We

22

Masks and Brotherhoods

based on the idea of permanence: the carved mask. But in the heat of the moment, what spectator is capable of seeing that the face is covered with a mere fabric and not a piece of wood fated later to adorn the shelves of a museum? This notion radically challenges the Western conception of art in comparison to that of Africans. Furthermore, as we will see, most of the big We masks used to rely on the panther for their trappings (skin, claws, fangs, which had an almost sacred value). Mask brotherhoods (Zriklahi and Glake) These brotherhoods play a major role in settling conflicts, by way of the lineages in which they are present (tche in the south; gbanhidjuy in the north). Of course not all of the masks, which are inherited, are present in all lineages, nor in all villages; but one lineage has several, so that, by exchanging, borrowing and visiting between towns, their power can be deployed over a whole area. And since possession of masks entails rank, prestige, and moral and religious authority, they are an eminent means of asserting power. In the interests of efficiency, they are administered by a brotherhood which, since membership is inherited, remains associated with a lineage: known as Zriklahi among the Northern We and Glake among the Southern branch, in those villages on the borderline between the two areas, both words co-exist. The masks can “go out” only after consulting the brotherhood council (with the exception of one, “minor” mask, the so-called “Comedy Beggar” or zroo gla). Gla, the polysemic term most frequently used, designates the institution but also the mask itself, the costume worn by its bearer, the ceremony, and the supernatural power it symbolizes: it is therefore at once a global entity that includes musicians, singers, dancer’s assistants—and a closed class of those who wear the masks, the zo zai or gla blei: the first term is used by everyone in the villages; while the second, meaning literally “person assigned to the mask”, is a code word used in the inner circle of the brotherhood. Since the mask wearers are reputed to have powers, their assignment is kept secret; their identity must not be revealed, even at the time of their death, and a replacement is immediately appointed so as to ensure the continuity of the functions; for the mask, on the other hand, is said to be “eternal”. Indeed, while most masks can be seen by one and all (at least in the ceremony, but not when the wearers are donning them), on the other hand, those performing the crucial religious functions—Koma among the Northern We—must not be seen by gbono klanho (uncircumcised males) or by women. No woman of child-bearing age can approach the sacred enclosure of the masks (kpan), nor can she see them before they are ready. Otherwise she runs the risk of becoming barren, of her menstrual cycle being interrupted; true, this “punishment” is less cruel than that meted out by the Yaure (Boyer 2016, pp. 10–12). But why this ban? Simply because, owing to her fertile state, to her bond with the earth (Zede), she is more exposed to aggressive magic, since the masks, when intervening in funerals, are in direct contact with the forces of death.

Masks and Brotherhoods

23

In the past, the masks were kept away from the village, stored on racks in the “sacred hut” (kingbu) or in a little shack made of branches (tugbu), but for the last several decades, because of thefts, they are wrapped in fabric (to conceal them from prying eyes) and placed in a sack that the lineage headman slides under his bed; shortly before the ceremony, the masks are taken to the sacred clearing (the kpan)—a place connected with the notion of sehin (secret). In this enclosure safe from people’s gaze, surrounded by tall trees, stands the srigbu, a hut where, even in the absence of preparations for ceremonies, the members of the brotherhood gather for their deliberations. It is there that the wearer adjusts his mask, after having stood for a moment, entirely naked, in front of it to prove that he is indeed a man and not a woman in disguise. His appearance, on the edge of the path that leads to the village, is all the more spectacular for that; his assistants also undergo a metamorphosis, their bodies smeared with soot and kaolin, palm fronds around their waist, wrists, ankles and forehead, like nature spirits, and bearing attributes of power: a bundle of feathers, little rattles, lances, clubs. These assistants, the gla ngwohun (criers), are the intermediaries between the sacred realm of the mask and the mundane world of the audience. The mask wearer never expresses himself personally (his voice would be “burning”): he speaks uniquely through the gla ngwohun, or, in Liberia, the go-between; in return, these intermediaries transmit the praises and demands of the villagers. They organize the dressing of the dancer, guide him as he dances, watch out for evil spells that

Fig. 2. Gla klaha (Great Mask), Diaouin, 15 km north of Duékoué (Ivory Coast). Photo Monique Barbier-Mueller, 1989. Fig. 3. Kue (Chimpanzee) with gaping mouth, a zroo gla (Comedy Beggar Masks). Blay (on the border with Liberia, 17 km south of Toulépleu, Ivory Coast). Photo Alain-Michel Boyer, 1974.

