Monday, September 5, 2016

The Different Types Of African Sculptures

By Elizabeth Watson


An instant way to make a decor statement is to add a striking work of art. This will get people talking and will also show that you appreciate the finer things in life. These days, African sculptures are very popular.

Africans have been creating sculptures for millennia. The variety of styles reflects the variety of cultures that call this continent home. Some pieces are realistic-looking animals, from elephants and hippos to giraffes and antelope. Others are deeply spiritual. Depictions of people can be true to life or they can be abstract, in a style that greatly influenced Western artists like Pablo Picasso.

The most commonly used medium is wood because this material is easily obtained, cheap and soft, which enables the artist to carve it with basic tools. Wood of inferior quality is sometimes colorfully painted. Often, however, artists will simply polish the finished sculpture to let the wood shine and have its color become part of the piece's beauty.

Clay is another common medium to use but many African sculptors also work in more durable stone. Soapstone is particularly popular, since it is relatively soft and comes in a variety of colors, including black, cream, gray, yellow, lavender and red. Serious sculptors sometimes prefer harder types of stone such as serpentine, marble or granite.

The bones and tusks of animals provide the material for small carved pieces. In the past, many artists in Africa also used the huge tusks of elephants and these intricate carvings were extremely popular in Europe. Because of today's strict regulations about the sale of ivory, though, the medium is hardly ever used anymore. Should you decide to invest in an ivory carving, you need to check the local laws about this substance.

For many non-Africans, it is a surprise to hear that there has been a tradition of working in metal in many parts of the continent even in medieval times. Archaeologists have found metal sculptures as far afield as Benin and the Niger Delta in the north to Mapungubwe in the south. Bronze, copper, gold and silver are some of the metals used to create these pieces, which were usually cast. Today's sculptors often work in steel and instead of casting the pieces, they weld them into shape. Sokari Douglas Camp from Nigeria and Edoardo Villa from South Africa are some of the renowned artists who work in metal.

These days, recycled materials are all the rage among Africa's sculptors. In any major city from Johannesburg to Lagos you'll find artists selling quirky and colorful depictions of birds, animals, household objects and people made of wire, beads, bottle tops, soda cans, old car tires or plastic bags. Some of these artists have become well known in the international art world, including Elias Sime from Ethiopia, Pascale Marthine Tayou from Cameroon, Patrick Mulondo from Uganda and El Anatsui from Ghana.

Art galleries around the world sell sculptures made by artists from Africa. These can be a very good investment. If you are only looking for an inexpensive piece that doesn't necessarily have to be completely unique, you will find plenty of choices at any street market in Africa's tourist hotspots.




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