Until the 19th century it was considered primitive, however, oddly enough, it had a great influence on European fine art. Unusual forms were adopted by various avant-garde movements. This became especially noticeable at the beginning of the 20th century. Since then, African painting has come to be regarded as a serious art that requires special attention.

African style is distinguished by powerful expression and energy, which is embodied both in the forms themselves and in the symbols that accompany them. Another indispensable attribute is the presence in the works of African masters of a sacred connection with the world of spirits and Gods. Surprisingly, the colors that prevail in the paintings of African artists very accurately reflect the colors of the landscapes of this continent. Bright, green - like the jungle, yellow - like deserts and savannas, red - like the hot and scorching sun. In addition, the characteristic color for African painting is various shades of brown, ranging from fawn to almost red. Whether this combination of colors comes from rock paintings or is a later invention of local craftsmen is unknown. A lot of books and scientific articles have been written on this topic, but no one has ever figured out the secret of the unique painting of this continent.

Africa, especially South Africa, remained untouched and inaccessible to Europeans for a long time. Local tribes lived in their own world, without communicating with the rest, which is why their art is so different from what we are used to. It developed in the most unpredictable ways and, as a result, became so isolated and unique that the first viewers could not even understand that it was very beautifully and professionally done. Canonical forms, traditional motifs, life and everyday life, worries and worries, beliefs, fears and aspirations of the inhabitants of the continent, where there is no cold and snow, are reflected in their drawings and paintings and are incomprehensible to people who were brought up under the influence of completely different ideas and values . If our distant ancestors could fully understand and be imbued with such painting, then it has become increasingly difficult for modern people to do this.

What is it African painting!? If you try to talk about it in a few words, then this is: a single-color background, with several shades; the main motif of the work occupies almost the entire space; lack of perspective; the presence of ornaments and certain signs; the painting itself is made with wide and sweeping strokes or lines; grotesque forms; dynamics. Only from the outside does it seem primitive. Many avant-garde artists of the past and our time find a special genius in this. Such forms of modern painting as cubism, primitivism and some others were created only thanks to African art.

If you need high-quality, reliable and durable

The New Year has passed, but winter still does not end. Tired? Then let's move to the hottest continent - Africa, and dive a little into its history.

Traditional art holds a very important place in African culture. Most holidays and rituals, along with dancing, singing and storytelling, are not complete without vivid visual images. Objects of art can be weapons or signs of distinction, prestige, and also have religious significance. The art of the peoples of Africa is diverse: these include sculptures, paintings, “fetishes”, masks, figurines and jewelry.

The central place still belongs to sculpture, which is undoubtedly the greatest achievement of the African people. The vast majority of sculptures are made of wood, but there are works made of metal, stone, terracotta, ivory, as well as very exotic creations made of beads and beads, and even molded from simple earth! Archaeologists have discovered ancient sculptures throughout the African continent, but their largest concentration is located in the central and western parts.

Rock art, on the contrary, is most common in the south and east. It is believed that the authorship of most of these drawings belongs to the Bushmen (“people of the steppe”). Bushmen drawings were created by shamans and served as part of religious rituals.

Colorful masks and fetishes are objects designed to scare away evil spirits, witches and ghosts. They were also used as talismans that brought good luck and protected from misfortune.

Main features

The art of Africa has very characteristic features by which it can always be distinguished from the art of other continents. Firstly, there is almost always a human figure in the center of the image. Secondly, African masters rarely strive for realism; more often they resort to simplification of forms and abstraction. Thirdly, distorted, exaggerated proportions are often used to emphasize movement and dynamics.

African Art Themes

All African art can be divided into three broad themes. The first of them is a kind of symbiosis of Forest and Settlement. Members of the tribes wear special masks and outfits, paying tribute to this duality: for example, the masculine principle is presented in the image of an elephant, the strongest animal, and the feminine, on the contrary, in a well-groomed, as far as possible from the “natural” image, representing civilization and contrasting with the wild, unbridled masculine .

The second topic is the relationship between the sexes. Art in Africa was often used (and is used) as a kind of “therapy” that allows family problems to dissolve and evaporate.

The third major theme is the problem of controlling natural and supernatural forces in order to achieve what you want.

