Bwami Society Display Mask

CultureLega peoples

Date1875-1925

MediumWood with traces of kaolin

DimensionsOverall: 9 1/4 × 6 3/4 × 2 3/4 inches (23.5 × 17.15 × 6.99 cm)

Credit LinePurchase: Nelson Gallery Foundation

Object numberF83-56

On View

Not on view

Collections

African Art

Terms

Gallery Label

"Bwami," meaning peace or harmony, is a society open to all Lega men and their wives who work together to achieve the moral perfection and wisdom associated with leadership in decentralized Lega society. Mask-like forms such as this, along with other Bwami objects, are used to communicate complex metaphorical messages in performances combining music, dance, drama and proverb recitation. This display mask's richly oiled, encrusted surface is indicative of a well-used Bwami initiation object. The mask's triangular carving on the forehead refers to the Bwami skullcap, worn by all male members, with its triangular opening symbolizing the power of Bwami.

Provenance

Jean Willy Mestach (1926-2014), Brussels, Belgium, after 1950 [1];

With Marc Leo Félix, Brussels, Belgium, stock no. FC3240, by October 1983;

Purchased from Félix by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1983.

NOTES:

[1] An undated note, signed by Mestach and testifying the mask was previously in his collection, is in the NAMA curatorial files. According to Raoul Lehuard, “la collection Mestach,” Arts d’Afrique Noire, no. 4 (1972), p. 5, Mestach began collecting in 1950.

Published References

François Neyt, Traditional Arts and History of Zaire, Louvain, Belgium, 1981, 50, (repro.).

Calendar of Events (The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, October 1984): cover, 2, (repro.).

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