African Art on Trivial Art Tribal Art

Let's Talk Gabon!

                                                                                 Map of Gabon Masks

Recently I acquired a Tsogo Witch hunting female statue. In the relique Ambiete statues a box is mounted in the back with a little door to close it. In my example a red resin was used to close an encasement or little cave in the statues belly. Gabon statues are so loaded with spiritual essence.
For example take the Fang Byeri small symmetrical reliq-statuettes which like the Kota ones are place on a twined basket or tree bark encasing. Can anyone tell me more about the reasons for its presence and such strong pro dominant evolution?
I offer to you a small package on specialist booklist for non-commercial use on Gabon art here:

https://docs.google.com/open?id=1WxNVgHvhizLkqE8nMttqOvcAhFJLSbH2yaQtLWI2kcsCqRCyJk8GXor5oa8I

For further readings I advise the link above and the book spoken off below:

It is a magnificent book with top photography the patina drops right of it...............!
All the objects in it have been vetted authenthic, which is something you cannot easily say about most ethnographic art books. This is what it's publisher quotes:

The book presents extraordinary objects of Gabon and Equatioriale-
African artwork, which reflect in a very special way the individual variety
within formal boundaries. Most of the masks and objects shown in the
book come from private collections and have never been shown to the
public before.

What most fascinates artists and collectors about the figures, objects
and masks from Gabon is certainly the abstraction of the artistic artefacts
and their extraordinary expressivity. Interest in African "primitivism" was first aroused at the beginning of the 20th century when artists like Vlaminck,
Derain, Braque and Picasso sought inspiration for their own work in the art
of the Fang. Their quite conscious move away from the traditional view of art gave rise to an "époque nègre" in European Art.

http://www.gabon-art.com/english/galerie.htm

With contributions by:
Dr. Cees op´t Land, cultural anthropologist, curator emeritus
African art Museum voor Volkenkunde Rotterdam;
Dr. Bernd Leicht, Heidelberg, cultural anthropologist;
Peter de Boer, Amsterdam, expert African art.
Photos by Thomas Stachelhaus. Edition Schulte/Weiss

In a french publication of the missiones catholiques I found some interesting materials.

Designs on the Gabon carvings. Below types of Hair-dress which we'll find back in masks and in statuettes of Gabon and to some extent the Congo boarders.

 The same thing can be said about dress, all these designs can be traced back in the country's own arts. Next picture:

Later on I will show to you my Kwele heart shaped mask first I like to add another mask picture card:

 These drawings were made by Ebert. We'll find down left Kota reliqairies and some

Ngill Fang narrow shaped masks, of which the book mentioned before gives superb descriptions with typifications of facemarks or the carved tattoo forms in those elongated masks. 

Please send me your remarks or insights on the subject to click on my mail and send me your files or react in the contentbox below this page? etnoconverse@gmail.com

I can also send you a small specialist booklet in French on Fang Byeri art!

Thanks!        Madrason