Each region of the continent has its own style of art. In the western region, it is customary to pay tribute to the great ancestors and make symbolic sacrifices, which greatly affects the overall picture of local art objects. In Central Africa, art is more applied, and original earthen architecture, embroidery, jewelry and leather goods, and intricate hairstyles are common here. But no matter what African craftsmen create, their work is always bright and cheerful, because it is designed to glorify life!

Nowadays, African motifs are very popular all over the world. Many souvenir shops can offer “African” style goods that people are happy to buy for their homes and decorate their interiors with them. Do you have anything African at home?

Master class on drawing "Black Lions". African Tingatinga Painting

1. Prepare the base.
Paint a sheet of paper red and yellow. We paint half the sheet with red gouache using a lot of water, the other half of the sheet with yellow gouache, making a smooth transition from red to yellow. Take a cotton pad and, starting with the yellow color, smear the paint, removing stains.

2. Make a sketch on another sheet of paper.

3. Transfer the outlines of the animals and the tree to the main background and fill it with black.

Everyone understands that the African continent is very amazing and unusual in its natural conditions, history and current realities. And although they are very ancient and colorful, the culture is only now in the active process of formation.

Previously, the development of their own art of African peoples was impossible, since they spent many years under the influence of foreign colonialists who suppressed any original traditions and beliefs. Therefore, all works of art of that time are considered “primitive”.

The aesthetic component in African paintings appeared only with the advent of avant-garde art in the twenties of the last century. And only after the massive declaration of independence of countries in Africa, its inhabitants began to revive their cultural characteristics, which had undergone all sorts of influences from European invaders.

After this, all painting can be divided into categories:

• creations of masters from the people;
• artistic activity with an industrial meaning;
• artists working professionally.

Most of all, African artists and other cultural figures could realize their potential in the northern part of Africa, where development proceeded much faster than in other lands. In the territories to the south, a transition is gradually taking place from a previously traditional tribal society to an industrial-urban one, which shapes the views of contemporaries on art.

Due to the peculiarities of local history, it is a symbiosis of all kinds of cultures and levels of consciousness, because mostly Africans still support traditional forms of art, while also being interested in its urban manifestations.

The modern result of the work of African artists is most often:

• a variety of options for decorating the walls of buildings outside and inside;
• advertising products (signs, billboards, banners);
• inscriptions and images on cars;
• pictorial drawings on glass;
• paintings with simple subjects, landscapes, portraits.

Paintings by African artists have some common features that distinguish them from world art:

• images are more abstract than realistic;
• special attention is paid to the human figure;
• proportions are often deliberately distorted;
• there is a lot of expression and dynamics in the works;
• Warm and bright colors predominate (red, yellow, brown shades);
• for contrast, colors are used - baked milk and olive;
• You can often find a combination of red and black.

Paintings by African artists

African art has always been exotic for Europeans and Americans, despite the fact that now you can easily get works by any masters of a suitable subject. Since these paintings fascinate with their boundless color and special metamorphoses, exhibitions with works by African artists are regularly held around the world.

Every picture is created by an artist not just with the help of a brush; in every work there is the soul of the creator and his entire family, because Africans are able to put a secret meaning into every stroke that is incomprehensible to a person from another continent. And all such little things convey the powerful energy of Africa, encrypted in small strokes.

Here are some famous African artists:

• Malangatana Valente Gwenya;
• Athi-Patra Ruga;
• Gatinya Yamokoski;
• Patricia Tokaw-Sedgh;
• Barry Abdul;
• Paulo Akiiki.

The Mozambican artist Malangatana Valente Gwenya definitely glorified his homeland, as he was even awarded the title of “Artist of the Year” (1997), which was awarded by UNESCO. He died 3 years ago in Portugal.

In his works, Malangatana combined the traditional techniques of dynamics and grotesquery for African paintings with European techniques.

His creations display features of folk art from his native Mozambique - bright colors, contrasting combinations. All this supports the main idea - neototemism, which emphasizes the equality of rights between all people and other creatures on the planet.

Famous paintings:

• “Birds are also caught”;
• "People and Animals".

Another African, Athi-Patra Ruga, continues to work in his homeland; he is not attracted by the comfortable conditions of modern Europe. His creations are always very bright and dynamic, largely due to the fact that he uses a wide variety of flowers in his paintings. In addition to canvases, he also creates all kinds of sculptures with the same colors.

