Drawings of Africa: A Journey Through History and Styles

The histories and lineages of African art are as diverse as the communities and cultures that traverse the continent. From the ornate cave paintings of South Africa's Cederberg Mountains to the abstract masks of myriad regional traditions, African art incorporates an extraordinary array of objects, materials, media, and themes.

In this gallery, we look at striking examples of art from across the African continent. In gold, stone and metals, ancient and medieval African artists have not only given us unique pieces of art to admire but their works are also an insight into their respective cultures whether it be certain animals which were revered, the consideration of the human head as the container of the soul or simply what kind of jewellery was popular.

Cave Paintings: A Glimpse into the Past

Chad's Manda Guéli Cave is home to an array of painted figures and animals, including cattle and camels. This diversity of forms highlights an interesting feature of African rock art. Unlike in Europe, where cave paintings were not created beyond prehistoric times, many African cultures continued to produce this style of painting well after humans had settled in agricultural communities. Because of this, works like the above can be divided into four distinct categories, identifiable by the types of animals depicted.

Early paintings tend to include wild animals such as bison and elephants, with later phases incorporating first cattle, then horses, and finally camels. The depiction of camels in this work places it in the last category of cave paintings, helping archaeologists to date the work. The presence of human figures interacting with animals, meanwhile, confirms this piece as a product of a period of domestication, well after the earliest, hunter-gatherer phase of human development had ended.

At the same time, the work also seems to serve as an abstract visual diary, or a series of time-stamps stretching across centuries. The fact that camels are depicted alongside, and sometimes seem to be transposed on top of cattle, supports the ideas that in many African caves paintings were not created during single phases of history. Rather, later groups of artists would have added to existing paintings with their own images, creating a remarkable graphic record of the passage of time and human development: indeed, works of African cave art provide a unique and captivating insight into past cultures in a way few other works of human creativity can match.

Masks: Ritual and Representation

Amongst the best-known examples of traditional African art are the striking masks produced by many cultures across the continent: from the Zamble masks of the Guro culture (located in present-day Ivory Coast), to Yoruba, Lulua, and Goma facial adornments - created by communities in Nigeria, Congo, and Tanzania. These masks often had a precise religious or ritual function, seen to take on magical properties in the context of a particular rite or event.

With its strong association with death, this mask indicates the importance of the spiritual world to the Guro people. According to the Art Institute of Chicago, Zamble masks would be worn "on the occasion of a man's second funeral, which would be organized months or years after the actual burial to commemorate the accomplishments of the deceased. Performances took the form of competitions between mask dancers from two different families."

Works such as this mask show the vital role that much African art plays in ceremonies and religious events. The significance of masks generally extends far beyond that of a prop or performance aid. Instead, they are vital component of the ritual and often endowed with magical powers.

Queen Mother Pendant Mask: Iyoba

This artwork is one of a pair of African ivory masks featuring the face of a woman from the African country of Benin. Exquisitely detailed, these are arguably the most important historical works of the Edo people. As the Metropolitan Museum of Art notes, "although images of women are rare in Benin's courtly tradition, these two works have come to symbolize the legacy of a dynasty that continues to the present day. The pendant mask is believed to have been produced for...the king of Benin, to honor his mother, Idia. The oba [or king] may have worn it at rites commemorating his mother, although today such pendants are worn at annual ceremonies of spiritual renewal and purification."

The details of this sculptural work are highly significant to its symbolic and communal meaning. First, the impression of scarification or tattooing on the face reflects a rite common amongst the Benin people - although the distinct facial features would have been based on the appearance of the individual, regal subject. However it is the headdress and collar that are perhaps the most interesting, as they tell a story of foreign influence. The Metropolitan Museum notes the presence of "carved stylized mudfish and the bearded faces of Portuguese [sailors]. Because they live on land and in the water mudfish represent the king's dual nature as human and divine. Having come from across the seas, the Portuguese were considered denizens of the spirit realm who brought wealth and power to the oba."

Features like those described show the power of much historical African art to make visual statements about influences on a particular culture or community. This can be compared to the densely allusive references that populate religious paintings of the European Renaissance, for example. At the same time, the ceremonial function of artworks like the above mark them out from the purely ornamental and symbolic value of most Western works from the same era. For this reason, traditional African art provides an alternative rubric for thinking about the very essence and purpose of art, and is of the utmost importance to all who want a better understanding of the subject at a global level.

Pottery: Functionality and Beauty

Pottery is a key form for many African artistic cultures. Jugs and vessels were often created with a utilitarian or domestic function in mind, yet also with great attention to visual beauty and detail. The case of African pottery indicates the less rigorous boundary placed between fine art and practical craftsmanship than in the Western tradition. In fact, this approach mirrored twentieth-century Western movements such as Constructivism, again indicating the ways in which traditional African art predicts and preempts Western equivalents.

