The Angra do Heroísmo Museum opens an exhibition on "Traditional African Masks" next Saturday, October 22, at 3 PM. It will be open to the public at the Dacosta Room until January 29.
Offered or acquired through direct exchange in wedding, funeral or youth emancipation rituals, but never bought, the African masks on display at this exhibition belong to the private collection of Pedro Lima. He took the opportunity while working as football coach to collect the pieces that portray his contact with numerous communities in African countries.
The exhibition features masks from many countries: Burkina Faso, Mali, Benin, Niger, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, Congo, Ethiopia, Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar, Togo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, South Africa, Zambia, Swaziland, Malawi, Lesotho, Senegal and Gambia.
African ritual and ceremonial masks usually have a spiritual meaning, being used in ritual dances as well as in social and religious events. Moreover, they are also one of the elements of African cultural heritage that has influenced European and Western art, especially in the 20th century, under the artistic production developed by the mentors of the Cubist, Fauvist and Expressionist movements.
African masks are carved in wood and painted; some of which even contain metal, ivory and mother of pearl inlays. They facilitate the incorporation of spirits, providing its user with the possibility to capture the life energy existing in nature or emanating from humans or animals at the time of their death, redistributing it on the basis of the common good of the community.
The opening of this exhibition will be followed by a paper to be delivered by Assunção Melo titled as "The Discovery of the Other," addressing the meeting of the western world with exoticism and how it became a theme in art.
With this exhibition, the Angra do Heroísmo Museum closes in 2017 the programme for the education of audiences in Contemporary Art, designated as "Fal'Arte," which has been running since 2014.
The Regional Directorate for Culture informs that this and other events may be consulted in the Cultural Agenda of CulturAçores Portal at the following address: www.culturacores.azores.gov.pt.