{"id":3765,"date":"2010-04-06T08:23:36","date_gmt":"2010-04-06T06:23:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.daltonsomare.com\/?post_type=opera&p=3765"},"modified":"2026-06-03T12:59:53","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T10:59:53","slug":"kpelye-mask-senufo","status":"publish","type":"opera","link":"https:\/\/www.daltonsomare.com\/en\/work-of-art\/kpelye-mask-senufo\/","title":{"rendered":"Kpelye Mask, Senufo, Ivory Coast"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1777563745441{margin-top: 25px !important;}” el_class=”post-flat-h2″]<\/p>\n

Early 20th century
\nWood, dark patina, pigments
\n34 cm<\/p>\n

Provenance<\/h2>\n

Maria & Paul Wyss, Basel
\nE. Winizky Collection, Zurich
\nChristine Valuet, Paris
\nDalton Somar\u00e9, Milan
\nPrivate Collection, Los Angeles
\nLeinuo Zhang Collection, Milan<\/p>\n

Exhibitions<\/h2>\n

Die Kunst der Senufo<\/em>, Rietberg Museum, Zurich, 1988<\/p>\n

Publications<\/h2>\n

T. F\u00f6ster and L. Homberger, Die Kunst der Senufo<\/em>, Rietberg Museum, Zurich, 1988, p. 37
\nV. Carini, A Hidden Heritage<\/a><\/em>, Dalton Somar\u00e9, Milan, 2004, p. 151
\nM. Riccomini et alii, Souls \u2013 Masks from the Leinuo Zhang African Art Collection<\/em>, 5 Continents Edition, Milan, pp. 48-53<\/p>\n

\n

Kpelye Senufo masks: function and meaning<\/strong><\/p>\n

Senufo sculpture from Ivory Coast is closely connected with the Poro initiation system, one of the most complex social and religious institutions in West Africa.<\/p>\n

Within this system, masks play a fundamental role in the transmission of moral values, symbolic knowledge and communal identity.<\/p>\n

Kpelye masks, considered feminine in nature, are worn by men during rites of passage between age classes.<\/p>\n

They embody a benevolent spirit, capable of protecting and assisting the community, and are distinguished by an expression that is delicate, introspective and at the same time slightly assertive.<\/p>\n

The symbolism of Kpelye masks is extremely complex and not entirely deciphered.<\/p>\n

In the mask in question, the upper crest may be interpreted as a representation of cultivators, while the frontal protuberance is often associated with the kola nut, a central element in the social and ritual life of West Africa.<\/p>\n

The lower appendages, similar to stylized legs, are generally interpreted as references to the hornbill, an animal symbolically connected with the spiritual world and the ancestors.<\/p>\n

Form and stylistic language<\/strong><\/p>\n

The composition of the mask is based on a refined balance between abstraction and recognizability.<\/p>\n

The polished surfaces and symmetrical structure are interrupted by dynamic elements that introduce rhythm and visual tension.<\/p>\n

This highly codified formal language reflects a conception of sculpture as a symbolic system rather than as naturalistic representation.<\/p>\n

African Art and modernity<\/strong><\/p>\n

The importance of these forms was recognized early by European artists and theorists.<\/p>\n

The fact that this mask can be attributed to the same master as the celebrated sculpture published in Carl Einstein’s Neger Plastik<\/em> (1915) underlines the fundamental role of African Sculpture in the definition of artistic modernity.<\/p>\n