Vessel

A functional piece of pottery, this work shows how African art often combined practical use with artistic design. Most likely used to hold wine, the vessel has also been fashioned to depict the body shape and head of a female, complete with ornate necklace and distinct hairstyle. The elongated facial features are particularly distinctive, indicating the cultural and geographical specificity of the object.

This work is from the Mangbetu culture located in the present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo and provides a good example of the way figures are depicted in the tradition of that community. As historian of African art Frank Willett explains, "the deformation of the head reflects the...practice of binding their babies' heads to make them long and beautiful." Amongst the Mangbetu, art is created by both genders. However, according to the Cleveland Museum of Art, "women were and still are responsible for the making of terracotta pots....It seems, however, that men added the figurative elements". This pot is believed to have had a utilitarian function. As author Victoria Rovine explains, it would have been "displayed by Mangbetu leaders as they sat in state or used along with a straw to consume palm wine. Pots of this type were also used to hold a mixture of palm wine and a root called naando, consumed by dancers at ceremonial events to energize them and improve their performance."

Benin Bronzes: Ambassadors of the Oba

One particular specialty of Benin artists was brass plaques. Rectangular and around 45 centimetres in height, these panels show figures in high relief, very often of warriors and rulers.

These pieces show the role that art can play in communicating a political statement or as a vehicle for propaganda. The Benin people were known for their military might and relief sculptures like this were used to reinforce the impression of this power to friend and foe by depicting warriors and leading military figures alongside the king, his family, and his attendants.

While they should be treasured for their aesthetic and historical value, the Benin Bronzes also speak to a very modern predicament. According to the Ethnologisches Museum itself, these "historical 'bronzes' and ivory objects from Benin are seen as symbols of colonial collecting and their presence outside Nigeria is widely understood as a sign of colonial injustice."

Military Leader

This small relief plaque, measuring little more than a foot high and a foot wide, features a warrior dressed in full armor with spear in one hand and shield in the other. His direct and intense frontal gaze is barely visible under his large helmet, fastened with a chin strap. The background is notably replete with detail, including finely inscribed lines in the shape of large three-petaled flowers, or perhaps leaves.

This work is one of thousands of plaques known as the Benin Bronzes, carved in brass by artists from the Benin Kingdom - part of modern-day Nigeria - several centuries ago.

During the 19th century, British troops attacked Benin, bringing the kingdom under colonial rule and looting much of its artwork, including these plaques. The Benin Bronzes were amongst the array of artefacts brought back to England, from where many were sold, ending up in private collections and museums around the world. The present-day Nigerian government, alongside innumerable activists, artists, and citizens, are pressing for these treasures to be returned to their native region.

Patterns and Symbols in African Art

Symbols are visual expressions of a society's culture; its philosophy, beliefs and history. They may be rich in proverbial meaning and often signify the collective wisdom of the tribe. They can communicate knowledge, feelings and values and therefore play an important role in Africans' concept of reality.

They can depict anything from animal and human behaviour to important events, or they can simply reflect their environment and various aspects of their lives in shapes and emblems. Some are quite literal in their translation but others are representative, not representational. Even if its a recognisable shape like a palm tree, there will be meaning behind its inclusion in a pattern and what it adorns.

Common patterns Parallel zigzags reminds the viewer to obey the 'path of the ancestors', often used to represent the fact that nothing in life is straightforward and the path will be difficult to follow. Chequerboard black and white triangles, or squares, represent the separation of knowledge and ignorance.

The important thing to remember is that they are constantly evolving and new influences in current societies are reflected in new motifs. Chevrons and zigzags exist in just about every form and facet of African decoration. Geometric shapes of diamonds and triangles are probably the most common shape for use in a multitude of ways; painted, incised, scraped, embossed, printed, embroidered... you name it. Sadly, in this modern era, a lot of the meaning and historical significance of various shapes or motifs is lost to us and can only be conjectured about.

But in some cases, like it is with Adinkra printed cloth or Kente woven cloth, the meanings of the selected colours or motifs used in the pattern have been passed down from generation to generation. The symbolic connotation is meaningfully applied by the artist.

Kente or Ashanti cloth from Ghana has over 300 different traditional patterns. Both the use of color and the selection of motifs or symbols will have their own connotations and, of course, different combinations of these will say different things in a pattern.

William Kentridge: Drawing as Discovery

For decades, South African artist William Kentridge has used his innovative drawing practice to unearth overlooked 20th- and 21st-century histories of African resistance to colonial regimes. Though he makes his drawings-which evoke the graphic style of German Expressionism-quite simply, by rubbing charcoal against printed text or strips of paper, these serve as the basis for Kentridge’s expansive work throughout film, theater, and multimedia.

The artist remains committed to making work that grapples with apartheid, colonialism’s violent legacies, and forgotten narratives-all of which continue to haunt his home country. Installation view of William Kentridge, The Refusal of Time, 2012 in “William Kentridge: In Praise of Shadows” exhibition at The Broad, Los Angeles, 2022-23.

