Abidjan | Grand Bassam, Côte d‟Ivoire www.KACHILE.com
COLORS OF IVORIAN ART illustrated introduction to the art of Côte d‟Ivoire
Copyright © Kachile
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Introduction The vibrant batiks, remarkable oil paintings, striking tableware, and the ceremonial masks we present to you are the result of decades of technical training, artistic research, and professional growth. The craftsmanship, technical skills and traditions of rite, passage and ceremony have carefully been passed down through many generations. Kachile‟s local craftsmen and women continue in their forefathers‟ traditions, yet fuse their work and talent with exciting new influences from other cultures and other spheres of art. Thanks to a significant inflow of immigrants coming from many neighbouring countries, artists and artisans successfully absorbed, and then integrated these social changes into their heritage to diversify their customs. Their work today is the result of a delightful yet complex evolution of ancient customs, rituals, beliefs, and values that make up the flourishing art scene of modern West Africa.
Côte d‟Ivoire was once called the “jewel of West Africa” for its thriving economy, peaceful integration of immigrants, and lack of ethnic tensions, representing a model for the whole African continent. This has greatly benefited the growth and diversity of the Ivorian art scene over time and still does. Have a look at the thriving local art scene and come visit!
We offer our customers the highest level of authenticity. All the products we present are entirely handmade and as such are certified by the Côte d‟Ivoire National Office of Arts and Crafts. Kachile‟s cooperatives, numerous workshops, and artisanal centres are located in Côte d‟Ivoire, a veritable artistic melting pot of West African arts with Grand Bassam being the major hub. Kachile strives for the preservation and continued celebration of local arts. We adhere to and appreciate these local traditions. Our artists and craftspeople work in their own workshops, developing their own talents and bringing individual quirks and styles not found in large factories. They use locally sourced materials and guarantee environmentally sound practices.
Insight into Ivorian Masks
Ethno
With many mystical and supernatural interpretations, mask culture has a long tradition in West Africa. Every mask holds a different and intricate meaning and each one is used to represent a different spirit. Often a mask is so abound with energy and spiritual representation that before it can be worn by someone else, a transformation ritual must be affected whereby the force and responsibility of the mask is truly transposed into the new mask bearer.
MASKS
Mask history is both mysterious and gripping, going back to a time when people were living together in small village communities. People‟s lives were mainly limited to the villages that they were born in; knowledge of, and communication with, neighboring villages was greatly restricted. For the villager in this time the spirits, which were commonly believed to be living in the „sacred forests‟ surrounding the villages, were the only means to get help, health, or protection. The number and diversity of spirits is as varied as the many reasons and problems for which they were contacted and in some places today spirits are still called up. Every spirit has its own unique purpose and each performs a defined societal role. In accordance with tradition each spirit chooses one human representative. Inspired by the spirit, the chosen person carves and creates a mask to represent the power of their own special genie force. In addition, every mask is combined with particular clothing. Often the mask and its accompanying costume are hidden and guarded in a secret place. During the traditional ceremonies, the spirits‟ chosen representative enters a kind of trance and it is said that the spirit moves into the mask bearer‟s body. Traditional ceremonies always consist of three different elements: the mask itself including the particular clothing worn with the mask; traditional African music; and traditional dances.
Traditional view of Wê mask
As already mentioned each mask is assigned to and worn by only one particular person, this particular person is not allowed to disclose his or her identity to the other members of the community. When one of the mask bearers dies, the spirit leaves their body and chooses another person which will be the future representative of this supernatural force. The occasions for these traditional ceremonies range from joyful events, to funerals, to fertility requests, or the attunement for war. And even though the culture of masks did become commercial to a degree, due to the expansion of tourism and other such factors, many villages still regularly conduct these traditional ceremonies. In the following pages you will find Kachile‟s collection of masks, showcasing the main Ivorian ethnic groups: Baoulé, Sénoufo and Gouro.
