Resonance from the Past at The Middlebury College Museum of Art
Ifá Divination Bowl: Opon Igede, early 20th century, Yoruba
peoples, city of Osi-Ilorin, Ekiti region, Nigeria; Carver: Dada Areogun of
Osi-Ilorin (c. 1880–1954); wood. Museum purchase with funds in honor of E.
John Bullard’s twenty-fifth anniversary as director of NOMA.
98.52
African Art Goes on View September 18 2007
Found at middlebury.edu
Drawn from one of the outstanding collections of African art in the United
States, Resonance from the Past: African Sculpture from the New Orleans
Museum of Art includes figures of gods, spirits, and ancestors, as
well as ceremonial masks, headdresses, and ritual objects created by the peoples
of West and Central Africa. These stunning works, which date from the
seventeenth through the twentieth century, reveal the richness of traditional
African culture and also serve as potent reminders of the aesthetic influence of
African art on European Modernism.
This exhibition is a collaboration between the Museum
for African Art and the New Orleans Museum of Art. Frank Herreman is the
guest curator.
 The
Middlebury College Museum of Art is an integral educational and
cultural component of Middlebury College. In addition, the Museum serves the
surrounding communities in Vermont and New York.
Middlebury College Museum of Art
Center for the Arts
Route 30
Middlebury, VT 05753
(802) 443-5007
Emmie Donadio, Chief Curator
(802) 443-2240
donadio@middlebury.edu
Tribal sculpture show shifts African bias
By Alexxa Gotthardt 9/19/07 found at media.www.middleburycampus.com
 More
than 80 African sculptures comprise the Middlebury College Museum of Art's
newest exhibition, including an intricately assembled masquerade dance costume.
An issue forever surrounding the art world concerns art's capacity to affect, to
stir, to touch the viewer. Is art more than just something pretty or interesting
to look at, or is it conceived with a greater goal in mind? "Resonance from
the Past: African Sculpture from the New Orleans Museum of Art," a
compelling, ebullient season-opener for the Middlebury College Museum of Art (MCMA)
and its first major African Art exhibition in over a decade, gives this question
great intellectual nourishment. The show, on loan from the New Orleans Museum of
Art (NOMA) and guest curated by Frank Herreman of NOMA, opened , Sept. 18.
In many African cultures, the connection between objects and the spiritual world
is a strong one, and a connection manifested in the works of "Resonance
from the Past."
"Many African sculptures embody the spirits of ancestors or higher
powers," said Robert P. Youngman Curator of Asian Art Colin Mackenzie.
"The work is not about beauty, it's about power - the power of the
spirit."
The more than 80 works of art in the show, created in Central and Sub-Saharan
Africa from the late 17th to the second half of the 20th century, were mostly
used in spiritual ceremonies or created for the purpose of worship, initiation
or commemoration. Masks, figures, ivory statuettes, architectural elements,
ceramics, costumes and beadwork vibrantly embody the inspirations, beliefs and
talents of well over 20 African tribes and seem to resonate with the
inspirations of their creators.
The objects are arranged according to their region of origin, creating a kind of
artistic map of Sub-Saharan Africa. Western Nigeria Benin, Sierra Leone, Guinea,
Cote d'Ivoire, Southeastern Nigeria, Cameroon, Congo, Mali and Burkina Faso are
all represented. The broad time period and the large number of works, makes this
geographical organization not only effective but necessary. Also well thought
out is the circular space in the center of the gallery, created by two crescent
walls. The space creates a nucleus of energy, perhaps meant to evoke the center
square of an African town or the circular motion of a ritual dance.
In addition, the sense of travel or exploration through the art is amplified by
the brightly colored walls - turquoise, orange, yellow and green. And while the
intensely cheerful paint choices might come off as childish in another setting,
against the displayed works they seem fitting, even sophisticated choices. The
colors are not random, but chosen specifically to reflect the different regions
and tribal cultures of the sculpture.
To get a sense of where this exotic, perhaps unfamiliar art originates, the
exhibition provides iPods equipped with a selection of tribal drumming and
chant. Like the walls, the music corresponds directly with the regions - and
rituals - represented. The tracks were chosen by Sarah Dewey '07.5, who recently
completed a thesis on African art.
As effective as the backdrop is, it remains backdrop thanks to the spectacular
sculptures themselves. Ranging from miniscule to huge, sparkling to mud-caked,
harshly simplistic to opulently ornate, the objects stand for many different
facets of African culture.
Some of the most striking pieces in the exhibition are the boldly carved masks -
at least one from every regional group. The Ngafui mask, carved and assembled by
the Loma (or Toma) people on the border of Liberia and Guinea, depicts a large
male face, its exaggerated features, bulging eyes and king-sized feather
headdress commanding attention. While its geometric surfaces seem to point to a
quick carve-job, at closer glance a keen attention to detail is obvious. Thin,
delicate lines adorn the cheeks, and the ears and teeth are well-defined, almost
realistic. Monkey fur is used for the beard, and a bit of hair even sprouts out
of the cylindrical nose. The mask seems a blend of the primitive and the
sophisticated, and the effect is powerful. It is easy to imagine the awe or fear
it might inspire at an initiation ceremony or funeral celebration.
