African Artifacts

Mali, a blacksmith’s forge at the edge of the village, the iron still warm. African artifacts and tribal art range across Mali, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Chad, Cameroon, Gabon, Sierra Leone and both Congos. Dogon blacksmiths forged iron figures and cast equestrian bronzes. The Kotoko of the Chari River cast small bronzes and ornaments. The Lobi carved bateba figures to guard household shrines. Dan passport masks, small enough to sit in a palm, traveled with their owners as protective charms and proof of initiation. Kissi pennies, twisted rods of forged iron, served as bride wealth and currency in Sierra Leone and Guinea.

Senufo, Yoruba, Kirdi and Mbole carving, Djenne bronze, masks from across the continent, mostly nineteenth and twentieth century. Dry wood, sacrificial patina, forged iron and copper alloy have a gravity that steadies a contemporary room. A standing figure on a stair landing. A single mask over a travertine fireplace. Silence, held with some authority.