•  Research the African buffalo, including the physical and behavioral characteristics, habitat, and place in the food chain.  Is the animal endangered?  Why?  Compare the animals’ real characteristics with the artists’ depictions.

•  Have students write reports on the animals.

•  Create clay sculptures of the animals.

(see Art Lesson: Studying African Animals- Making Clay Animals, pg. 3)

•  Compare and contrast the technique used to make the clay sculptures with the techniques used to create to focus works of art.

Students can develop perseverance when challenged with extensive problems. It is important for them to know that it is okay to have to work and rework problems in order to come to the best possible solution for themselves. The desire to rework ideas and the openness to a range of solutions are all part of the investigative scientific experience. Developing possible scenarios that could occur in the environment require students to rework their ideas as they formulate reasonable explanations.

• Describe the textures, shapes and material in this artwork. Do you think it is hard or soft? Heavy or light?

• What material do you think this object is made from? How can you tell?

• What lines and patterns can you see?

• Discuss symmetry and variety in this work. How do they balance each other?

• This works also conveys a careful observation of nature. What does the work represent?

• How do you think this object was used?

• What colors are used? What associations do you have with these colors?

• Consider the dimensions of this work. How might this object have been used? Is it functional or decorative or both?

• This is a mask, and its rounded top is a helmet that fits over the head of the wearer. Can you see what animal it represents?

• The horns rising up and the large rectangle are the horns and downward face of a buffalo’s. What was the buffalo a symbol of? Think of the animal’s specific qualities.

• A greatly feared animal, the buffalo represents strength and is a symbol of the community leader. What does this tell you about where, when and by whom the mask was worn? 

• The mask was worn by the Bobo people from Burkina Faso and was probably worn during a ritual or festival by a blacksmith, craftsman, or other person of distinction of the Do society. Worn with costumes made of leaves and knotted plant fibers, masks help master the forces of nature that threaten life-sustaining food crops. What examples are there of ritual and superstition in your society? Do you think the importance of ritual has changed? What do we do in our time to master the forces of nature?

• Would you enjoy a ceremony like the one that the Bobo people had? How would you feel wearing this mask?

• This mask, covered entirely with geometric designs, would be freshly painted before each ceremony. Why do you think that is?

This Molo mask, from the Bobo people from Burkina Faso, pays homage to the buffalo indicated by the curved horns.  A greatly feared animal, the cape buffalo represents strength and is a symbol of the community leader.  The rounded top of this mask is a helmet that fits over the head of the wearer, with the horns rising up and the large rectangle of the buffalo’s face extending down.  The mask was probably worn during a ritual or festival by a blacksmith, craftsman, or other person of distinction of the Do society.

 

The painted designs on each Bobo mask are unique, thus no two masks are the same.  On this mask the tall curving horns are painted in alternating bands of red and white.  On the face, on either side of the long nose ridge, is a symmetrical design of red, blue, and white triangles.  This mask, covered entirely with geometric designs, would be freshly painted before each ceremony.

 

The creation of a large mask is a long task, rooted in tradition.  It begins with chopping down a small tree and carving out half of its trunk lengthwise in order to expose the finest and freshest grain of the wood.  The pigments used to decorate the mask come from natural sources such as plants and minerals.

 

Bobo masks represent plant-like beings, birds, animals, humans, and combinations of these.  Worn with costumes made of leaves and knotted plant fibers, masks help master the forces of nature that threaten life-sustaining food crops.  They are worn for several types of events, including ceremonies that are performed to appease the spirits of the ancestors and the spirits of nature; special ceremonies such as funerals, seasonal festivals, and the ritual purification of the village; and ceremonies initiating young men into societies, such as the Do society.  For additional information about African masks, see the Ekpeye Pangolin Headdress.

 

Masks are carved by specially trained craftsmen in the village, who typically do other specialized handcrafts such as ironworking.  These people enjoy a higher social status than farmers or other laborers.