Knowra African art African art African art encompasses visual works made by peoples across Africa and its diasporas, from ancient objects to contemporary practices. Its forms, materials, and meanings vary widely across regions and histories.
African art history : The study of visual production across Africa and its diasporas through time. It traces the distinct histories behind the continent’s varied artistic traditions.
African masks : Carved or assembled face coverings used in varied African ceremonies, performances, and social practices. Masks often become meaningful through performance rather than display alone.
Nok culture : An ancient culture of central Nigeria known especially for terracotta sculptures and ironworking. Nok terracottas are among the earliest well-known sculptural traditions in sub-Saharan Africa.
Primitivism : A European modernist tendency that appropriated non-Western art as a source of supposedly primitive forms. It often detached African objects from their makers, histories, and original purposes.
Afrofuturism : A cultural movement combining African diasporic histories with science fiction, technology, and imagined futures. Artists use Afrofuturism to connect African and diasporic visual histories with future-making.
African traditional religion : A broad term for indigenous religious systems practiced by African peoples, with diverse beliefs and rituals. Religious practices shape the uses and meanings of many artworks.
Yoruba art : The visual arts of Yoruba peoples, including sculpture, beadwork, textiles, and architecture. Yoruba works connect artistic form with kingship, religion, and communal life.
Kingdom of Benin : A West African kingdom centered in present-day southern Nigeria, renowned for its court arts and political history. Its royal workshops produced works that shaped global perceptions of African art.
Western art canon : The institutions and histories that have defined a selective body of works as central to Western art. Its separation from African art reflects unequal systems of classification and recognition.
Postcolonialism : The study of cultural, political, and social consequences of colonialism and its aftermath. Postcolonial approaches examine how power shaped the production and interpretation of African art.
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