African masks are unique to each tribe and their shape and accessories have special meanings for the different cultures.

Masks have been used by the world's diverse cultures for centuries. The ancient Greek actors used masks for special theatrical representations. Eighteenth century Europeans frequented masked balls where the masks were elaborately decorated with beads and feathers. The Chinese still use masks in their traditional dances.

African cultures have perhaps the richest mask traditions. In African societies masks are used for funeral ceremonies and harvest dances. They figure prominently in the right of passages for young men, and have become a source of pride in modern-day celebrations. Masks are unique to each specific African society and their shape and accessories have special meanings for the different cultures.

One of the most abundant types of masks among African cultures is the animal representation. Animal masks connect people with the spirit world that traditional African beliefs say inhabit the forests and open savannas. The Bwa and Nuna people of Burkina Faso call on the spirits to ward off destruction. Crocodiles, hawks and buffalo are the most frequently carved animal masks. Masked dances are held on market day, during initiations and at funerals to honor the spirits and evoke their blessings. The Nuna hawk mask carvers used an animal-like snout to distinguish it from the hawk mask of the nearby Bwa, who use a distinctly rounded mouth. The wings of both are carved with geometric patterns to represent moral principles. The zigzag lines refer to the often-difficult path of their ancestors. The checkerboard patterns show the forces of polar opposites such as light and dark, knowledge and ignorance, and men and women.

The Dogon of Mali also rely on animal masks for many of their ceremonies. The Dogon have complex religious beliefs that manifest in three cults: Awa - the cult of the dead, Binu - the cult of spirit communication, and Lebe - the cult of earth. There are nearly seventy-eight different types of masks associated with the cults. Most of the ceremonies are highly secret, but non-Dogons are most often introduced to the dance of the antelope mask. The mask is a rough rectangle box with several horns protruding from the top. For the Dogon, who are expert agriculturists, the antelope is the symbol of the hardworking farmer. Dancers wearing the masks hit the ground with sticks to represent the characteristic pawing of an antelope, but also the hoeing motion of the Dogon farmers.

The Bamana people of Mali also have a rich agricultural tradition. The Bamana believe that the antelope taught man how to farm. The intricately carved Bamana antelope headdresses are worn for special inauguration ceremonies. The horns represent the sprouting of grain. The antelope mask continues to hold a prominent place in Malian society. Many government agricultural societies use the mask as their logo.

Masks are also carved to represent a culture's ideal of feminine beauty. Female masks of the Punu of Gabon have highly arched eyebrows, almond-shaped eyes and a narrow chin. The raised strip running from both sides of the nose to the ears represents ornamental jewelry. The mask is topped by a dark black hairstyle, but the face of the mask is white to represent the whiteness and beauty of the spirit world. Despite being a 'female' mask, only men will wear it while performing a dance on high stilts.

For the Baga people of Guinea, the beauty of a woman is captured in her breasts and facial scars. Baga carved female masks can be as large as a Roman nobleman's marble bust. Usually carved of wood, the masks have elongated, flat breasts symbolizing many years of childbirth. Scratches across the cheeks mimic the facial scars coveted by Baga women. Many masks even replicate the tightly woven hair braids popular in most African cultures. Similar to the Punu of Gabon, the Baga 'female' masks are reserved for men only. In fact, Baga men compete openly for the right to wear the female masks in special ceremonies.

The best representation of female beauty is the famous Idia's Mask from Benin. This mask is believed to have been commissioned by a king of Benin in memory of his mother. The ivory carvings depict the realistic deep-set eyes, full lips and wide forehead of the women of Benin. The king would have worn the mask on his hip during special ceremonies to honor his dead mother.

African masks are also made for moral lessons. Most African societies have no extensive written culture and masked dances serve to teach people right from wrong. The Senefou people of the Ivory Coast carve masks with eyes half-shut and lines drawn near the mouth to represent tranquility. Such masks are used to portray the virtues of self-control and patience. The Temne of Sierra Leone use masks with small eyes and mouths to represent humility and humbleness. Bulging foreheads carved with designs symbolize wisdom.