“Essentially my practice is one of drawing. For the last 30 years, some of those drawings have been films,” Kentridge recently told Artsy. The artist notes that this drawing practice extends across dimensions: two dimensions for his prints, three dimensions for his films, and four dimensions for his expanded cinema live-performance pieces, which feature large-scale, projected animations and a chorus of musicians and dancers who interact with them by performing in front of the screen. Despite the intricacies, drawing is at the core of all this work. The “principle of making the drawing is the principle of discovering what the drawing is,” he said.

Speaking about his materials, Kentridge noted that he prefers charcoal because of its malleability. “It’s a good medium for someone who is anxious about commitment and who needs a sense of provisionality,” he said. It’s also appropriate thematically: “It’s a good medium for someone who is interested in seeing the world as a moment in process rather than a fixed fact,” he added. The artist believes that the simplicity of drawing allows audiences to examine the work without having to do much interpretation. “I would like the audience to be open to that, to see the simplicity of making and to also have the sensation of watching themselves see a film,” he said.

Kentridge began transforming his drawings into film animations in the 1970s, eventually embarking on his decade-spanning “Drawing for Projection” series (1989-present). Along the way, he honed his now signature style of mixing invented narrative and with historical fact. To make each new work in the series, the artist uses a 35mm film camera to capture his drawings, which he projects onto a wall and gradually alters via erasure and overdrawing. Each frame features a slight amendment to the previous drawing.

One film from the series, Other Faces from 2011, is on view at The Broad, alongside several drawings from the series, where the animation stills (drawings) are on view with the film. In that film, Kentridge focuses on the life of industrialist and developer Soho Eckstein, a fictional character whom the artist created and has used in his work since 1989. Eckstein fights an internal and external battle between love or capital, which plays out against the backdrop of the harsh labor conditions at Johannesburg’s mines.

Across most of the “Drawing for Projection” series, Eckstein’s story features both the reality of these mines and the contrasting tenderness of Eckstein’s relationship with his poet lover Felix Teitlebaum (a stand-in for Kentridge himself). The Soho Eckstein life cycle is what catapulted Kentridge to international acclaim in the art world: In 1993, he exhibited at the 45th Venice Biennale.

Over the past two decades, Kentridge’s work with interactive media and theater has become more pronounced. As in his drawings and films, he casts himself as a performer alongside a host of other dancers, singers, and musicians. For these theatrical pieces, Kentridge uses his animations as interactive backdrops that bleed out of the frame and disappear between screens.

Throughout Kentridge’s work, history becomes a series of simple film frames that have omitted marginalized struggles; it’s the artist’s job to bring these back into public focus. “It’s not about truth to fact, it’s about these fragments of truth of what happened [that] can illuminate in strange ways many different things,” Kentridge said.

Traditional African Art: Key Ideas & Accomplishments

Traditional African art shares marked characteristics, in spite of its geographical differences. For example, many African sculptures are united by their intended function as talismans or vessels for communicating with the dead ancestors during religious events. As such, many works remind us of the close relationship between art and spirituality throughout human history; the fact that centuries-old traditions have survived in many African cultures gives us a vital window on the origins of human creativity.

Equally, traditional African art should be explored on its own termsand for the themes and motifs that unite much of it: for example, the production of objects and costumes for religious and ritual purposes.

One striking aspect of African painting, pottery, and sculpture to Western viewers might be its marked difference from historical works produced in the European Renaissance tradition, with their emphasis on vanishing-point perspective and a form of naturalistic representation.

The traditions of African art are rich in their variety of objects, materials, and media, including sculpture, pottery, metalwork, painting, and textiles. While artworks differ depending on geographical area, historically African art has shared some underlying characteristics - including the fact that, unlike in the Western world, objects are often created for religious, ritual, or practical functions.

African art cannot be considered today apart from the controversies concerning its location in museums and galleries across the West. Works such as the Benin Bronzes - which the Nigerian government has repeatedly petitioned to have returned - were plundered by colonial empires and often sold on, hence their dispersal across Europe and North America. They therefore stand as markers of a global debate concerning the need for compensation and reparation following the violent subjugation of African societies by European states.

In the early-to-mid 20th century, modern Western art movements such as Constructivism and Concrete Art collapsed the distinction between artistic and functional objects in the same way as some African craftspeople had been doing for centuries. This is another indication of the ways in which traditional African art predicts the evolution of Western art during the 20th century.

Such geographical distinctions between artworks, especially with regards to the representation of the human body, indicate the breadth and complexity of historical traditions within African art. This disproves the outmoded idea that African artistic traditions are in any sense uniform or unsophisticated. It is also worth noting the similarities between the formal distortions of the Bena Lulua figurines and the work of modern European artists known for elongated depictions of the human form, such as Alberto Giacometti and Amedeo Modigliani. This is one of analogies that can be drawn between traditional African art and modern Western art, and another indication of the great significance of historical African art.

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