Athi-Patra Ruga takes characters and plots from myths familiar from childhood; he wants to popularize them, since these stories are instructive and entertaining.

For his paintings, the master uses materials obtained from the surrounding area or made with his own hands (bamboo, skins, reed canvases). Flowers are also used to decorate finished canvases.

An artist from Africa, Gatinya Yamokoski, left her homeland, however, in America she is cultivating her native culture in every possible way. Gatinha is the owner of a virtual gallery through which artists from her home continent can sell their creations, brought by her personally.

In addition, Yamokoski herself paints paintings that convey the characteristics of the traditions and customs of Kenya, where she was born.

The art of Tropical Africa became known to Europeans only at the end of the 19th century. But the perfection of this art was amazing.

The original art of the peoples of Tropical Africa developed mainly in its western part: in western Sudan, on the Guinea coast and in the Congo.
Of course, African art is very diverse; different styles of African art can be distinguished with their own special features. But within the confines of one short article there is no opportunity to consider this topic in more detail, so we give only a generalized description of all the art of the peoples of Tropical Africa.
The art and culture of Africa have not yet been fully studied; there are still many mysteries and gaps in this issue. Although discoveries are made all the time. Archaeologists are confident that African art developed not only in Tropical Africa, but also in many areas of Southern and Northern Africa, including the Sahara mountains, which 7-8 thousand years ago was inhabited by peoples engaged in hunting, cattle breeding and agriculture. Thousands of rock paintings and paintings of various styles and periods have been found in the Sahara. The oldest of them date back to the 5th millennium BC, the later ones - to the first centuries AD

The existence of prehistoric paintings in the Sahara had been known for a long time, but only after the expedition of the French scientist A. Lot in 1957 did it become widely known: he brought to Paris more than 800 copies of rock paintings from the area of ​​the Tassilin mountain range. Nowadays, rock carvings have been found in almost all of Africa.

Landscape of Tassilien-Adjer
The huge desert plateau of Tassilien-Adjer (area 72 thousand km²) is located in the Central Sahara, in the southeast of Algeria. The surface of Tassil-Adjer is crossed by canyons and beds of dried ancient rivers. In the rocks of Tassili there are many grottoes and caves, as well as hot volcanic springs.

The ancient inhabitants of Tassil-Adjer left over 15 thousand rock paintings and reliefs dating from the 7th millennium BC. e. until the 7th century n. e. This is one of the largest monuments of rock art of the Sahara, a UNESCO site. The drawings refer to different time periods. The earliest are petroglyphs, they are made in a naturalistic style and date back to 6000-2000 BC. e.

Hunting scene
These are mainly scenes of hunting and images of animals of the “Ethiopian” fauna: elephants, rhinoceroses, giraffes, hippos, crocodiles, ostriches, antelopes, an extinct species of buffalo, etc.

Buffaloes
Animals are depicted very realistically. There are some drawings made later - their style is already different. The people depicted here belong to the so-called “Bushman type”. These are masked people with bows and arrows. Henri Lot, who studied the drawings in 1956-1957, called them “round-headed people.”
Later drawings from the end of 3000-1000 BC. e. made with paints and depict domestic animals: sheep, goats, cattle. There are also images of horses, dogs, mouflons, elephants and giraffes. The drawings are made more conventionally than the previous group. People are usually masked, with bows and arrows, darts, axes and crooked sticks. Men wear short, wide cloaks, women wear bell-shaped skirts.

Camels
Images of horses and carts with wheels dating back to the mid-2nd millennium BC were also found. e. - beginning of our era.
The appearance of the camel in drawings (200-700 AD) marks the "camel period".
Among the rocks, many arrowheads, scrapers, bones, grain graters, stone knives and other human tools were also found.
During the Neolithic era, this area was rich in water and various species of deciduous and coniferous trees, oleander, myrtle, oak, citrus and olive trees grew here. In those places where you can now see valleys filled with sand, deep rivers flowed. There were a lot of fish and large river animals: hippopotamuses, crocodiles - this is evidenced by preserved bones.

Petroglyphs of Fezzan

The petroglyphs of Fezzan are considered the pinnacle of primitive art. The area where these images are located is currently a lifeless desert. On the rocks you can clearly see images of elephants, hippopotamuses, rhinoceroses, giraffes, bulls, antelopes, ostriches and other animals, as well as figures of archers, hunters with darts, etc. The sizes of the figures reach several meters.