In Gabon, certain masks can enforce obedience on those in power. Such masks have strong chins and mouths to represent sternness. Eyebrows arch down to form the nose, depicting a strong individual. Other masks have exaggerated long faces and broad foreheads to represent the soberness of one's duty that comes with power.
War masks are also popular among African tribes. The Grebo of the Ivory Coast carve war masks with small, round eyes to represent alterness and anger. The sharp straight nose depicts an unwillingness to retreat. A block under the nose represents the teeth, which are bared in aggression.

Although African masks are sold in most African (and American) markets, these masks are only replicas of the original masks used in African societies. Most African masks are passed down from one generation to the next, and masks that have truly been used in African ceremonies are almost never found on the open market. Most Africans are still economically tied to the land, and modern religions have not replaced traditional masked dances for harvest blessings. For those Africans who no longer participate in village life, the masks are still used in public ceremonies - a proud reminder of their African heritage.

If sculpture is the projection of one's thoughts into three dimensions, then the African continent has produced many of the greatest sculptors of all time, even though no single name has ever been passed down.

With the permanent exhibition, which occupies three floors of the (too) little known Musée Dapper in Paris, we are shown not only the most riveting examples of African art, but also the most disconcerting. Disconcerting because our western minds, despite a century of contemporary art which has been concerned with decompartmentalizing and reconstructing esthetic ideals, always thirst for classifications and categories which are not possible in this context.

The African mask is not an objet d'art in itself, but neither is it a simple cultural or theatrical accessory. At the same time, the sculptor is not an "artist", but his function goes much further than that of a simple craftsman. The majority of the pieces on display radiate a beauty and strength which were admired by Braque, Picasso or Vlaminck, and the sculptors can only be considered as geniuses.

The mask was traditionally used in Africa in the majority of ceremonies: feritility or initiation rites, religious or funeral celebrations, but also theatrical or comic performances often linked to the deepest ethnic myths. The mask confers on the person wearing it - for the duration of the ceremony - the essence and the powers of the spirits or ancestors it symbolizes. Secret societies, almost always composed of adult males, are simultaneously repositories and creators. The wearers of masks, sworn to secrecy, are subject to constraints and taboos which protect them from the dangerous magic powers of these objects.

The bulk of the pieces were assemblages, and those on exhibition as a simple refined face have lost their former decorations of vegetable fibers and dried leaves whose rustling accompanied the disjointed movements of the dance and contributed to the performance. Wood, sometimes set off by nails or shells, is most often utilised for the face, but the oldest mask (12th century?), from the Niger delta, is in terra cotta. Human or animal teeth or hair may sometimes be added.

The diversity of forms and composition, the richness of plastic invention, all seem to be one of the major features of the exhibition: the slender and geometric forms for the Dogons of Mali, the soothing sculpture in the round of the white masks of the Punus of Baon, the complex, multi-layered architecture of the Bambaras of Mali, the terrifying, caricatured faces of the Krahns of Liberia, the expressive realism of the Wakonde of Tansania.
The immensity of Africa is rivalled only by the inventivity of its artists.

Most of these pieces may be admired after the exhibition closes because the Musée Dapper is also the owner. Moreover, a magnificent catalogue, as is the custom with publications from this source, is available for a modest sum. A deep bow for the efforts of the Dapper Foundation which does so much to make African art known to the rest of the world and to give it back its significant position in man's esthetic heritage.

The African tribal artist's training, which may last many years, involves the knowledge of traditional carving techniques and how these apply to the social and religious objects he creates. His craft can be learned as an apprentice in the workshop of a master carver, or sometimes these skills are passed down from father to son through many generations of his family.

The artist holds a respected position in African tribal society. It is his job to provide the various masks and sculptures for use in ritual ceremonies. His work is valued for its spiritual, rather than its aesthetic qualities.

When artists and collectors in the West first took an interest in African Art, they did not appreciate its social or spiritual function. African art was simply viewed as a naive genre with a strong visual impact.
At the dawn of the 20th century, European artists were looking for new forms of expression that challenged, rather than simply illustrated, their rapidly changing world of ideas and technology. The traditional techniques of realism and perspective seemed overworked and predictable.

Their solution was to draw on images from other cultures and fuse them with European influences to refresh the tired traditions of Western art. The new perspectives that these cultures offered opened many doors of development which led to the cross-fertilisation of ideas and styles that constitute our art world today.

