African Art and Architecture

Article Outline

Introduction; The Cultural Role of African Art; Materials, Forms, and Styles; Architecture in Africa; Regional Differences; Influence of African Art on Western Art

Influence of Religion

Much of the art and architecture of eastern Africa is religious in nature. Islam is the main religion in the northern part of the region, and mosques to house worshipers are a major architectural form there. Mosques in eastern Africa tend to be simpler in design than those in western Africa. Instead of minarets, eastern African mosques feature an open flight of stairs that leads to a flat roof from which the call to prayer is issued. Inside the mosque, columns in one, two, or three rows divide the space into rectangular chambers.

Ethiopia adopted Christianity as a state religion as early as the 4th century. In the 12th century, the king had 11 churches carved out of solid rock in the ancient capital city of Lalibela. Some of these red volcanic rock structures were carved below ground level and encircled by deep trenches, while others were attached to surrounding rock outcroppings. A network of tunnels and narrow passageways connected them. Wall paintings decorate the interior of the rock-cut Church of St. George at Lalibela; some depict the life of St. George, who is said to have supervised the church’s construction. According to legend, his horse left a hoof print that is still visible in the courtyard of the church.

Indigenous African religions have had a greater influence on art objects than they have had on architecture, since most of these religions do not require buildings for prayer. Instead, they require statues, masks, or other objects for use in rituals of initiation, marriage, and death. The Chewa of Malawi, for example, developed a large repertoire of masks, many associated with male initiation. In many towns and villages, governing associations or councils were responsible for maintaining social order and a good relationship with ancestor spirits; they used art to help achieve these goals.

The Mijikenda of Kenya carved wooden posts called vigangu in honor of the dead. The posts were erected to keep important men of the past in continual contact with current male elders. Groups in Ethiopia, Sudan, Tanzania, and Madagascar created similar post-shaped funerary sculpture in a variety of styles. In some cases these sculptures were erected on the graves of important people; in others they served as memorials, standing in groups away from the graveyard itself.

Nomadic Herders

A large number of peoples in eastern Africa have a seminomadic way of life, dependent on herding but with some reliance on settled farming villages. Among them are the Somali of Somalia, the Turkana of Tanzania, and the Masai of Kenya and Tanzania. Poetry is often said to be the primary art form of the northern Somali nomads, but the visual arts are represented by a number of items that can be easily transported, including finely carved wooden headrests, baskets, and a variety of decorated wooden vessels. The Turkana are noted for their headrests, wooden drinking vessels, and beadwork.

Beads play a major role in elaborate systems of body art among the Turkana, Masai, and other nomadic groups. Specific beadwork patterns combine with aspects of dress, hairstyle, jewelry, and in some cases body paints to distinguish ethnic groups from one another. More significantly, these adornments mark differences in gender, age, and status within each group. Male dress and hairstyles may mark progress from uninitiated youth to warrior to elder; they also indicate specific successes in war or hunting. Women’s styles may indicate stages of initiation, marriage, number and status of children, or widowhood.

Southern Africa

Southern Africa encompasses Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Lesotho, and South Africa. The region is home to some of the oldest art in Africa, although it largely lacks the strong artistic traditions found elsewhere in Africa. In Namibia, a few images of animals painted on rock slabs were found within caves and have been reliably dated to 25,500 bc. These are by far the oldest surviving record of artistic activity on the African continent. Another important southern site is Great Zimbabwe, a city-state that flourished from the 12th to 15th centuries. Among its remarkable artifacts are large soapstone bird sculptures that most likely date from the early 15th century. Seven terracotta heads, known as the Lydenburg heads, date from much earlier—about 520.

Lydenburg Heads

The Lydenburg heads were uncovered from the site of an early mixed farming village in the Lydenburg valley of the eastern Transvaal region. Pits at the site also contained animal bones, broken pottery, beads, and metal ornaments. No similar heads have been found elsewhere, but large numbers of smaller modeled figures from other sites in the region indicate a tradition of pottery sculpture. The heads, which once were painted, are hollow and have modeled facial features and bands of incised decoration around wide necks. Archaeologists at present can only speculate on the purpose of these small heads. However, initiation rites in southern Africa commonly make use of small pottery figurines. Only two of the heads are large enough to have served as helmet-masks; the others have small holes on either side of the neck that may have served to attach the heads to some structure. Small animal figures appear on the crown of the two large heads.

Beadwork

Beadwork created by Shona, Zulu, Xhosa, and Ndebele women ranks as the strongest of more recent artistic traditions in southern Africa. Beads are used to make necklaces, headbands, bracelets, and leg ornaments, and to decorate aprons, loin covers, belts, and blankets. Beadwork patterns serve not only as decoration, but also as a means of communication, signaling the wearer’s rank, wealth, stage in life, or profession. Among the Thembu, a subgroup of the Xhosa, a girl who likes a boy will give him a headband. If he accepts, a relationship is established and other beaded gifts follow.