69 - Walu mask with an abstract face

Walu mask with an abstract face Wood, remnants of natural pigment forming the decoration, aged patina, and signs of internal wear. Dogon, Mali 44.5 cm With its clean, geometric lines, this mask’s face is constructed from rectangular planes: two vertical bands pierced with square openings frame the bridge of the nose, above a chevron-shaped chin. Two long, upright ears and two small horns on the sides crown the whole, while a scattering of colorful spots enlivens the surface. This graphic precision lends the work a striking modernity. This walu mask, carved and danced by the men of the Awa, the mask society, depicts a mythical antelope. According to accounts collected by Germaine Dieterlen, the creator god Amma had entrusted it with guarding the sun against the fox Yurugu; to take revenge, the fox dug holes into which the antelope fell and was seriously injured. The walu appeared during the dama, the great communal ceremony marking the end of mourning, as part of a procession of masks evoking characters and episodes from Dogon mythology. During his dance, he would lunge toward the audience and chase after young girls and children. General Bibliography: Marcel Griaule, *Dogon Masks*, Paris, Institute of Ethnology, 1938.