22

Masks and Brotherhoods

based on the idea of permanence: the carved mask. But in the heat of the moment, what spectator is capable of seeing that the face is covered with a mere fabric and not a piece of wood fated later to adorn the shelves of a museum? This notion radically challenges the Western conception of art in comparison to that of Africans. Furthermore, as we will see, most of the big We masks used to rely on the panther for their trappings (skin, claws, fangs, which had an almost sacred value). Mask brotherhoods (Zriklahi and Glake) These brotherhoods play a major role in settling conflicts, by way of the lineages in which they are present (tche in the south; gbanhidjuy in the north). Of course not all of the masks, which are inherited, are present in all lineages, nor in all villages; but one lineage has several, so that, by exchanging, borrowing and visiting between towns, their power can be deployed over a whole area. And since possession of masks entails rank, prestige, and moral and religious authority, they are an eminent means of asserting power. In the interests of efficiency, they are administered by a brotherhood which, since membership is inherited, remains associated with a lineage: known as Zriklahi among the Northern We and Glake among the Southern branch, in those villages on the borderline between the two areas, both words co-exist. The masks can “go out” only after consulting the brotherhood council (with the exception of one, “minor” mask, the so-called “Comedy Beggar” or zroo gla). Gla, the polysemic term most frequently used, designates the institution but also the mask itself, the costume worn by its bearer, the ceremony, and the supernatural power it symbolizes: it is therefore at once a global entity that includes musicians, singers, dancer’s assistants—and a closed class of those who wear the masks, the zo zai or gla blei: the first term is used by everyone in the villages; while the second, meaning literally “person assigned to the mask”, is a code word used in the inner circle of the brotherhood. Since the mask wearers are reputed to have powers, their assignment is kept secret; their identity must not be revealed, even at the time of their death, and a replacement is immediately appointed so as to ensure the continuity of the functions; for the mask, on the other hand, is said to be “eternal”. Indeed, while most masks can be seen by one and all (at least in the ceremony, but not when the wearers are donning them), on the other hand, those performing the crucial religious functions—Koma among the Northern We—must not be seen by gbono klanho (uncircumcised males) or by women. No woman of child-bearing age can approach the sacred enclosure of the masks (kpan), nor can she see them before they are ready. Otherwise she runs the risk of becoming barren, of her menstrual cycle being interrupted; true, this “punishment” is less cruel than that meted out by the Yaure (Boyer 2016, pp. 10–12). But why this ban? Simply because, owing to her fertile state, to her bond with the earth (Zede), she is more exposed to aggressive magic, since the masks, when intervening in funerals, are in direct contact with the forces of death.

Masks and Brotherhoods

23

In the past, the masks were kept away from the village, stored on racks in the “sacred hut” (kingbu) or in a little shack made of branches (tugbu), but for the last several decades, because of thefts, they are wrapped in fabric (to conceal them from prying eyes) and placed in a sack that the lineage headman slides under his bed; shortly before the ceremony, the masks are taken to the sacred clearing (the kpan)—a place connected with the notion of sehin (secret). In this enclosure safe from people’s gaze, surrounded by tall trees, stands the srigbu, a hut where, even in the absence of preparations for ceremonies, the members of the brotherhood gather for their deliberations. It is there that the wearer adjusts his mask, after having stood for a moment, entirely naked, in front of it to prove that he is indeed a man and not a woman in disguise. His appearance, on the edge of the path that leads to the village, is all the more spectacular for that; his assistants also undergo a metamorphosis, their bodies smeared with soot and kaolin, palm fronds around their waist, wrists, ankles and forehead, like nature spirits, and bearing attributes of power: a bundle of feathers, little rattles, lances, clubs. These assistants, the gla ngwohun (criers), are the intermediaries between the sacred realm of the mask and the mundane world of the audience. The mask wearer never expresses himself personally (his voice would be “burning”): he speaks uniquely through the gla ngwohun, or, in Liberia, the go-between; in return, these intermediaries transmit the praises and demands of the villagers. They organize the dressing of the dancer, guide him as he dances, watch out for evil spells that

Fig. 2. Gla klaha (Great Mask), Diaouin, 15 km north of Duékoué (Ivory Coast). Photo Monique Barbier-Mueller, 1989. Fig. 3. Kue (Chimpanzee) with gaping mouth, a zroo gla (Comedy Beggar Masks). Blay (on the border with Liberia, 17 km south of Toulépleu, Ivory Coast). Photo Alain-Michel Boyer, 1974.

