle. Both groups claim that it was founded by them, which is why the Songye dancers speak Kiluba and the Luba dancers speak Kisongye during their performances. The society serves as a control mechanism for the ruling elite, giving them economic and political power. The kifwebe masks, whose linear patterns are said to allude to history, power and a range of other esoteric meanings, are incarnations of bizarre heterogeneous beings for the society and one of its most powerful instruments alongside witchcraft (buchi) and magic (masende), which is malevolent and can be received from the spirits of the dead. Carved miniatures of the Kifwebe society, such as the one offered here, were primarily used as talismans or fetishes that possessed supernatural powers to bridge the gap between the visible material world and the invisible spirit world. Minimally damaged, crack on the back, holes on the forehead for fastening, brownish, partially shiny patina. Provenance: ex Henning Schmeikal, Holle; Hans D. Rielau, Hösbach; ex Zemanek-Münster, auction 85, Würzburg 4.3.2017, lot 95.

Estim. 4 000 - 6 000 EUR

Senoufo kpelie mask Ivory Coast Wood Provenance: John J. Klejman Collection, New York Perls Galleries, New York (inv. n°10759) Private American collection In keeping with the classical style of the corpus, this Kpelie face mask stands out for the delicacy and refinement of its features - for the boldness of its contours and reliefs magnified by the lighter patina of use, for the sculptural dynamics and interiorized expression of the entity represented. Skillfully combining grace, symmetry and sophistication, this type of mask contained the ancestral spirit of the female divinity protecting the male society of the Poro. Material embodiments of the spirit of the "old mother" named Katiéléo - the female substitute for the supreme god in Senoufo mythology - these masks were used for the initiation of young men and at funerals. The oval face is beautifully framed by stylized lateral projections - semicircular, rectangular and triangular, finely engraved with linear grooves and notches. The lower part of the face is adorned with two equally scarified curved elements, probably evoking the legs of the hornbill bird, an important symbol of creation in Senoufo cosmology. The face is a perfect oval, the sculptural depth rendered by alternating concave and convex planes. The strongly rounded forehead, crossed across its entire width by two horizontal linear motifs, is adorned in its center with a diamond-shaped motif sculpted in relief, expressing the femininity contained in the spirit of the mask - Anita Glaze saw in it an allegorical representation of the female vulva, a symbol of fertility. Relief eyes, stretched and slit, surmounted by a double arch of eyebrows carved in a circular arc. Geometric motifs in relief on the cheeks indicate ethnic scarification. The long, straight, aquiline nose, sculpted in high relief, harmoniously follows the concave curve of the face, whose curved tip accommodates the small, half-open rectangular mouth with exposed teeth, whose corners are framed by relief motifs. The highly stylized crest, carved above the skull in the classic kapok tree rasp motif, adds to this profusion of controlled ornamentation. A fine example, a perfect blend of classical Senoufo aesthetics and symbolism, illustrating the quintessential African sculptural style.

Estim. 2 000 - 4 000 EUR

Ijo/ Ijaw mask, Nigeria Wood, blue and white pigments Height: 61 cm Provenance: Michel Gosse Collection, Caen/Paris Michel Gosse Collection, Caen/Paris Helmut Zake Collection, Heidelberg Spanish private collection Belonging to the Sakapu initiation society, this mask, in reference to the water spirit, owu, appeared to celebrate. Among the limited corpus of Ijo masks, this one stands out for the rarity of its composition, its resolutely cubist construction, "one of the boldest and most accomplished of all African sculpture" (Paulme, Les Sculptures de l'Afrique noire, 1956, p. 76). Carved from dense wood, its highly stylized features carved in champlevé, its forms reduced to the essential, its pure lines and curves, accentuate and sublimate the intensity of its expressiveness. Its powerful volumes are skilfully articulated in a play of planes and projections in space, giving the face a striking dynamic and rhythm. Inscribed on a flat, vertical base, the face with its rounded oval forehead emerges in champlever. Its imposing triangular nose, with flared nostrils, is linked to the clearly marked superciliary arches, forming the junction between the planes of the face. The subtle alternation between concave and convex forms intensifies the power of the gaze, with its cylindrical eyes projected forward. His thick, rectangular mouth in relief lends him a certain ferocity.

Estim. 8 000 - 12 000 EUR

Mask from the Bamana komo society, Mali Wood, thick unctional material Dimensions: 60 x 21 cm Provenance: John Falcon Collection John Falcon Collection (inv. n°069) Private American collection, acquired in 2006 The work of a talented blacksmith, this superb ancient komokun mask sums up the power and thought systems of the male socio-religious institution of the komo, through its pervasive, ferocious and powerful power. Komo masks are produced with little variation or originality on the part of the blacksmith or sculptor. Most of these masks, like our object, take the form of a helmet featuring a head, extended by an imposing gaping jaw projected horizontally into space, open to rows of sharp teeth. The combination of zoomorphic characters - antelope, crocodile, hyena... - shapes a strange, singular hybrid creature to concentrate nature's most powerful energies. As Patrick Mc Naughton explains about the nature of the entity represented, "The komo mask is made to look like an animal. But it's not an animal; it's a secret." Built on the assembly of powerful symbolic elements - zoomorphic attributes, plants, sacrificial materials, designed to exalt the nyama spiritual power that emanates from them, komo masks provoke awe and fascination. The wooden soul carved by the artist is collectively transformed and enriched by the komo initiates, each member adding to the sculpture elements and materials indicative of his or her power and expertise within the secret society. These elements, more or less identifiable, include horns, tusks, porcupine spines, sacrificial blood, millet beer, feathers, cola nuts... The whole is covered with a thick mixture of mud, honey and cow dung, forming a thick, crusty patina whose impressive interplay of textures and materials gives these effigies an enigmatic appearance. The regular reactivation of the sacrificial material during rituals tends to attenuate the original form of the mask, which then becomes, in the words of Sarah Brett-Smith, "the materialization of a shadow rather than a real object" ("The Mouth of the Komo", RES: Anthropology and Aesthetics,1997). Our object stands out within the corpus for its relatively naturalistic treatment of zoomorphic attributes - pointed ears with drawn pinna, tongue movement with raised tip, and globular clusters on the surface. These images can be viewed through the prism of catharsis, an Aristotelian concept describing the process of emotional and spiritual purification associated with intense, dramatic experiences. In the practice we're interested in, the nocturnal gatherings of the komo society - held several times a year during the dry season - would evoke, through song, dance, bird feather costumes and the acrobatic performance of the masked dancer, the extraordinary powers of the mask spirit. These powerful symbols of the komo, at once frightening and fascinating, would be a means of inciting the "terrified initiate", as Sarah Brett-Smith describes it, to "interpret the mask according to his own fears", while enabling him to access deeper levels of spiritual awareness.

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