DJIMINI, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Mali. Mask...

Description

DJIMINI, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Mali
Mask

Wood, pigments

The Djimini (or Jimini) are a farming people whose men's society, "Do" provides much of the village social and political structure and is the main user of the arts. Masked "Do" society dancers appear at initiations, funerals and other rites of passage ceremonies, although because about half the Djimini population is now Muslim, masks tend to appear at more secular events. The Djimini are not well studied and their arts are often confused with those of neighboring people such as the Ligbe and Kulango, and in southern areas, even the Baule, but the strongest influence to be seen in Djimini arts comes from their Senufo neighbors, with whom they have been grouped until recently.

Djimini masks often have a smooth black finish with color accents of red, blue and white, as seen on the present mask. Elongated faces are quite similar to those of Senufo "Kpelie" female masks, showing similar refined features with slitted, downcast eyes, thin noses and small mouths. Ears are small, half-moon forms displaced upwards on the mask edges, while below them are little, projecting, down turned forms on the mask edges that actually are displaced locks of hair, just as they are on Senufo "Kpelie" masks. Facial scars, vertical lines on the forehead, diagonal marks on the cheeks, however, differ from Senufo types. The presence of what might be a beard under the chin is unexplained. Although the tall, curling form on top of the mask is probably a reference to a woman's hairstyle.

Provenance:
The Robert V. Berg Collection

Read more about the Robert V. Berg Collection here.

Height: 15 ¾ inches

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