Baoulé The Baoulé are Côte d‟Ivoire‟s largest ethnic group, comprising about 23% of the Ivorian population, and are part of the Akan group, located in Central East area. Baoulé masks depict human faces; they are worn exclusively by males even though their designs are typically narrow and are feminine looking. In comparison to masks of other ethnicities, which are often anthropozoomorphic meaning that they are adorned by animal elements. The faces of Baoulé masks are mainly decorated with traditional hairstyles.
CI01A-02CAL-008A 35 cm | acajou | 45 €
CI01A-02CAL-010A 57 cm | emea | 309 €
CI01A-02CAL-018A 37 cm | baya | 35 €
CI01A-02CAL-025A 58 cm | acajou | 179 €
CI01A-02CAL-004A 33 cm | rubber tree | 35 €
CI01A-02CAL-022A 35 cm | emea | 35 €
Scarifications, mainly found on cheekbones and foreheads, are one of the main characteristics to distinguish Baoulé masks. A scar in Baoulé culture is both a sign of beauty and a tool for identification. In the past, the Baoulé people used to mark babies by scaring their faces. This served to identify the familial background of people during times when passports were much less common.
Sénoufo The Sénoufo‟s territory extends across three countries – present-day Côte d‟Ivoire, Mali and Burkina Faso. However, the largest part of the Sénoufo people and culture is in Northern Côte dÍvoire around Korhogo, - the Sénoufo capital. The Sénoufo is one of the oldest ethnicities of Côte d‟Ivoire, for whom agriculture has always been the most important activity. In former times, this ethnicity had been divided into two social groups – farmers and craftsmen. Marriage between these groups was strictly prohibited.
CI01A-02CAL-049A 40 cm | baya | 35 €
CI01A-02CAL-048A 55 cm | acajou | 179 €
CI01A-02CAL-046A 44 cm | acajou | 45 €
CI01A-02CAL-050A 40 cm | acajou | 79 €
An important symbol for the Sénoufo group is the hornbill. This tropical bird is characterized by a huge, downward-curved beak, according to the tradition, the founder of the Sénoufo people. This mythically bird is said to live in the holy forests and symbolizes fertility. Depicted in varying shapes, it is an often-used element of Sénoufo handicraft. Similar to the features of Baoulé masks it also has a protruding forehead and facial scarring.
CI01A-02CAL-051A 60 cm | baya | 79 €
Gouro In North-Western Côte d‟Ivoire Gouro is one of the most important ethnic groups. In Gouro culture masks represent the spirits, called Yu, which are living in their holy forests. The masks‟ faces are usually colored with bright paints in primary colors. They are typically slight, narrow and feminine, characterized by almond-shaped eyes, long nose, small mouth and pursed lips; these kind of masks with these attractive female features are called Gu which represent the Gouro female ideal. Gouro masks are very popular, even in non-African countries, because of their colorful and adorned appearance.
CI01A-02CAL-035A 74 cm | emea | 55 €
CI01A-02CAL-057A 30 cm | emea | 55 €
CI01A-02CAL-031A 59 cm | emea | 55 €
CI01A-02CAL-036A 71 cm | emea | 55 €
CI01A-02CAL-029A 80 cm | emea | 55 €
Artisanal
Batik Technique
There are various traditional techniques that are used by the Ivorian masters to create and color cloth. The techniques employed have the advantage of creating unique designs.
DECORATIVE PANELS
Among the many techniques taken up by Ivorian craftsmen and women, the following ones are of particular importance in creating authentic Ivorian cloths: knotting; tie-dying; and popular batik methods. Another is the Sénoufo-rooted Korhogo decorated fabrics whose striking geometrical and mythological features are the specialty of artisans living in the north of Côte d‟Ivoire and inspired Picasso when he worked in Korhogo. The batik method, which is one of the traditional techniques of coloring cloths, in particular cotton, consists of first covering the cloth with wax all over, allowing the wax to dry, and then afterwards breaking off the wax by squashing the cloth in your hands. After, all the cloth is dipped into the paint; the paint colors the little parts where the wax is broken. Afterwards the artisans repeat the process by using another color. One always begins with the lightest color and the whole process is finished with the darkest shade. In order to draw pictures on the batik a similar method is employed of covering some parts of the cloth with wax and then coloring the whole cloth. Remarkably, the batik technique is not as popular in the rest of the African continent, which saw Côte d‟Ivoire specialize in this traditional art to bring their skills to unprecedented levels of excellence. The reputation of their masterpieces is nowadays unrivaled worldwide. Another traditional coloring method is called ‘nouage’, sometimes known as tie-dying or knotting in English. The nouage-technique is the method of creating patterns by using strings and putting them around a rolled up piece of cloth. After putting the whole cloth into the paint and cutting the strings off, the cloth itself will not be colored on the places where the strings were. Like the batik method, this method can be redone by using other colors.