The expressive power of African art was fundamental to this revolution and to the development of the first modernist styles: Cubism, Fauvism and Expressionism.

Today, the finer qualities of African tribal art, like the qualities of good art from any continent, are more clearly understood and have assumed their true position in the art of mankind.

Sadly however, most traditional African artworks are now produced for the tourist trade. Although some of these objects are examples of skilled craftsmanship, collectors suggest that many lack the character that is generated by a spiritual, as opposed to a profit motive.

Art without a 'spiritual dimension', in the broadest sense of the term, never transcends the level of mere craftsmanship and is unable to communicate those elevated emotions that are born from a deeper mystical inspiration.

We would like to thank www.artyfactory.com for the kind permission to reproduce this article  

Ritual Masks
Ritual masks occur throughout the world, and although they tend to share many characteristics, highly distinctive forms have developed.
The function of the masks may be magical or religious; they may appear in rites of passage or as a make-up for a form of theatre. Equally masks may disguise a penitent or preside over important ceremonies; they may help mediate with spirits, or offer a protective role to the society who utilise their powers.

African Masks
There are an enormous variety of masks used in Africa.
In West Africa, masks are used in masquerades that form part of religious ceremonies enacted to communicate with spirits and ancestors. Examples are the masquerades of the Yoruba, Igbo and Edo cultures, including Egungun Masquerades and Northern Edo Masquerades.

The masks are usually carved with an extraordinary skill and variety by artists who will usually have received their training as an apprentice to a master carver - frequently it is a tradition that has been passed down within a family through many generations. Such an artist holds a respected position in tribal society because of the work that he/she creates, embodying not only complex craft techniques but also spiritual/social and symbolic knowledge.[6] African masks are also used in the Mas or Masquerade of the Caribbean Carnival.

Many African masks represent animals. Some African tribes believe that the animal masks can help them communicate with the spirits who live in forests or open savannas. People of Burkina Faso known as the Bwa and Nuna call to the spirit to stop destruction. The Dogon of Mali have complex religions that also have animal masks.

Their beliefs are in three main cults - the Awa cult of the dead, Bini cult of communication with spirits, and Lebe cult of earth and nature. These three main cults nevertheless use seventy-eight different types of masks. Most of the ceremonies of the Dogon culture are secret, although the antelope dance is shown to non-Dogons.

The antelope masks are rough rectangular boxes with several horns coming out of the top. The Dogons are expert agriculturists and the antelope symbolizes a hard working farmer.
Another culture that has a very rich agricultural tradition is the Bamana people of Mali. The antelope is believed to be taught man the secrets of agriculture. Although the Dogons and Bamana people both believe the antelope symbolises agricultural, they interpret elements the masks differently. To the Bamana people, swords represent the sprouting of grain.

Masks may also indicate a culture’s ideal of feminine beauty. The masks of Punu of Gabon have highly arched eyebrows, almost almond-shaped eyes and a narrow chin. The raised strip running from both sides of the nose to the ears represent jewellery. Dark black hairstyle, tops the mask off. The whiteness of the face represent the whiteness and beauty of the spirit world.

Only men wear the masks and perform the dances with high stilts despite it being a “female” masks. One of the most beautiful representations of female beauty is the Idia’s Mask of Benin. It is believed to have been commissioned by a king of Benin in memory of his mother. To honor his dead mother, the king wore the mask on his hip during special ceremonies.

The Senoufo people of the Ivory Coast represent tranquility by making masks with eyes half-shut and lines drawn near the mouth. The Temne of Sierra Leone use masks with small eyes and mouths to represent humility and humbleness. They represent wisdom by making bulging forehead.
Other masks that have exaggerated long faces and broad foreheads symbolize the soberness of one’s duty that comes with power. War masks are also popular. The Grebo of the Ivory Coast carve masks with round eyes to represent alertness and anger, with the straight nose to represent unwillingness to retreat.

Today, the qualities of African art are beginning to be more understood and appreciated. However most African masks are now being produced for the tourist trade. Although they often show skilled craftsmanship, they will nearly always lack the spiritual character of the traditional tribal masks.