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1-2 | 3-4

1

1-2 | 3-4

8 | 9 - 10

13

15 - 16

13

15 - 16

108

Plate Entries

109

Pl. 1. Ji gla (Sacred Mask), Kran Wood, iron, fabric, and fibre. H. 26 cm. Former Hubert Goldet Collection. Private collection. Owing to a form similar to that of the Dan kaogle (like the piece collected in 1936 by Henri Labouret), this mask is a wonderful testimony to the proximity of the two groups (at least from the sculptural standpoint): same composition based on the connection and opposition between the high, smooth forehead (merely divided by a vertical axis) and the open mouth revealing pointed teeth; same slit-like eyes at the intersection of the two parts (forehead/open mouth)—when the dancer pushed back the mask slightly, he could look out through the mouth (as it is not always the case: most of the time, the dancer could see through the eyes).

Pl. 2. Gban-he or Kpan-hee (Baboon) Wood. H. 18 cm. Private collection. Courtesy of Alain de Monbrison. Can a scream be carved? On this Kran mask (We of Liberia), the scream creates absolute absences. The gaping hole becomes a plastic value: triangles for eyes, circle to evoke the jaw of a zre, this monster takes on the appearance of a baboon. The paradoxically constructive dynamic voids create a tension, reinforcing the role of this mask: watching and controlling.

Pl. 3. Kpepo bla (Herald Mask) Wood, animal hair, human hair. H. 30 cm. Private collection. A subtle series of nested ovals unfolds below the high, domed forehead: eyelids, eyes and mouth are inscribed within and around a larger oval chiselled like a half-mask, an eye-mask, a mask within a mask, its dark surface highlighted by a lighter layer of kaolin. Unlike other masks, this one still has some of its ornaments: hair necklace, jangling iron hoops and brass bell to reactivate the supernatural beings.

Pl. 4. Ble (or blœ) gla (Song Mask) Wood, metal, and fabric. H. 32 cm. Acquired in situ by Jean Houzeau de Lehaie. Private collection, Brussels. This mask is morphologically similar to those of the Dan but with more decisive We features than the two masks that follow: bulging eyes; swollen, flared nostrils; mouth spanning the face; big teeth (reminiscent of the attention once given them, including their filing). It has lost the elements distinguishing it even more from Dan creations: vestment, headdress, heavy necklace of little bells).

Pl. 9. Dehe gla (Dancer-Entertainer Mask) Wood, fabric, metal, and paint. H. 31 cm. Acquired in situ in 1954. Former Roland Pucci Collection (1924–1984). Courtesy of Yann Ferrandin, Paris. This mask, characteristic of We art, offers a synthesis of their style in an almost Cubist layering of different volumes (superposed lip triangles, hollow cylinders, half-spheres, rectangles) celebrating three categories of superposed gazes: eye-slits, incised almond-shaped sealed eyes, and protruding cheekbones carved as false tubular eyes.

Pl. 10. Tehe gla (Bravery Mask) Wood, metal, fabric, and fur. H. 38.1 cm. The Cleveland Museum of Art, gift of Katherine C. White, inv. 1971. 294. The We claim that such a mask used to be framed with real panther fangs. Since the disappearance of this animal, artificial wooden appendages have been used. The strongly domed skull and forehead hang like a helmet over the face to give it authority, superiority, and prestige. Rare innovation: the metal teeth seem to be chewing a piece of fabric clogging the mouth, which curiously imitates a tongue.

Pl. 11. Tehe gla (Bravery Mask) Wood. H. 36 cm. Former Nathalie Chaboche and Guy Porré Collection; The Donald and Adele Hall Collection, Kansas City. With only one iron eyelet left on the head (to attach the headdress), and small lateral pegs (for the ornaments), purged of the proliferations that amplified the face, this mask is now compelling for its visual impact that underscores the We’s major preference: striking projections of forms into space, boldly thrusting forehead and bow-like nose, oval turgescent eyes, triangular cheeks, and fleshy semi-circular lips.

Pl. 12. Tehe gla (Bravery Mask) Wood. H. 31 cm. Former Stéphen Chauvet Collection (1885–1950). Private collection. This Bravery mask shows the singularity of We art—despite Grebo influences. Masterfully carved out with an adze, it is an magnificent work of art, with the contrast between its cavities (in one hollow, a visor permitting observation through a pillbox spy-hole with rectangular eyes) and its projections of provocative volumes (nose flanked by four stoppered eye-cylinders, a brow pediment and the superimposed triangular planes of the mouth).

