African Art

The african art depends on the traditinal behaviour of the people, food, clothing, dabce etc also it is away of appreciating or putting more value to thier culture norms.
The African art collection has now moved to the first floor, where an updated selection of objects has been reinstalled with a fresh design. The new display of works allows visitors to look at the collection from a multitude of angles, deepen their understanding of the rich and varied art traditions of the African continent, and appreciate the aesthetic power of the artworks. It juxtaposes well-known cornerstones of the collection with rarely shown works, reflecting on their materiality, surface treatment, iconography, original function, or specific historical context.

One of the works on view in the reinstalled gallery is a miniature bocio figure. It is carved from wood and wrapped tightly in a fiber rope. Bocio literally means “empowered cadaver”; these figures are related to the Vodun religion of West Africa, whose followers believe in mysterious forces or powers that govern the world and people’s lives. Vodun sculptures are thought to protect humans but also empower them and help them achieve their goals. Cords and binding feature prominently in bocios and possibly refer to the violence and trauma that West Africans suffered for centuries through the slave trade.