7 Amazing Things You Should Know about African Arts

Africa is a large and undeniably diverse continent. It has a history that encompasses several eras with the rise and fall of empires and civilizations. As a result, Sub Saharan Africa’s art is varied and offers a whole new field for exploring.

Africa is well known as a region of incredible diversity in its ethnic identities, languages, cultural traditions, living environments, and historical experiences. With distinctive cultures and customs in each region, art is found in various forms and designs. African art covers a broad area from conventional and traditional sculptures and masks to contemporary ceramics, African art paintings, photography, metalworking, and so on. 

In this article, we explore and dwell more into some fascinating and unique aspects of the various forms of the Sub Saharan African arts. 

African Masks- the popular African art form

African masks are probably the most well-known art form of African society. An exhibition of African art forms in museums and galleries would be considered incomplete without presenting Sub Saharan African communities’ exquisite masks. A traditional African mask is significant for all kinds of ceremonies. Approximately 80 types of masks exist and are used across various dance forms to create performance art. These masks were commonly made out of wood and decorated with paint, gems, ivory, and animal fur. 

Wood African art and craft 

Wood is the primary and most widely used material in the creation of various African art forms. Be it African sculptures or masks, they are mostly made out of wood. This is a crucial reason for the eventual destruction of several African arts as time and other natural elements like water tend to wear out products made of wood. Only the products made of other materials such as metals like bronze, iron, ceramics, and ivory have succeeded to endure. 

Rock Paintings that depict the legacy

Another oldest known form of art from the African continent is Rock paintings. Among them, the ones found in Namibia are believed to be some of the oldest pieces of art in the world and are estimated to be around 27 thousand years old. The ancient African natives created these artworks in caves and on rock surfaces. The earliest paintings amongst them depicted the ancient Africans’ daily lives and representations of animals and people. With the due course of time, these paintings developed into more abstract forms. Drakensberg Mountain Range, South Africa, where archaeologists discovered about 30,000 rock paintings, is an excellent example of these rock paintings’ wide range. 

African art forms in Three Dimensions

One of African art’s significant features is the three-dimensional portrayal rather than the highly prevalent two dimensions. For this reason, sculptures were more often than matte paintings. This was because the African people preferred to create art not just for display but also for everyday use in life, especially in ceremonies. Sculptures made from wood, bronze, terracotta, and ivory; jewelry made of gold, gems, and shells; ceramics like bowls and cooking pots from pottery; were the most crafted forms of 3-dimensional art.  

Love for Abstract art 

Abstract art forms have been popular over the years in Africa. The abstract nature of African art forms later also influenced the modern art movements of Europe. A prime example of the widespread use of the abstract form is when the San (Bushmen) would, in due course, create artwork that would portray spirits in a very abstract and exciting way.

Gold and Bronze Elements 

Bronze casting is another element used by African society, especially in West Africa. With the help of bronze casting, African palaces were embellished from the 12th till the 14th century. The most famous African art from 1400 to 1900 was Akan gold weights, a small metal sculpture. The gold element was the primary feature of this sculpture. 

Human image- a favorite theme 

Another prominent and favored theme in the art of Ancient Africa is the human form and image. The principal subject in a majority of the art forms was human. At times, humans were also depicted with animals or even as part animal and part person. There are sculptures, masks, terracotta figures that represent the human form in one way or another. The oldest known clay figure from Southern Africa combined human and animal features on cylindrical heads dated back to 400 to 600 AD. 

These are some of the fascinating aspects of African art forms. Such factual information can be beneficial to understand the various forms of Africa art better. The regional diversity in all the types of African art is quite apparent. Since the 19th century, the popularity of African art has been increasing exponentially. They are now seen in several decorative ornaments for homes and offices, especially by the western population. There are also scores of collections of these African arts exhibited in art galleries worldwide.