“Naming the Money” is performed in 2004 by a contemporary African artist, Lubaina Himid. Naming the Money is a dramatic installation made of 100 life-sized figures. Himid created these figures by cutting out the painted paper and gave a real names for each figures. In the project, she tried to represent unknown history of individuals of minority people such as black servants, immigrants, and refugees. In this paper, I suggest that the contemporary work of art project titled, "Naming the Money" should be added to the textbook; Marilyn Stokstad, Art History, Volume I, on page 414, as a Counterpoint Box. Himid's artwork encourages discussions on how Ancient African Art is appropriated as a reference to racism by addressing that she tried to represent the domestic life, colorful and various patterns of the clothes of figures in her artwork are similar to Igbo-Ukwu's unique fashion style, and Himid's way of grouping them, similar to ancient African culture. …show more content…
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
Artwork has been an imperative part of Black culture, and many artist share their inspirations coming from African origins. From the beginning of slave societies to present day, African America artwork has contributed to large parts of United States artistic collection. Beginning in the early 1600 to 1800 “black art took the form of small drums, quilts, wrought-iron figures and ceramic vessels in the southern United States. These artifacts have similarities with comparable crafts in West and Central Africa.” The significance of the
The most influential artist to me in this exemplary in this pursuit for the appropriated traditions is Kehinde Wiley. In his opening speech for the New Republic gallery show he expressed that things such as his work was evolved around the working of chance . In his case, he manipulates the chance of the representation of the black demographic in traditional work. Modifying the figurative works to create the chance for relating a body that is familiar. I see contemporary painter, Kehinde Wiley as a comparable to my work in regards to the topic as well as the manipulation of the human figure. The admirable features I see in Kehinde Wiley’s work in addition to these is the fantasy elements that are incorporated. These features are best exhibited in his piece, “Bound”. The work is a bronze sculpture that stands approximately four feet tall and two-and half feet wide. The composition is inviting as it includes busts of three identical women that have African descent features that are placed on a rounded triangle base. The expressions on all of the faces are of a staring and wondering nature that have a nature of regality as their faces are turned to the right at an approximate forty five degree angle as their all have their back facing each other to form a guard of the leaves the a laid on their base. The bodies are cut organically as it rounds off from shoulder to shoulder, just enough to form the upper torso to see the corset like dress that encompass the figure. Expanding
WH9 Kaulike Jansen Africa DBQ January 6, 2016 Before the Europeans arrived to the empires, kingdoms, and cities of Africa, the African civilization flourished in many achievements with Art, political status, trade, and culture. The Africa we know today is not like the Africa we knew before the Europeans arrived in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Africa traders have used their skills to trade with other lands. Beautiful cities were built with an advanced political structure like the city of Kilwa. They even maintained a thriving culture.
Ofili, compared to Yinka Shoniabre, has never abandoned the idea that notions of race and identity are important factors within his artwork, Ofili quite simply understands that playing along side his stereotypes has offered his career for where he is today. ‘…Portraiture and black subjectivity represent important philosophical vectors in Ofili’s powerful figurative art, as if this conjunction between figuration and representation were not already visibly defined in the 181 watercolours.’ (Okwui Enwezor : Chris Ofili : Tate : 72)
In the kingdom of Benin, making castes with bronze was introduced to the rest of the world. “Now this kind of work is done with clay, and wax, and red metal (copper), and soldier (zinc) and lead, and fire…Next it is set aside to cool, then (the outside covering of clay) is broken off,” (Document 7). The art of creating bronze castes was very popular in Benin and the popularity soon spread to most of Northern Africa.
In many ways, the African culture and experience have an everlasting effect on Adah. The first encounter of the Price family with Africa is filled with misunderstanding and bewilderment of the culture but Adah simply observes and admires the culture. “ And so the Price family passes its judgments. All but Adah. Adah unpasses her judgements” (32).
A group called the benin artists created a masterpiece that symbolizes royal authority and power. It’s a sculpture of 2 leopards designed as water vessels, used for when the oba washes his hands before ceremonies.
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
The fact that the artist added “$30” after giving information about a name and a location suggests an environment in which humans are commodified, such as in the world of
In a freezing class, two brilliant minds unlocked the fiery passion that is their talent one an artist the other a writer. Bringing to light a history long forgotten creating abstract thoughts arbitrary to our own. Komi Olaf the artist and Okey Ndibe the writer not only enlightening the class but also the world with each brush stroke and each word. Every creation stemming from the hands of these masters tell of issues at the heart of Africa from colonialism to existential dilemmas. Thru spoken word, hip-hop, art, music, poems and literature issues close at heart to the artists and to Africa are portrayed. This paper will focus on the art exhibit by Komi Olaf and Foreign Gods inc by Okey Ndibe as spoken by them during their discussion in the class on October 13th. Where the talks focused on the key course objectives being stereotypes, post-colonialism, youth culture, and resistance.
Asante then precedes to delve into the historic relationship between African culture
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.
Like African paintings, poetry, and woodcarvings, sculptures tell a tale and immortalize cultures and beliefs. Different artists have different styles (African Arts Information). Materials and styles differ from village to village. Most sculptors use green wood, copper, tin, zinc alloys, bronze, ivory, or terra cotta, a kind of earth ware. Most sculpture figures are believed to contain ancestor’s spirits. Others represent sacred ideas or events (Fetzer 106). Some objects are said to be magical and believed to have magical powers (African Arts). Africans carve figures, make masks, and decorate articles for ceremonies (Fetzer 106).
This chapter in Africans and Their History by Joseph Harris presents some of the roots of the stereotypes and myths about Africa in the past and for the most part are still held today. Harris discusses how the “greats” of history, geography, and literature starting a path of devaluation of Africans that writers after their time followed. Harris also denounced the language that these “greats” used to describe and talk about Africans. He asserts that this language inherently painted Africans as inferior and subhuman.
African heritage emanates from a different tone and poetic genius in in Gabriel Okara’s poetic imagination in Fisherman Invocation. Okara concerns with the problems of man and human existence. Okara’s love of music, art and literature is reflected in his close attention to details of scenery. Also as a painter, Okara’s ability to create an atmosphere, a mood or a situation is one of his greatest poetic styles. Fisherman’s Invocation centers around the plight of human condition, and particularly, Okara’s attention to the Nigerian people who have gone through the periods of national and personal conflicts and crises. Okara meditates on the indigenous imagery, and the traumas and tribulations of nation building that left Nigerians divided.