In the IV millennium BC. e. From the rock paintings, giraffes, ostriches, and antelopes remain, but images of predators and the first figures of bulls appear. Bulls in different poses and angles, sometimes with long or short horns, with horns curved back or curved in the shape of a lyre, become the main object of the image.
Around the middle of the 4th millennium BC. e. Cattle breeding tribes settled in Tassilin, so large rock paintings appeared depicting cattle drives, scenes of war, hunting, and gathering grains.
Ancient artists carved their works into rocks or painted them with mineral paints with a predominance of yellow, brown, blue and reddish tones. Egg white was used as a binding material. Paints were applied by hand, brushes and feathers.

Nok culture

Nok's area of ​​activity

The oldest known African culture was discovered in 1944 in the town of Nok (Nigeria), between the Niger and Benue rivers. Sculptural portraits and details of figures made almost life-size from baked clay were found in tin mines. This culture was called the Nok culture. Since then, many objects of this culture have been found. They were dated using the radioactive carbon method. The Nok civilization arose in Nigeria around 900 BC. e. and mysteriously disappeared in 200 AD. e. (end of the Neolithic (Stone Age) and beginning of the Iron Age). It is believed that the Nok civilization was the earliest in the sub-Saharan region to produce terracotta figurines.

Figurine of a Woman. Height 48 cm. Age: from 900 to 1500 years

Terracotta sculpture of Nok
The Nok civilization is also known for the spread of iron metallurgy to sub-Saharan Africa. Bronze sculptures also belong to their culture. They were made using the “lost wax method.” A rough clay block was coated with a thick layer of wax, from which the model was sculpted. Then it was covered with clay again and molten metal was poured into a specially left hole. When the wax flowed out, the model was dried, the outer layer of clay was broken and the resulting bronze figurine was carefully polished. This method was known back in Ancient Egypt, but there is no convincing evidence of a connection between ancient Egypt and Nok.
The perfection of sculpting and firing suggests that the Nok culture developed over a long period. Perhaps it was preceded by some other, even more ancient culture.

Sao people

Legends about the mysterious Sao people who lived in the Lake Chad region have survived to this day. This archaeological culture existed in the X-XIX centuries. n. e. in the area of ​​the lower reaches of the Shari and Logone rivers (the territory of the modern Republic of Chad). According to legend, the Sao people came to the Lake Chad region from the Bilma oasis in the Sahara. The population was engaged in hunting, fishing and agriculture, knew the metallurgy of iron, copper and bronze; Various crafts were developed. Excavations carried out in the mid-20s. XX century The remains of numerous settlements have been explored. The ruins of city walls and adobe houses, many items made of clay (sculpture, funeral urns, children's toys, jewelry, large vessels for storing grain), metals, bones, horn, and mother-of-pearl were discovered. The most interesting works of clay sculpture (mainly from the 10th century) are heads and statues, striking in their grotesque deformation of facial features.

Sao sculpture
There is a legend about the Sao people - they were giants who blocked rivers with one hand, made bows from palm trunks and easily carried elephants and hippos on their shoulders. Archaeological finds have confirmed that indeed in the X-XVI centuries. Here lived a people who created a unique culture.
The Sao built large cities surrounded by adobe walls 10 meters high, and created sculptures from clay and bronze, which usually combined human and animal features.
In addition to sculptural works, bronze reliefs with various subjects that decorated the pillars and walls of the palace galleries have also reached us. Benin craftsmen also created works of ivory and wood: pendant masks, wands, salt shakers, etc.

Rock art (Southern Rhodesia)
Monuments of ancient African art were also discovered in South Africa. In the 20s XIX century Rock paintings of mythological content were found in the Matopo Mountains. Among these images there are scenes of agricultural rituals, making rain, killing a king, mourning, and ascending to heaven.

Relief (Southern Rhodesia)

Wood sculpture

The most common form of art in Tropical Africa was folk sculpture made of wood. It was created by almost all peoples from the Sahara to South Africa, except for the eastern regions where Islam was widespread. Although the age of the oldest works that have come down to us does not exceed 150-200 years, it is believed that wooden sculpture has existed in Tropical Africa for a long time, but in a humid tropical climate, wood very quickly collapses.