A Batik master at work
In this catalogue we are presenting two different products made by Bassamoise artisans, combining major batik techniques with other traditional manufacturing methods. The products are decorative panels and table cloths. Although the production process itself stays almost the same, the decorative panels shine as examples of figurative art due to the fact that the majority of picture templates are the result of individual creativity.
Decorative Panels These artisanal works are designed using batik techniques. While looking through the huge variety of motifs used, it becomes obvious that the batiquiers get their inspiration from African life and the continent‟s flora and fauna. The decorative panels are colorfully painted with pictures of African animals, such as elephants and gazelles, or motifs depicting rural life. All decorative panels are made on the base of pure cotton cloth, produced in Côte d‟Ivoire, using artificial, resistible to sunlight and water paints, brought from Germany.
CI01A-01BIB-001A 40x50 cm | 15 €
CI01A-01DSE-002A 75x100 cm | 35 €
CI01A-01FNI-003A 100x150 cm | 45 €
CI01A-01CCO-004A 35x100 cm | 25 €
CI01A-07DSE-001A
Tablecloths
CI01A-07CMO-001A
CI01A-07SKE-002A
Even if also made with the same batik technique, tablecloths differ from the styles typically used in decorative panels (seen in the previous pages). These tablecloths are lovingly and colorfully decorated with typical African symbols and patterns. The range of colors, design and forms is almost inexhaustible. As well as decorative panels, table cloths are made on the base of pure cotton cloth, produced in Côte d‟Ivoire, using artificial, resistible to sunlight and water paints, brought from Germany.
CI01A-07TMA-001A
CI01A-07CRE-001A CI01A-07FNI-001A CI01A-07TAL-001A
6 napkins | 35,00 €
8 napkins | 45,00 €
12 napkins | 55,00 €
Overview of Ivorian Painting
Art
Often African art is misjudged as an underdeveloped movement. The idea that local artists are trying hard to sell their art under a „third world image‟ is completely wrong. Africa has a huge, varied and rich artistic history, which Côte d‟Ivoire certainly and strikingly proves.
PAINTING
Sénoufo art, as one of the approximately 60 ethnic groups of Côte d‟Ivoire, has proven to be the fountainhead and major inspiration of the Cubism movement. European artists like Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse have been inspired by Sénoufo art and even visited the villages around Korhogo (the Sénoufo capital) to learn directly from the artists and their methods. Pablo Picasso, well known as the pioneer of Cubism, was inspired by the Korhogo cloths as well as by the traditional Korhogo skeleton. Korhogo cloth is the typical handmade textile woven and adorned by Sénoufo people. The drawings, which depict traditional symbols and motifs, are arranged geometrically and clearly show a huge similarity to the Cubism style. A more recent Ivorian art style developed in the 1980s is ‘Vohou Vohou’. The ‘Vohou Vohou’ was initiated by young artists who attended the School „Beaux Arts‟ in Abidjan. The style of this movement is called „abstract of recuperation‟. A common characteristic is the use of texture and different mediums of art in one piece. The artists used different materials and combined them into a single piece of art. To add color the artists mainly used their hands or sometimes stones. This style, which has been widely followed in Côte d‟Ivoire for more than 30 years, was taken up by US and European painters. Artists who decide to finance their life by painting are often considered crazy or at least very daring, even in Europe. Therefore, it is even more admirable that even in much less stable and impoverished societies like Côte d‟Ivoire artists are trying to support their families, which are far bigger than European nuclear ones, with the only help of their artistic skills and potential. Most artists in Grand Bassam are organized in associations, and painters pool together. The majority of the artists presented in this catalogue are members of a cooperative called the “Maison des Artistes”.
