Face Mask (nyaka?)

Artist Ha artist

Datemid–late 20th century

MediumGlass beads, fiber, feathers, and thread

Dimensions12 x 13 in. (30.5 x 33 cm)

ClassificationsTextiles

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the African and African American Art Purchase Fund

Object number2015.16

On View

Not on view

Label TextA symmetrical pattern of red and yellow triangles emerges through the artist’s careful distribution of black, white, red, green, and yellow beads across the surface of this mask. This optical effect may be a reference to themes of spiritual balance. Though one color dominates, each portion of the mask contains little bits of the other colors, just as spiritual forces in the Ha world view exist in balance.

The triangular pattern, known as balamwezi, is a sign of hope and rebirth linked with the rising of the new moon. The entire surface of the mask has been anointed with an earthy mixture that most likely includes herbal medicines. This surface treatment further emphasizes the mask’s unified surface and spiritual power. The chicken feathers at the top reference roosters, a symbol of spiritual empowerment.
ProvenanceAcquired from the Kikoti Family in Mayange, Kigoma District, (western) Tanzania, by dealer Fortunatus Agostino Nguge, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, n.d.; sold to Gary van Wyk, Axis Gallery, West Orange, NJ, 2010; sold to NCMA, 2015.
Published ReferencesAllen Roberts, “Movement of Ideas and Form between Central and Eastern Africa,” in Shangaa: Art of Tanzania, Gary van Wyk, ed. (exhibition catalogue) (New York: QCC Art Gallery Press, 2013), 210.
Exhibition HistoryNew York, NY, QCC (Queensborough Community College) Art Gallery, City University of New York, “Shangaa: Art of Tanzania,” February 22–May 19, 2013; Portland, ME, Portland Museum of Art, June 8–August 25, 2013, cat. p. 210.

Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "The People's Collection, Reimagined," October 23, 2023-December 9, 2024.
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