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The Yoruba


The term Yoruba describes both a language and a tribe living between Nigeria and the Republic of Benin, in an area covered by forests and savannah. Their history can be traced from the beginning of our millennium, with the civilization of Ife. Following the collapse of the kingdom of Ife kingdom of a number such as Oyo and Ijebu emerged, they in turn disintegrated during the 18th and 19th, but were revived by the colonial powers, to the end of the 19th. Today they are still the basis of the Yoruba political structure. The slave trade touched heavily Yoruba people of Nigeria and he contributed to their diaspora and the release of their rites and beliefs.


The Yoruba are prolific craftsmen, most Yoruba art objects dating from between the late 19 th and the middle of this century, and can sometimes be attributed to known artists by their names, which is an exception in African art.


During the XVI, the Ijebu kingdom, ruled areas near the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. copper imported by sailors, was traded by the Portuguese Ijebu and many bronze objects were created by their artists. These objects reflect the influence of their neighbors, the Kingdom of Benin. Nevertheless, their bells and bracelets scepters are usually decorated with figures, half human, half animal with eyes bulging and curved scars on his forehead.

The empire of Oyo between the XVII and XIX was located in the northern territories or peoples

The Luba


The Luba Empire was founded in 1585, in the depression of the Upemba by King Kongholo, his nephew and successor Llunga Kalala, enlarges rapidly until the kingdom territory on the left bank of the River Lualaba. At the height of the kingdom more than a million people live in tribes, various paid tribute to King Luba. At the end of XIX with DVANCED Ovimbudu of Angola and the raids of slave traders Islamic empire s'affiblit and collapsed when the Belgian colonists arrived.

The economy lm'empire Luba came from payment of tribute and redistribution of resources from agriculture, fishing and hunting, and mining.

Luba artists have created many objects related to the activity of the court, the prestige objects were usually decorated with female figures everywhere in Luba art. Because of the huge area covered by the empire there are wide variations in the corpus stylistic art Luba.


Masks:


Luba masks rare, are found mainly in the eastern part of the empire. One type of mask Luba, very similar to the masks of kifwebe Songye but has more rounded features. There are very few zoomorphic masks.


Statues:


Luba artists have sculpted female statues standing or kneeling Mboko called, cleverly taking a cut, and who served during the ceremonies of divination. The statues stand uncommon, and probably representing the forest spirits or ancestors are covered with a

Linguistically, the Songye form part of the Luba, world, itself part of the Bantu group. Indeed there is a century old inter relation between the Songye and Luba, and they therefore share many cultural traits. Some art forms are part of this, shared heritage, according to the oral tradition the founding chieftains of the first luba kingdom, were of songye origins, and it is the Songye who introduced the idea of social stratification to the Luba and consequently the first luba chieftains are said to be of Songye Ancestry.

ENVIRONMENT

The Songye used to live in a forest environment till the end of the first half of the second millennium. Slowly their habitat became more savannah-like. We can still find traces of this former forest habitat in some of the art they produce. For example the costume worn with the Kifwebe mask must be entirely made from products originating in the forest from such as bark, pelts fibers etc. Today the Songye mainly live in the savannah but pockets of forest remain in their territory.

The Songye occupy a very large area in the north of the southeastern quadrant of the republic democratic of Congo.

Due to the vastness of the songye territory, it is obvious that regional stylistic, iconic and typological, exist in the ritual art produced. Some of these are the result of cross influences with their immediate neighbors.

