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Showing posts from February, 2021

The Iyoba Pendant Mask

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The pendant mask (Iyoba Pendant Mask, Edo people, Nigeria, Metropolitan Museum of Art)  This was a very important mask to the Edo peoples, it was created in the early 16th century; where an Oba named Esigie, made it to honor his mother Idia. This mask was used in many ways; sometimes it was worn to battle, other times to bring prosperity, as well as choose the next king, and the mighty mother, who would raise him. In which she is called the Queen of  Mothers , also known as Iyoba, the woman who would raise Oba's first son to become the future king. A tradition that continues today, although, for the purpose of annual ceremonies of spiritual renewal and purification (smarthistory.org). The materials used were just as important as what the mask represents, what was used for this mask was: ivory and iron inlays. Whereas the white ivory of the mask symbolizes ritual purity, which is associated with the god of the sea Olokun (smarthistory.org). The iron inlays are used to reinforce, the

Landscapes

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When viewing landscapes, either in real life or through paintings just seeing an open view of the world is always calming, relaxing, and enjoyable. Most of the time the view is of something simple and great.  Such is the nature of these two landscapes, where one was made on a handscroll and the other on a folding screen.  (Huang Gongwang, Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains, 1350, National Palace Museum, Taipe) This shows a Chinese handscroll, called Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains, a story about survival created by the painter Huang Gongwang from the Yuan dynasty. This 22 ft, long handscroll shows a vast landscape with many details and white space. Shown here is just a small piece of what the entire hand scroll looks like. The story behind this piece, is that this handscroll was nearly burned but was saved by the nephew of Wu Hongyu who adored this scroll indefinitely. Wu Hongyu adored this piece so much it would accompany him through his daily activities. Such as eating, sleeping, even