The Language of Beauty in African Art at Kimbell Art Museum

Fang: Mvai culture; Gabon
*Male Reliquary Guardian Figure* (*Eyema Byeri*)
19th–early 20th century
Wood, beads, and pigment
Dallas Museum of Art, The Eugene and Margaret McDermott Art Fund, Inc., 2000.3.MCD
Image courtesy of the Dallas Museum of Art

The Language of Beauty in African Art

April 3, 2022 — July 31, 2022

Presenting over two hundred works of art, The Language of Beauty in African Art emphasizes concepts of beauty through the languages and perspectives of indigenous African communities. By exploring the original words and local evaluations of beauty associated with traditional or historical works, visitors can discover both their meanings and functions—revealing how art informed and reflected life in sub-Saharan Africa in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This impressive assemblage of captivating masks, powerful figures, masterfully carved sculptures, and exquisitely crafted prestige objects is drawn from public and private collections around the world and is presented together for the first time at the Kimbell.

Learn More

Click the image below to watch Visions of Virtue: The Aesthetics of African Art.

Kimbell Art Museum

3333 Camp Bowie Blvd, Fort Worth, TX 76107

Exhibition Highlights

Senufo: Senambele culture; Côte d’Ivoire *Helmet Mask* (*Kponyungo*)
19th–early 20th century
Wood and pigment
The Art Institute of Chicago, African and Amerindian Art Purchase Fund, 1963.842

Baule culture; Côte d’Ivoire
*Female Figure*
19th century
Wood, pigment, glass beads, gold beads, fiber, and sacrificial materials
National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, museum purchase, 85-15-2

Olówè of Ìsè (c. 1869–1938) *Veranda Post* (*Òpó Ògògá*) Yòrùbá: Èkìtì culture; Ìkéré, Nigeria 1910–14
Wood and pigment
The Art Institute of Chicago, Major Acquisitions Centennial Fund, 1984.550

Yòrùbá: Yewa culture; Nigeria *Dance Staff* (*Oshe Sàngó*) Early 20th century
Wood and pigment
The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Richard Faletti, the Faletti Family Collection, 2003.177

Southern Nguni; South Africa / Southern Sotho; Lesotho
*Pipe*
19th century
Wood, pigment, and iron
National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, museum purchase, 89-14-16

Chokwe culture; Angola
*Female Face Mask* (*Mwana Pwo or Pwo*)
19th–early 20th century
Wood, pigment, metal, and fiber
Private collection
Courtesy of Schweizer Premodern, New York

Attributed to Si of Nyor Diaple (c. 1900–1980) Northern Dan culture; Liberia
*Ceremonial Spoon* (*Wakemia* or *Wunkirmian*)
20th century
Wood, pigment, fiber, and metal
Private collection, New York
Photo © John Bigelow Taylor

Chokwe culture; Angola
*Male Figure* (Identified as *Chibinda Ilunga*)
19th century
Wood, pigment, and fiber
Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, purchase by the Kimbell Art Foundation, 1978, AP 1978.95

Mbuun culture; Democratic Republic of the Congo
*Anthropomorphic Cup*
19th–early 20th century
Wood and pigment
MAS|Museum aan de Stroom, Antwerp, purchase, 1920, AE.0281
Photo by Bart Huysmans and Michel Wuyts

Yòrùbá culture; Ifè, Nigeria
*Head (possibly a King)*
12th–15th century
Terracotta with traces of pigment and mica Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, purchase by the Kimbell Art Foundation, 1994, AP 1994.04

Hemba: Niembo culture; Democratic Republic of the Congo
*Male Figure* (*Singiti*)
19th–early 20th century
Wood and pigment
Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, purchase by the Kimbell Art Foundation, 1979, AP 1979.03

Bamana culture; Baninko region, Mali
*Pair of Headdresses* (*Ciwara Kunw*) Mid-19th–early 20th century
Wood, pigment, metal, brass tacks, and grasses The Art Institute of Chicago, Ada Turnbull Hertle Endowment, 1965.6–7

Songye culture; Democratic Republic of the Congo
*Four-Horn Community Power Figure* 19th–early 20th century
Wood, pigment, copper, metal, glass beads, raffia, antelope horns, goat horn, and civet hide
Dallas Museum of Art, The Eugene and Margaret McDermott Art Fund, Inc., 2014.4.1.McD

Baule culture; Côte d’Ivoire
*Female Face Mask* (*Ndoma*)
Late 19th–early 20th century
Wood, pigment, and copper alloy
The Art Institute of Chicago, Ada Turnbull Hertle Endowment, 1988.309

Baule culture; Côte d’Ivoire
*Monkey Figure*
19th–early 20th century
Wood, sacrificial materials, and cloth
Private collection, New York
Photo © John Bigelow Taylor

Installation view of "Crest Mask (Tungunga)" 19th century Bamum; Cameroon Wood and pigment Collection of Laura and John Arnold, Houston Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "Two-Headed Dog Figure (Nkisi Nkondi Mbwa or Nkisi Kozo)" 19th century Kongo: Yombe; possibly Democratic Republic of the Congo Wood, pigment, metal, and resin Private collection. Courtesy of Galerie Bernard Dulon, Paris Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "The Language of Beauty in African Art." Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "Shoulder Mask (D’mba)" 19th to early 20th century Baga; Guinea Wood, pigment, iron, and copper tacks Dragonfly Collection, Garance Primat, Switzerland Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "The Language of Beauty in African Art." Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "Cup" 19th to early 20th century Mbuun; Democratic Republic of the Congo Wood and pigment MAS | Museum aan de Stroom, Antwerp, purchase, 1920, AE.0281 Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "Helmet Mask (Epa Jagunjagun)" 19th to early 20th century Yoruba: probably Oye-Ekiti; Nigeria Wood, iron, nails, fiber, and sacrificial materials The Art Institute of Chicago, Gift of Richard Faletti, the Faletti Family Collection, 2000.314 Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "The Language of Beauty in African Art." Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "Crest Mask" Attributed to Etim Abassi Ekpenyong (active 20th century?) 20th century Efut: Lower Cross River region; Nigeria Wood, antelope hide, and metal Collection of Toby and Barry Hecht, Bethesda, Maryland Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "The Language of Beauty in African Art." Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "Figural Staff (Ogo Esu)" 19th to early 20th century Yoruba; Nigeria Wood, pigment, metal, leather, fibers, nuts, and cowrie shells Collection of Herbert R. and Paula Molner, Chicago Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "Half-Helmet Mask (Agbogho Mmuo)" Early 20th century Igbo; Nigeria Wood and pigment Dierking Collection, Zurich Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "Bowstand (Lupanda or Luhanda)" 19th century Luba; Democratic Republic of the Congo Wood, pigment, and iron MAS | Museum aan de Stroom, Antwerp, purchase, AE.0772

Installation view of "Headdress (Sogoni Kun)" 19th to early 20th century Bamana: Bougouni Region; Mali Wood The Menil Collection, Houston, X 3005 Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

Installation view of "The Language of Beauty in African Art." Photo by Robert LaPrelle, Kimbell Art Museum

News 9, Exhibitions 2Editorial TeamMay 22, 2022Art of the Ancestors, Steven G. Alpert, Asian Art, Island Southeast Asian Art, Oceanic Art, Asiatica, Ethnographica, Ethnographic Art, Art Collection, Fine Art, Primitive Art, Indonesian Art, Tribal Art, Eyes of the Ancestors, Dr. Reimar Schefold