Michael Shamansky, Bookseller Inc.
Importer of European Publications in the Fine Arts
P.O. Box 3904, Kingston, New York 12402 Phone: 845-331-8519 Email: mshamans@artbooks.com

Item Number: 115496
Title: Afrikanische Tiermasken : African Animal Masks
Author: Hirner, Rene
Price: Not Available
ISBN: 9788836621439
Description: Milano: Silvana, 2011. 28cm., pbk., 68pp., 63 color illus. German-English text. Exhibition held at Kunstmuseum, Heidenheim. Summary: African art is virtually unimaginable without its wide variety of representations of animals. Innumerable show the Black Continent’s abundant animal world and play an important role in the magic rituals of traditional African societies. In fact, African depictions of animals are so fascinating to us Europeans not only because they attest to the close proximity between these peoples and the wildlife around them, but also because the use of animals in mask rituals demonstrates that these creatures are seen as representatives of invisible forces and spirits. This catalogue is devoted more specifically to animal masks and their cultural meanings. It illustrates the enormous stylistic range of African masks, from naturalist depictions to abstract representations, as well as the typical composite masks, which unite the features of multiple animals. The book also sketches the specific meanings individual species of animals have in the imaginations of different African peoples, and it explains why Africans do not consider the lion the king of animals, and why some peoples ascribe particular significance to the cock.

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Michael Shamansky, Bookseller Inc.
P.O. Box 3904, Kingston, New York 12402 US
Phone: 845-331-8519
Fax: 845-331-0852
Email: michael@artbooks.com

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