How The Ghana Is Influenced By African Art

19th century British imperialism left a deep, enduring scar on the Bini of Benin. Under the assumption that moulding Nigeria in Britain’s image would free the indigenous from their “superstitions and despotic rulers,” British bureaucrats and missionaries willfully debased Beninese traditions and beliefs (Kwarteng 276). Especially because the bronzes, Warrior Chief Flanked by Warriors and Attendants (fig. 1.) for example, depict sacred events and ceremonies (Waxman 457), their absence is emblematic of the destruction of Edo culture (Barkan). Therefore, through winning restitution, Benin could reclaim its stolen heritage, which encourages social empowerment and fortifies independence. Moreover, recent studies suggest a correlation between the presence of African “artefacts” and "correct psychological Africanity orientation,” which implies that having access to the Benin bronzes could bolster the cultural identity of Bini descendants (Azibo 183). So, if repatriation is such a potent remedy for the debilitating aftermath of colonialism, why are Western museums, who claim moral responsibility, coldly indifferent to Nigeria’s

From the 1500s to the 1700s, African blacks, mainly from the area of West Africa (today's Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Gambia, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Dahomey, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, and Gabon) were shipped as slaves to North America, Brazil, and the West Indies. For them, local and tribal differences, and even varying cultural backgrounds, soon melded into one common concern for the suffering they all endured. Music, songs, and dances as well as remembered traditional food, helped not only to uplift them but also quite unintentionally added immeasurably to the culture around them. In the approximately 300 years that blacks have made their homes in North America, the West Indies, and Brazil, their highly honed art

In this essay, I will compare and contrast two different sculptures from two different contexts of art. The first being an Olmec Colossal head (monument 1), from the context of “Art of the Americas,” and the second sculpture being ahead from Rafin Kura. The head from Rafin Kura comes from the context of “Art of Africa.” Both sculptures come from two different time periods and parts of the world. They also are both made with natural materials and have their own symbolic meaning.

The early civilizations of Africa were different in many of their cultural traits. One common trait they did have in common was the importance of trade in their society. Although trade was good for the African civilizations, there was consequences that followed trading. I will be using documents B, F, and D to support how early African civilizations had consequences from trading. In document B it states that, “The door of the pavilion is guarded by dogs on an excellent breed… who wear collars of gold and silver,” this quote helps support the idea that Ghana had lots of gold and wealth.

Kleiner, Fred S. Gardner's Art through the Ages: A Global History, Fourteenth Edition, Volume II.

Since the beginning of time, artists have labored extensively to find innovative ways to convey sentiment, passion, and feeling. Telling stories and trying to unlock the minds of people through different avenues of artistic labors. Art touches and affects people in unique ways; it can have special or unusual meaning on the person depending on how one views it. Artists’ rendering of their art is interpreted in numerous ways by others who view it unless it is explained by the artist on its meaning giving a clear example of what they are portraying. Two people looking at the same painting, sculpture, portrait, or photo may come to different views on the arts meaning even though they are looking

It is proposed to show that the ethos of European colonial expansion largely defined and classified Benin art and dictated how it should be interpreted and displayed when first seen in European

Black people in the artworks are often interpreted as subjects showing primitivism. “Primitive” and “tribal” art are usually positioned as the opposite of modernization and classicism. It suggests of the other side of colonization times: the natives, the under advanced societies. Such as Eastern societies, Africans are commonly interpreted as sources of the colonized, and it is expected from them to imitate the power sources and learn from them.

African Art does not have specific date to which it evolved because most early African Art was carved in wood, which perished quickly. This is why most art dates from the 19th and early 20th century. Many 20th century artists admired and collected pieces of African Art. They enjoyed the bold color, expression, and form that produced a new beginning in art history. African Art was mostly dedicated to life affirming activities such as healing, pleasure, protection, and transformation.

African life has a big impact on African art. Many art pieces are inspired by a story of a culture and how they lived and what inspired them to create some of the works. These art pieces can come in many forms such as painting, sculpture, and dancing and they each convey the cycle of life with the importance of pregnancies, beauty and youth and afterlife. These three things are represented in so many African art pieces.

During the European Renaissance, the immigration of African individual to Europe were mostly for economic purposes which, indirectly caused an increase in cultural diversity within Europe. However, a vast majority of Africans during the European Renaissance were slaves. European’s definition of “civilization” was to classify aliens and divide them into two class, “civilized” and “the barbarian”. To be considered civilized, it depended on a number of factor regarding hierarchical structure, social organisation, and descendant history. This label allowed European to distinguished themselves apart from Africans by labeling them uncivilized. Their notion forecasts the relationship with Africans in the Renaissance. Throughout the European Renaissance, not much was known about Africans due to the European's poor documentation of them. Recovering pieces of Africans’ history, especially the relationship with European, is vital because more knowledge of their past will demystify any misconceptions.

Comparing the clothes of black figures, there are some common designs in Igbo-Ukwu's unique representation of bronze in natural object. Igbo-Ukwu is a region in eastern Nigeria which used to have the largest population in Nigeria. It was also the region where most of the African culture and art had developed. On page 414 of the textbook, Igbo-Ukwu is introduced as a region where the earliest-known evidence of copper alloy and bronze casting was discovered. Igbo-Ukwu's bronze objects suchas bowls and shells are covered with elaborate decorations invluding linear, spiral, circular, and granular designs, which seems to match Himid's artwork. The gap between the African chapter and her artwork is the difference of the object on which the designs are used. Himid used such designs for clothes of the paper figures instead of bronze

This paper deliberates the strong influences African art had on famous artists and how African art got the opportunity to be distinguished. African art is the manifestation of human artistic imagination, as visual as a sculpture. I will be talking about the impacts that African craftsmanship had on the European craftsman Pablo Picasso and the American specialist Max Weber and a few others named in this paper. Picasso denied that he was ever affected by the African workmanships and how he later admittance that he was motivated by African art. I will examine particular bits of workmanship and presumptions that was made by Picasso and Weber in motivation of African craftsmanship, and how African craftsmanship had impacted these expert and different unmistakable gifted laborers and workmanship today. African

Through the course of the month, we had to prepare for an upcoming exhibition titled Thank you Ma’am in celebration of Queen Elizabeth II’s 63rd year on the throne. The theme of the exhibition was highly influenced by British royalty and it’s link with Ancient Benin Kingdom (located in what we presently call Edo state, Nigeria) a pre-colonial empire dating back to the 11th Century. For this exhibition, we called out for artists, whose work has been influenced by Her Majesty the Queen or her lineage. Artists from the NAS (Nigerian Arts Society) United Kingdom honoured the gallery’s request and participated in the exhibition, as Nigeria is a commonwealth nation.

African art has played an important role in the culture of the world. The sculpture is the most common traditional culture expression for the African art. The different sculptures are shown by their local styles and they serve for the specific functions, such as religion. From some of these old art pieces, we figure out this kind of traditional culture expression already existed in the African for such a long time. In this paper, the art piece I am going to analyze is the Female Figure with Child and it made by Akan-Asante people. The Akan people of Ghana have been recognized for their various and attractive culture and it located in what are today Ivory Coast and the republic of Ghana in Western African. The Akan people are combined by different groups, such as the Anyi, Akawpim, Akyem, Aowin and Asante, and these people have their own dialect, but they share a lingua franca, which called Twi. The sculpture I choose could effectively reflect its own distinctive culture, because of the social connection reflect on the royalty, the comparison with other local art pieces, like Akuaba fertility dolls and its specific art form.