11 August 2017
Is there a single ancient civilization that did not create and utilize baskets? It doesn’t seem so, which means basketry may be one of the oldest art forms in human history. Unfortunately, the natural fibers historically used to create baskets commonly degrade over time, making it difficult for historical samples to be preserved. Yet, there is proof of basketry from ancient times. For exa...
14 July 2017
Generally speaking, what is commonly referred to as African art or traditional African art is artwork from sub Saharan countries produced by indigenous cultures free of Christian, Islamic or European influences. Art made by European people in southern Africa, for instance, would not be considered traditional African art; neither would artwork by renowned contemporary African artists such as Ibr...
23 June 2017
In the Kuba Kingdom, men and women work side by side to create highly symbolic cloth known simply worldwide as Kuba cloth. The cloth is fabricated from the leaf of the raffia palm tree, the plant with the longest leaves in the world. The transformation from leaf to textile is easy to understand, but difficult to execute. Discarded leaves are gathered, dried, softened, dye...
09 June 2017
As one of the most important officials of the royal court, the Okyeame holds a special form of court regalia when he speaks. Known formally as an Okyeame Poma, the more common name is simply a "linguist’s staff." It is a carved work of art with a detachable finial. Some might say it is the equivalent of a king’s scepter. While the development of the staff was directly influence...
11 May 2017
In traditional African art, which generally refers to the art of sub-Saharan Africa, the concept of motherhood and maternity is a theme surfacing in just about every tribal group. Although most societies in Africa could be viewed as paternalistic or male dominated, artfully rendered maternity figures idealizing and glorifying women were commonplace. Yet, the purpose of this art was not simply t...
23 December 2016
Even the smallest of objects can sing loudly when placed in a chorus with like objects. For example, consider miniature bronze figures from Africa and India. Invariably, they were cast using the lost wax process. Lost wax casting insures a piece is one-of-a-kind since the original wax sculpture and the mold are destroyed in the creation of the finished sculpture. In other words, no two pieces a...
13 October 2016
Globalization – the term describing free trade, cultural integration, vanishing borders and accessible communication throughout the world – is surprisingly modern. Coined in 1983 by Theodore Levitt, a marketing professor at the Harvard Business School, it considers the exponential influence of advancements in technology and the expansion of the internet. It’s hard to belie...
07 October 2016
Our earliest ancestors lived much like wild beasts, scavenging and hunting when they were hungry. They also walked for miles in search of food and water and then left when either ran out. Revolutionary changes in human behavior came about when bright souls across the world realized settled life was possible through farming and domesticating animals. They also realized pottery vessels could...
23 September 2016
The U.S. presidential election is heading toward a finale and two faces are on newspapers and television screens all over the world. Will Donald Trump become the most unconventional and unpredictable U.S. president the world has ever known? Or will Hillary Clinton make history as the first woman President of the United States? The concept of men exclusively holding positions of power has r...
03 August 2016
In the late 1980s when videocassette recorders (VCRs) started making their way into Ghana, a small cottage industry developed called the ‘mobile cinema.’ The industry was composed of entrepreneurs who were armed with three tools – a TV, VCR and a gas powered portable generator. In the evening they would travel to remote villages or set up an itinerant theater in underserv...