The Ogbodo Enyi crest mask of the Izzi Igbo peoples of Nigeria also stands out
as both visually bold and complex. Its many flat planes and segmented pieces
parts - the lips, for instance, seem to have at least six distinct surfaces -
call to mind Picasso's cubist figures (which were inspired by African masks).
The mask's severe features, menacing horn and double head certainly create the
fear-inspiring effect the Izzi Igbo people hoped for - the spirits of Ogbodo
Enyi "were described as harsh, violent, threatening spirits" that
"were most probably powerful agents of social control," according to
the exhibtion's catalog.
Numerous fertility figures and small ivory statuettes also form a dynamic
portion of the show. The Jonyeleni Nyeleni female figure's preposterous
cone-shaped breasts and black sheen are typical of the fertility statues and the
ivory amulet created by the Luba peoples of Congo conveys an impressive amount
of emotion for its miniscule stature.
One of the most spectacular pieces of the exhibition, situated in the center
circle, is the Ekuu Egungun masquerade dance costume. While many of the works
displayed have faded or completely lost their color over the years, this costume
is still brilliantly colorful thanks to the intricate beading and patchwork.
Damasks and velvets in browns, reds, golds and blues combine with the
intricately patterned beadwork of the mask and lapel (even the nose is made of
knots of red beads), inspiring both attention and awe - a desired goal of the
creators in order to appropriately revere the ancestors that the costume
embodies.
Aside from its visual force, the origin of the materials is also noteworthy.
While the shells are certainly from Oyo region of Nigeria, most of the fabrics
were imported from Europe, as were the tiny beads. This recalls not only the
exchange of materials between Europe and Africa, but also the slave trade.
2007 marks the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade in the
British Empire - a system that degraded and dehumanized the people of Africa for
decades. "Resonance from the Past" comes to the public at an
appropriate time. Through the exhibition of these artistic achievements -
achievements which surely suggest spiritual and imaginative creators - the often
undermined sophistication of the African people is celebrated. This celebration
of the African culture was a major goal of Herreman and of MCMA's curators who
worked to bring the exhibition to Middlebury.
"In an era when much of what we hear about Africa is negative, this
exhibition brings to Middlebury something overwhelmingly positive," said
Mackenzie. "The stunning works in the exhibition demonstrate vividly that
traditional African culture is rich, visually highly sophisticated and possesses
a history stretching back centuries."
"Resonance from the Past's" cultural associations also resonate at
Middlebury. In embodying an important aspect of history and a diverse range of
African cultures, the exhibition corresponds with the College's continuing
commitment to diversity.
"I think the arts can play an important role in the diversity
initiative," said Mackenzie, "and [Dean for Institutional Diversity]
Shirley Ramirez certainly recognizes this through her [spoken] support."
Individually, each sculpture in "Resonance from the Past" provides
visual stimulation and cultural insight. Together, the more than 80 sculptures
make up a thoughtful, visually impressive exhibition that reveals art with a
greater goal in mind than aesthetic pleasure - a goal conceived and executed by
a intelligent, spiritual and introspective people.
"Resonance of the Past: African Sculpture from the New Orleans Museum of
Art" will be up in the MCMA until Dec. 9, 2007. Various lectures by experts
in the field of African art, music and culture will accompany the exhibition
throughout its three-month run.
© Copyright 2007 The Middlebury Campus
Comments:
Mom posted 9/19/2007
What, exactly, is the meaning of the headline "Tribal sculpture
show shifts African bias" for this review?
Isn't it possible to do a serious review of what appears to be an excellent
exhibit without all the self-congratulation about "diversity?"
The point about African art is that it stands on its own. We should not be
viewing it to feel virtuous about commitment to diversity. How patronizing.
Resonance from the Past:
African Sculpture from the New Orleans Museum of Art
September 18-December 9, 2007
Resonance from the Past consists of over 94 works of art from the New
Orleans Museum of Art, including masks and figures, musical instruments,
ceramics, fabric and beadwork. The exhibition compares formal elements of
African sculpture with jazz in order to illuminate the aesthetic
connections between them. It is particularly strong in works from west and
central Africa, including important groups of sculpture from the Dogon and
Bamana peoples of Mali, a selection of figures and masks of the Dan, We
and Bete people of Ivory Coast, and Akan sculpture from the Baule and
Asante people. A highlight of the show will be the outstanding collection
of Yoruba art used in ceremonies of the Ogboni, Gelede, Ifa and Epa cults.
This exhibition is a collaboration between the Museum for African
Art and the New Orleans Museum of Art. Frank Herreman is the guest
curator.
If you need more informations and the related Agenda read the Press
Release
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Isn't it possible to do a serious review of what appears to be an excellent exhibit without all the self-congratulation about "diversity?"
The point about African art is that it stands on its own. We should not be viewing it to feel virtuous about commitment to diversity. How patronizing.