NEIGHBORS

To the North of the Songye territory, live the Sungu, Tetela, the western Kusu. In the northwest we will find a few luba chiefdoms. To the west the Luntu, Luba – kassaï Kete and Binji peoples resides; one can even find pockets of Chokwe people in the southwest of Songye territory. To the south of the Songye we find a variety of luba speacking, polities, the same is true, for eastern frontier where in addition to the eastern kusu, we find Luba, Hemba, Kunda, Lumbu and Buyu people. Judging from their

The works are presented in a geographical journey of productions ranging from West to East, both from Gabon to Congo:

* The Fang peoples and related
* The Kwele
* The Mbede-Kota
* The Tsogho, Galwa, Aduma, Vuvi and Teke (Tsaayi)
* The Ngbaka, and Ngbandi Ngombe
* The Mbole, Yela, Metoko, Komo, Jong, Lengola and Kela
* The Lega and Bembe

THE FANG:

THE KWELE: they live on the northern border of the Republic of Congo, and have used a type of mask called Ekuk, they are flat masks, which have incised eyes, often a white face in a heart-shaped nose triangle-shaped eyes and coffee bean. these masks were hung in homes rarely worn during ceremonies, initiation Bwetes worship, their function was to conduct a village to enable forces are beneficial Bwetes capita.

THE KOTA: Living in the eastern part of Gabon, on the border with the Republic of Congo, Kota, include a number of tribes, such as Mahongwe the Sango, the Obamba, and Shamay, who practice the same rituals and shared cultural traits. They probably migrated southward during the 18th, and now live in the valley of the river, Ogonoué in a forest environment. from their economic resources, sutout hunting and agriculture. Kota the past, had the habit of leaving their dead exposed to the elements in the forest. Under the influence of neighboring tribes, they began to bury their cefs and keep their bones (mainly the skull) to place them with

Congo River Exhibition from June 22 to October 3, 2010 - Quai Branly -
Practical information

Date: Tuesday, June 22, 2010
on Sunday, October 3, 2010

Times: Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays from 11h to 19h Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11am to 21pm

Location: East Mezzanine

Fares: Ticket collections

37 Quai Branly
75007 Paris
01 56 61 70 00
Metro: Iena

EXPOSURE:

The Musée du Quai Branly This summer, through 170 documents and 80 major works, a major exhibition devoted to the artistic traditions of Central Africa, including Gabon, Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Real journey of leading the visitor of the northern forests to savannas, South exhibition demonstrates the links between works produced in the regions bordering the Congo River, for various populations of Bantu languages.

Behind the variety of masks and sculptures Fang, Hemba, kweli or kota, the exhibition highlights the major works of Central Africa, in their design, structure and artistic connections that bring them closer.

The three themes of the exhibition, common core to these peoples iconophiles are complementary:

    * Masks and statues with the "heart-shaped face, and ensure the unity and identity of the respective groups;

The group Ashanti are one of the ethnic groups of all Akan in Ghana.

They speak Twi is a dialect of Akan belonging to the Kwa group of languages.
Flag of the Ashanti


Geographical
Empire Asante in Ghana

Asante federation grows in the thirteenth century. Kumasi is the capital . In the nineteenth century, the civilization reached its peak and occupies nearly 70% of modern Ghana.

STRENGTH AND MEASUREMENT

The discovery of "primitive art": an art of strength
Shapes and shape functions
Deities and ancestors
The living wood

Force and Measurement

Develop an aesthetic of black Africa is seen as a risky business in many ways. Is it legitimate to isolate these objects, that today we call art, the general framework of their relations and their cultural constraints? Can we submit to a test that has never existed in the minds of their creators? And can we finally see in this art - if we 'take on this term - a uniform phenomenon, despite the wide variety of both regional and local styles we offer this huge continent, following lengthy Historical developments often poorly understood? Finally, remember that this approach excludes large regions, including Africa white, that is to say the Mediterranean area with its ancient history, the eastern and southern Africa whose pastoral peoples have given rise to cultures almost without images, and finally these hunting societies, which, even in our time have not passed the stage of evolution of prehistoric rock paintings which are the main evidence of an artistic production that appears at various points the continent. Similarly, we must exclude from our contribution to the aesthetics of black African art the old feudal societies, including Benin. Our discussion is therefore limited to large areas farmers, the true cradle of