Dan Mask from Ivory Coast

Description

Masks are a window into the soul of a culture, and provide us with great conversation pieces for the home. African masks are possibly the most admired and well known art form of Africa. They are both idea and form. The artistry of African masks is self evident but, for the people who create them, they have a much deeper meaning than surface beauty. African Masks are believed to embody the spirit and symbolize a message of wisdom, prosperity, security, and power. Stylish elements in a mask’s looks are codified by the tradition and may either identify a specific community or convey specific meanings. Putting on a mask is a transformative experience. It allows us to be someone we’re not for a moment, changing both how we see ourselves and how we behave outwardly. Many of us know this feeling from Halloween in America, but it’s a universal feeling shared across cultures throughout human history.

“The Dan live in the northeastern Côte d’Ivoire and in the east of Liberia. Among the Dan people, masks are not controlled by a men’s association, but instead are owned by families and used by individual lineage members in contexts of social control, boy’s circumcision camps, and entertainment. Dan people have achieved special notoriety in the area for their entertainment festivals which were historically village ceremonies, but are today performed largely for honorable visitors or tourists. Visually, the Dan masqueraders show an opposition between female beauty and gentleness and male fierceness and power. The Bagle masks have typical tubular eyes. They are worn to entertain while the wearer dances, beats the musicians with a curved stick and throws objects he finds in their way.
This African Mask from the Dan people of the Ivory Coast and Liberia measures 13 inches tall, 5.5 inches wide and is hand-carved of wood.”