Folk sculpture consists of two large groups: sculpture itself and masks. The sculpture was mostly cult (images of various spirits, ancestors), and masks were used during rites of initiation of young men and women into members of the community, as well as during various ceremonies, holidays, masquerades, etc.

Each African people had its own original style of sculpture, but it has many common features. It was usually carved from fresh, undried softwood, painted with three colors - white, black and red-brown, sometimes green and blue. African masters greatly exaggerated the size of the head, while the rest of the figure remained disproportionately small. Masks often combined human and animal features.

Rich original artistic traditions have been preserved in the territory that flourished in the 16th-18th centuries. in the depths of the equatorial forests of the Bushongo state (in the upper reaches of the Kassai River, a tributary of the Congo).
In many areas of Tropical Africa, the art of wooden sculpture still exists.

Art of Medieval Africa

Ife culture

Ife is a city in southwestern Nigeria. This is one of the most important centers of ancient civilization in West Africa. In the XII-XIX centuries. Ife was a city-state of the Yoruba people. In Ife, terracotta heads, monumental bronze heads of gods and rulers, and expressive bronze half-figures covered with ornamental decorations were found (most likely, these were the kings of Ife).
Bronze sculpture of Ife had a great influence on the development of the artistic culture of Benin, a state that existed until the end of the 19th century. on the territory of Nigeria. The Yorubas still consider Ife to be their ancestral home.
When, as a result of the expeditions of 1910 and 1938. Bronze and terracotta sculptures were found here, which were not inferior to the best examples of ancient art, then these finds amazed Europe. It is difficult to establish the time of execution of these figures, but approximately this is the 12th-14th centuries.

The portrait sculptures from Ife are almost life-size. They are distinguished by proportionality and harmony - the embodied ideal of human beauty of that time. Moreover, the bronze casting of these figures was as perfect as the forms.
According to legend, the art of bronze casting dates back to the 13th century. brought from Ife to the city-state of Benin. Here, as in Ife, it served kings—both. Foundry masters lived in a special quarter of the city, and special officials strictly monitored the preservation of the secret of bronze casting.
The city was destroyed during the English punitive expedition of 1897, and many works of art were lost in the fire.

Bronze reliefs of Ife
In addition to sculptural works, bronze reliefs with various subjects that decorated the pillars and walls of the palace galleries have also reached us. Benin craftsmen also created works of ivory and wood: pendant masks, wands, salt shakers, etc.
In some sculpted heads of the Ife culture, one can notice features of the transfer of similarities.

Bronze figure of the king
By the 15th century The state of Benin began to dominate the Yoruba people. The Portuguese conducted brisk trade with Benin (XVII-XVIII centuries), so there is a description of this state and its magnificent palaces. The French traveler Landolf even compared Benin with major French cities of that time. Bronze reliefs, heads and carved elephant tusks, now kept in museums in Europe and America, tell us about the former splendor of his palaces.

Benin bronze
The large bronze heads mainly depict the kings of Benin. To this day, in every house in Benin there is an altar where sacrifices are made to the ancestors, and above all to the deceased father. Carved wooden heads are usually placed on altars, conveying, as accurately as possible, a portrait likeness of the deceased.
According to legend, in the middle of the 13th century. (the reign of King Ogul), the foundry master Igwe-Iga was sent from the city of Ife to Benin, he taught other craftsmen who lived in a special quarter near the royal palace. The art of bronze casting was kept secret.

Bronze reliefs decorated the halls of palaces and galleries. They depicted various scenes from life, as well as kings, courtiers, etc.
The culture of Ife and Benin influenced the cultures of almost all the peoples of the Guinean coast.
For example, foundries in Ghana made miniature bronze castings of weights for weighing gold. Gold casting was very common among the Baule peoples. Their golden masks are distinguished by their grace. They were worn around the neck or at the waist. Perhaps they depicted the heads of killed enemies. Baule masks are varied, but they also have common features: an oval face, almond-shaped closed eyes, a long thin nose, hair in the form of twisted buns, etc.

Baule mask
The art of the ancient and medieval states of Tropical Africa suggests that the peoples of Africa reached a high level and created a unique, highly artistic culture.