Ancient Spirits Incarnated in Rare U.S. Exhibition of African Ritual Art

Andrew Jones
National Geographic News

June 15, 2001

Cryptic figurines, enchanting ritual masks, and spiritual power symbols
for communication with the dead combine in a new African art exhibit
that makes public the power and spiritualism behind African art
traditions.

This unusual collection of 140 spiritual and cultural
art objects from sub-Saharan Africa went on display this week at the
Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington,
D.C.

Titled "In the Presence of Spirits," the exhibit features
objects that reflect the influences of the supernatural world in African
traditional culture. They date from about 1850 to the mid-20th century.

The objects are part of a unique African art collection at the National Museum of Ethnology in Lisbon, Portugal. This is the first time the art pieces have been exhibited in the United States, and most have never been on view outside of Europe.

This is a collection that never went through the hands of dealers and this makes it somewhat special, said Frank Herreman, curator and director of exhibitions at the Museum of African Art in New York. In many ways, this is African art that we never see.

The exhibit is organized according to geography and the numerous cultural groups represented in the Lisbon museum's ethnographic collection. Highlights include figures, decorated stools and chairs, pipes, masks, staffs, and dolls used by members of royalty and spiritual figures to summon supernatural forces. Objects of prestige and power, initiation and funerary rituals, and both secular and religious symbols are included.

The most striking part of the exhibit is its array of ritual masks, adorned with feathers, raffia (a palm tree fiber), paper, pigments, twigs, and pieces of barkcloth and textiles. While some are made of wood, most are fragile because of the perishable materials used in their construction.

Much of African art was not meant to be used for very long, Herreman explained. Many times the masks were only used one time for a particular ritual and were then destroyed.

Dan Peoples

The exhibit begins with a selection of masks, dolls, and stools from western and central Africa, including two masks of the Dan people of Côte d'Ivoire. Many of their masks are used for incarnations of supernatural beings, although some are worn in initiation ceremonies.

The Dan are farmers who live in the upper reaches of the Cavally River, spanning the border of Côte d'Ivoire and Liberia. They believe that their supreme being, Zlan, created a mask creature called Ge to protect the community from misfortune and ensure its continued existence. The exhibit displays two different mask renditions of Ge, sculpted in different ways from wood.

Kongo Peoples

The second room of the exhibit displays art from the Kongo peoples (or Bakongo) who encompass a number of Kikongo-speaking groups who are situated on either side of the lower reaches of the Congo River. The capital of a large and well-organized Kongo Kingdom, Mbanza Kongo, was located in what is now northern Angola.

Most of the objects now regarded as Kongo art were made for use in ritual or ceremonial contexts. In Kongo thought, unusual powers and abilities are derived from traffic with spirits from the land of the dead.

Partly because of the historical importance of the Kongo Kingdom and partly because of the romantic appeal of royalty, attention tends to focus on chiefs and their insignia. According to the official exhibit catalog, by the time that most collecting of artifacts began, the Kongo king had been reduced to a mere chief among chiefs. Furthermore, the chiefs themselves generally had been overshadowed by ritual complexes called minkisi, which dominated political and economic processes everywhere.

In Kongo thought, an nkisi (pl. minkisi), was a personalized force from the invisible land of the dead that had chosen, or been induced, to submit itself to a degree of human control effected through ritual performances. The ritual could be more or less elaborate, take anywhere from a few minutes to many years to complete, and require the participation of any number of persons, from a single individual to an entire village or more.

Minkisi, or power figures, were crafted to defend against or enter into union with these spirits depending on the spirits' intent. The exhibit offers a diverse, colorful display of these power figures from the Woyo, Yombe, and Kongo peoples of Angola.

Ambo Peoples

The exhibition continues with pieces from the Ambo peoples of southwestern Angola who incorporate 12 distinct groups, including the Ndonga, Nyaneka, and Kwanyama peoples.

Throughout this region, men's lives centered on cattle herding while women were prepared from birth to fulfill their dual roles as mothers and farmers. The girls' socialization as caregiver began with caring for her younger siblings and cousins, many times in the form of ovana. According to the exhibit catalog, in some areas, a girl at all times held under her tongue four or more small quartz stones called children, or ovana, which she removed only after she had produced a child. After this time the ovana were passed down to another young girl in her family. As these practices suggest, the Ambo and Nyaneka held in awe women's creative powers as the guardians and nurturers of fertility.

Like girls everywhere, Ambo and Nyaneka girls received dolls from family members or made dolls for themselves out of materials they found such as clay and fabric scraps.

The dolls were thought to be of great significance because they were seen as the future offspring of the entire family. Early researchers and collectors were surprised that the Ambo and Nyaneka resisted even allowing a doll to be seen when not being carried by a girl, and a young man who met a girl carrying a doll had to give her a gift or suffer her curses.

The exhibit's vibrant collection of ritual dolls include pieces from the Kwanyama and Mwila Nyaneka peoples.

Bidjogo Peoples

The final room of the exhibit highlights the art of the Bidjogo. The roughly 15,000 members of the Bidjogo people inhabit some 20 islands and islets off the west coast of Guinea-Bissau, to which they belong politically. Not all these islands are permanently occupied, but they are cultivated by the burn method; the scorched fields become rice paddies fed by the frequent summer rainfall.

Protected against acculturation by distance, the Bidjogo have managed to stay deeply attached to their traditions, including the custom of initiation. According to the exhibit catalog, the stages of initiation for boys and girls require a mask appropriate to each age group. Today, the Bidjogo still hold highly expressive costumed performances during village festivals. The exhibit offers a spectacular group of these costumes including monumental masks representing bovines, sharks, buffaloes and birds.

Following its premiere at the Museum for African Art in New York and its exhibition now at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, In the Presence of Spirits will travel to the Birmingham Museum of Art in Birmingham, Alabama, before returning to the newly refurbished galleries at the National Museum of Ethnology in Lisbon.

The exhibition at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art runs from June 10 through September 16.