Pigmy Figure from Tikor in Cameroon

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.

“According to one source, this figure carved from hard wood presents a pigmy in captivity. The Tikar people carved such figures to show their dominance over the Pigmy people. According to another source, it is an ancestor figure. The northern part of Cameroon has been lslamicized and has no sculpture; on the other hand, the savannas of the west, the Grassland, are composed of three ethnic groups with ancestors in common; they speak a Bantu language and have closely related social structures. Among them there are 500,000 Bamenda-Tikar in the north. The art of Cameroon is the art of a royal court that had a complex protocol and numerous rituals. Regalia and objects of prestige were created for the fon and dignitaries of the different kingdoms; hence the multiplicity of styles. Art objects were symbols of position in the hierarchy: their number, the materials from which they were made, and their iconography changed progressively as one descended or ascended the social ladder.”