Maison Des Artistes in Grand Bassam
Impressionism Impressionism occurred in Europe, more precisely in France, in the late 19th and early 20th century. This art movement is characterized by its realistic depiction. Impressionist painters were mainly inspired by landscapes and the light in day-to-daylife.
Naïve In its first years, this art movement has mainly been conducted by painters without official art education. Naïve paintings are characterized by a simplicity which even seems childlike sometimes, Although at the beginning this movement was devalued by some; debased views about this movement disappeared as it developed further and was established in art schools. Côte d‟Ivoire has been the first African country where artists have adopted this European movement. Currently there are even a few renowned naïve art schools in this country.
CI01A-02KMO-002A Kouadio Moussa | oil | 69x88 cm | 309 €
CI01A-02YGE-006A Yao Georges | acrylic | 60x80 cm | 519 €
CI01A-02BMI-001A Bamba Germain | oil | 57x42 cm | 179 €
Abstract Artists have been using abstract elements throughout art history, but following the time when Pablo Picasso pioneered cubism from 1910, abstract art became a separate movement. In the 1950s this movement spread to the Côte d‟Ivoire. The Ivorian interpretation of Abstract is characterized by the use of warm colors like red and brown, which symbolize the ground, the heat and the sun.
Cubism CI01A-02SMA-008A Shirazi | oil | 72x80 cm | 109 €
The roots of this movement can be traced back to the Sénoufo ethnicity, which is located in Côte d‟Ivoire‟s North. It was the Sénoufo capital, Korhogo, where Pablo Picasso, a founding figure of Cubism, was inspired by the characteristically geometric motifs of the traditional Korhogo cloths.
CI01A-02LGP-008A Paul LeGall | pigment | 60x80 cm | 715 €
CI01A-02KAK-001A Kouassi Moise | oil | 80x60 cm | 715€
Vohou Vohou This Ivorian movement emerged in the 1980s initiated by Abidjan‟s Beaux Art students. Dejected by the economical and social situation, these art students used any kind of available material for their art works. Due to this, that movement is called Vohou Vohou, which can be translated as „putting anything and everything together „.
Assemblage Assemblage is the name of a technique where artists employ a large variety of materials like: everyday objects such as glasses or chairs, to elements of nature like fruits or wood to create a threedimensional collage. This movement started in the late 19th century in France and spread from there to Côte d‟Ivoire.
CI01A-02YGE-022A Yao Georges | acrylic | 85x55 cm | 519 €
CI01A-02KKA-022A Alexvia | rattan, calabash | 57x41 cm | 309 €
More products we offer • For home decoration - masks of various ethnic groups - wooden totems - decorative panels - wood carving and clay table utensils - table cloths, curtains and pillow cases - ebony carving lamps - wooden cases - tapestry and vanerie - wood carving tabourets and chairs - bamboo furniture - musical instruments • Accessories - fetish and silver jewelry - handbags and purses - Woven belts - shoes • for collectors - unique original items of ethnic art, like masks, totems of any dimension, war casks and cornes, weapons and etc. - contemporary art of high quality: painting, sculpture, artistic tapestry For orders and all buying enquiries, please contact: myorder@kachile.com
Abidjan | Grand Bassam, Côte d‟Ivoire All pictures by Ksenia Kopylova Copyright © Kachile
About Kachile Kachile is a newly launched, volunteer-staffed, social venture. Kachile‟s mission is to develop viable e-commerce solutions. We create and support commercialization efforts to the numerous artisanal communities across West Africa, most of which are operating at the bottom of the pyramid. Given the precarious situation for the local artisans trying to sustain themselves in post-conflict Côte d‟Ivoire, Kachile is developing a business model that seeks to promote sustainable development and economic growth and independence within these communities while highlighting the culture, traditions, and values of the region. Based in Grand Bassam, Côte d‟Ivoire, about 30 km away from Abidjan, West Africa‟s major port. Kachile means “change” in the local language Baoulé.
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