Pl. 5. Zroo gla (Comedy Beggar Mask) Wood. H. 27 cm. Former Karel Geirlandt Collection (1919–1989); Lucien Bilinelli Collection, Brussels/Milan. A seminal piece from the Northern We (called Wobe by French soldiers), this mask from the Fakobli region inspired the Dan living to the west—and not the contrary as is often said. The oval face, with its rounded forehead and surface barred from the nostrils to the temples by customary callosities, displays prominences: triangular nose and oval eyes with scarified eyelids that resemble jaws.

Pl. 6. Ble (or blœ) gla (Song Mask) Wood, metal, and fabric. H. 21 cm. Acquired in situ by Pieter Jan Vandenhoute, 1939. Ethnographic Collections of Ghent University, inv. IV 415. This mask plays a prominent role for the We when the wearer pushed it back on his head to sing praises at a funeral or a feast. Its oval shape, and high, rounded forehead with its typical vertical callosity, reveal a clear visual and artistic convergence with Dan masks. P. J. Vandenhoute bought this mask in 1939 in Zigro, village of the We from the Glokwion clan; and in his dissertation he presented a splendid study of the interplay of influences in such contact zones.

Pl. 7. Ble zri or ble gla (Song Mask). Wood, brass, braids of human hair, and paint. H. 29.2 cm. Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin College, Ohio, USA; R. T. Miller, Jr. Fund, 1955, inv. 1955.43. Found among the Northern We, this type of face considered to be female, with its scarifications, presents analogies with Dan creations. The rings of kaolin around the convex eyes recall the facial paintings—on the cheekbones, in the hollows of the cheeks, eyes sockets and on the bridge of the nose—of the girls at the end of the excision ceremonies (indeed, this mask appears at that time but also at circumcisions, marriages, and funerals).

Pl. 8. Kpepo gla (Herald Mask) or ble gla (Song Mask) Wood, brass, human hair, and paint. H. 31 cm. Private collection, Brussels. Resembling the ble gla by its form, headdress and necklace of little bells and tiny rattles for waking the supernatural beings from their slumber, this kpepo gla announces the arrival of the “Great Mask” (gla klaha), which it precedes and accompanies. Against the black background, the range of colours (white, carmine, blue outline) announces the polychromatic possibilities of the industrial paints preferentially used on the masks for the last fifty years.

Pl. 13. Nyonkula (Shrine Mask). Wood, strings, teeth, metal, pearls. H. 34 cm. Javier Peres and Benoît Wolfrom Collection. A beautiful achievement of a fusion of styles among the We of the North and the Dan, this mask is in function among these two peoples. It shows also a fusion of attire: animal teeth (bush), metal rings (strength); pearls (prestige). Collected by the Martinican forester and timber merchant Roger Bédiat, based in Ivory Coast since 1924, and never worn (the eyes are not pierced), this nyonkula, to honour the ancestors, evoked a “being of the forest” (in the We language: nyon means “being”and kula “deep forest”).

Pl. 14. Tehe gla (Bravery Mask) Wood, animal skin, fibre, animal hair, human hair, brass and iron. H. 40 cm. Musée Barbier-Mueller, Geneva, inv. 1003-34. Frequently found among the We today, this mask associates three animals: the encircling wooden teeth evoke the fangs of the panther; the hair around the face suggests the buffalo; the mouth is meant to recall that of the crocodile (the hinged lower jaw was supposed to inspire fear—or laughter, nowadays—when it clacked). By contrast, the brass tacks link this mask to the social world.

Pl. 15. Tehe gla (Bravery Mask) Wood, metal, and cartridges. H. 37.1 cm. Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of African Art, Washington, D.C. Gift of Emil Arnold, inv. 65-8-9. In the past this mask (whose bearer was said to be “immune to bullets”) participated in combat, exhorting the men. It still exists, with the same warlike ornamentation, but as a controlling mask. Echoing the eyes appropriately called paen djiri (cartridge eyes), the profusion of expended ammunition radiating from around the face is meant to capture maximal forces, to reinforce the masks power and aggressiveness.

Pl. 16. Gban-he (Baboon) Wood, animal hair, fibre, and fur. H. 26 cm. Musée Barbier-Mueller, Geneva, inv. 1008-16. This composite mask combines the attributes of various animals: baboon (gaping mouth, overhanging brow), antelope (wooden horns), snake (a snakeskin draped over the forehead). An artificial tusk is inserted through the septum to reinforce the impression of pugnacity and avoid any suggestion of facetiousness. Originally the face was framed with even more animal hair, so as to strike fear into the members of the audience and inspire respect.