Anthropomorphic face mask "kpan"
Côte d'Ivoire, Baule
not available anymore
Provenance
Schiller Art Gallery (Gregory Verdonck & Jean-Marc Desaive), Brussels, BelgiumSize
H: 30 cm
H: 11.8 inch
Description
wood, base
“Goli” mask dances were performed at funerals of important persons and in times of danger, and more recently purely for entertainment.
Four male/female pairs of masks, painted red and black, appear in a strictly defined order.
The masks “kpan” (= “the senior woman”) appear as the last pair of masks towards the end of the “goli” mask festival. They embody the wife/s of “goli glin” (= “the older man”).