African Kwele mask of the same type as the one in the Barbier Mueller Museum collection.
  • African Kwele mask of the same type as the one in the Barbier Mueller Museum collection.
  • African Kwéké mask from the collection of the Barbier Mueller Museum.

Kwele african mask

Kwélé - The Heart Mask in African Art

The very particular graphic design of the Kwele beete (pebood) masks is characterised by a face that always takes the form of a heart, placed in the centre of a composition that may vary. This specimen is a very pure example of this formal approach. Léon Siroto links these compact masks to a genre known as pebood, adding that the Kwele simply see them as beautiful objects [1]. 1] Looking at all the beete masks, it is clear that this aesthetic is the basis of the varied repertoire developed by Kwele sculptors.

Siroto 1970, p. 225. Alisa La Gamma, Arts of Africa and Oceania. Fleurons du musée Barbier-Mueller, Barbier-Mueller Museum & Hazan (ed.), 2007: p. 193
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Data sheet

Presumed dating
Circa 1980
Size
28 cm
Ethnic group
Kwele / Bakwele
Material(s)
Wood
Country
Gabon
Condition
Vintage