Frank Willet's African Art: The Dogon People

African Art varies throughout the whole continent of Africa. The several different ethnic groups in Africa produce unique and valuable artwork. The Dogon people had various unique aspects in the art they created, as well as every other tribe. We see art vary from mediums such as wood, copper, steel, rock, metal and numerous other materials. In Africa, they create countless artistic pieces such as masks, engravings, plaques, statues, paintings and other complex works of art. But as it goes for the Dogon people, they mainly focused on making extensive carvings of masks and wood figures. They relate their art to the community which they live, and it is an extremely rich culture. The Dogon people are originally from the West bank of the Niger

Africans do not necessarily strive for extremely elegant outside work, but rather focus on the beauty of the inside of these structures. The Dogon people had their own unique ways of architectural form just as every other African ethnic group. As stated in Frank Willet’s African Art, the Dogon people built rectangular houses of great elegance. Willet also notes how, these homes included tall tubular granaries, flat walls, and rectangular recesses were often found in houses and imitated in their mask work. The Dogon people were extremely talented but aside from homes they also built multiple other elegant works of

They are precise and elaborate in this form of art. Just like in other groups in Africa, masks are usually made for traditions and rituals for various different occasions. In, Dogon: Africa’s People of the Cliffs by Walter E.A. Vanbeek, we are told how the Dogon people use masks not only for agricultural purposes but they also use them for the burial of the dead. Vanbeek says this is their main ritual with masks, and it means a lot to them and their religion. The most popular masks in the region are the kanaga, which is masks worn during dama, which is the word for ritual among these people. Like stated earlier, the Dogon people are enriched in their tradition of sending souls of the deceased away from the village in performances of hospitality. Most of their masks are made from wood and trees representing a wide variety of images ranging from animals to earthly concepts. These masks are created elaborately and are usually worn once for the ritual, and then never used again. They also compose masks just for women. A softer material, cloth, is the main medium used for women masks along with cowrie shells. These different types of masks are described on the site Contemporary African Art and this explores deep into the Dogon culture, giving us the true meanings of these works of beauty. Besides masks and architecture, the Dogon people thrived on the work of sculpture, their main line