Banda mask (Baga? Nalu?)

Hi All

Here is a Banda mask in my collection.





These are made by the Baga and Nalu people; I don't know which made this one. They're danced at harvest time, I think, and are also believed to have protective significance.

I especially like this one for the vigorous use of color. Maybe if we call such things polychrome instead of painted, they'll be more acceptable to the Illuminati.

Regards

Steve Price

Steve,

I very much like the shape and colour combinations - the spotted snake body against the black braids - the snake head evolving into the tubular nose and eyes - the ears slashing through into lips.

It would be fantastic to see collectors post their favourite polychromy masks - antique, modern or somewhere in between.

My favourites are the Guro Je masks, many of which represent wild animals. The animals symbolize powerful and potentially malevolent spirits as well as the co-operative hunts (“doma” or “ka lupao”) as a form of subsistence.

I have a few of the styles but there are many:

Vii – the elephant
Bene – the dog
Dri – the bull
Du – the wild buffalo
Groga – the chimpanzee
Zanaure - the gazelle

This one is Ze – the antelope - the red and black colours are representative of male power



The second is Zeiwe or Zewe the boss or spokesman of the Je group. It has a beautiful triangulated headband across the forehead in red, yellow, black, white and green.



I hope we see many and varied masks posted.

Regards
Andrew

Andrew,
Fantastic essay! I printed it out and read it a few times and have enjoyed it very much. Polychrome masks, in my opinion, are wonderful and I am glad you chose that as a topic of discussion.

When I first started collecting I stayed away from brightly painted masks and objects. I'm not really sure why, but they just didn't appeal to me at the time. I am sure it was partly due to the fact that I started out liking the "mainstream" objects found in popular reference books and auction catalogs, and very few of them were objects that were traditionally painted.

As I learned more and my collecting tastes evolved, I found that I started giving the painted objects a second look and eventually started purchasing some.

I've always had an affection for the Senufo masks often referred to as "firespitter" masks. I had a few of the non-painted versions and was looking for one more when one was presented to me that was brightly painted. I really wasn't drawn to it at first glance, but I sat down with it and looked at it in detail and saw that it actually had some good wear to it, and that many parts of the mask had been painted over several times giving a thick layer of paint in many areas. I ended up purchasing it and have grown really attached it it and I ended up selling off all of my non-painted examples.


This is the mask, it's a Senufo Kponyungo mask, 36" long x 17" tall x 14" wide

Additional photos: http://www.randafricanart.com/Senufo_Kponyugo.html

That was my first polychrome piece, but it opened the door for many more after that.

Some of my favorite polychrome objects in my collection are my Bamana puppets.



More: http://www.randafricanart.com/Bamana_marionettes.html

My interest in polychrome objects moved to other cultures as well, and I love the Tigre masks from Guerrero, Mexico that I brought into my collection last year.



More: http://www.randafricanart.com/Tigre_mask.html

I loved the objects that both you and Steve posted. Steve, I recognize your mask and am glad that it ended up in a good home.

I hope that others will also post polychrome objects from their collections, and I think that we will see a rise in popularity in the not so distant future of these types of objects.

Cheers!
RAND

__________________
Rand Smith
www.randafricanart.com

Andrew I agree with Rand, great essay!
Rand, Steve and Andrew, great masks you have shown, I especially like Andrews Zewe mask.
I too have had discussions with Bob Ibold who I know is very enthusiastic about painted masks. I have also discussed with Rand about painted pieces in the past.
Personally I find painted masks have a totally different "feel" to unpainted masks. They have a vibrancy that stands out way above unpainted masks of a similar type.
With some masks you can guess how long they were used for by the different layers of paint, for example a Bamana puppet head I have (which is apparently used only once a year and repainted every year)has been repainted 3 times so therefore was used for at least 3 years.
I mostly collect small figures but have 6 painted masks and 3 unpainted, and intend to collect more painted masks before unpainted. I am trying to find more painted figures but these seem to be harder to find.
A photo of one of my Ibo masks is in the "Show and Tell" section if anyone would care to take a look.
Best Wishes
Craig

Here are a few of my painted masks.
Cheers
Craig