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African Art describes the historical and modern art of textiles, paintings, sculptures, digital media, graphic design and other forms from indigenous individuals of Africa or those of African descent across the globe. It is not limited to the continent of Africa itself, but expands to the other six continents where African art has had, and continues to have great cultural influence. Conserving African art is no different from the conservation of any other art forms or mediums. This article focuses on the conservation of African masks.

The Conservation of African Masks

Masks are one of the main characteristics that differentiate the various cultures that span the continent of Africa. In Africa masks can be traced back beyond Paleolithic times. However, not all tribes make masks. Masks are made from various materials including wood, pottery, textiles and fabric, metals including copper and bronze, and leather. Other materials, used for more detailed work, could include animal teeth, hair, bones and horns as well as feathers, seashells and even straw and egg shells. Although cultural institutions (i.e. museums) consider mask to be artwork, in the context of their cultures they are not created for decoration, but for serious purposes such as rituals and ceremonies (i.e.crop harvesting, war preparation, or funeral practices). Masks can represent spirits of animals or ancestors and be worn to bring messages from the spiritual realm. The most common masks include face mask, helmet masks, or forehead masks.

Queen Mother Pendant Mask- Iyoba MET DP231460

Helmet Mask MET vs1977 45

Conservation is the preservation or efficient using of resources (in an efficient or ethical manner), or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. One area of conservation is the Conservation-restoration of cultural heritage. The American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC) defines conservation as “actions taken toward the long-term preservation of cultural property. Conservation activities conducted in conserving African mask include examination, documentation, treatment, and preventative care, supported by research and education”.

History

African masks, and African art as a whole, came to be in Western world and museum collections through various ways. The well known methods include the Atlantic slave trade, colonization, European colonization following the collapse of the slave trade, and in present day as a result of globalization .

Museums usually acquire African mask through gifts, bequest, or acquisition. When initially brought over, the objects did not enter into museums for centuries. When mask were brought into cultural institutions they were placed in natural history museums, rather than art museums, due to the materials that were used and the European attitude towards race. However, over time the perception changed. By the early 1900s these same objects that were initially regarded as artifacts of material culture, began to be exhibited in Western art museums and galleries as “art.” The objects themselves had not changed, but there was a shift in the attitudes and assumptions about what constituted a work of art.

Issues of Conserving Sacredness

Brooklyn Museum’s Associate Curator, Arts of Africa and the Pacific Islands, Kevin Dumouchelle stated that once masks were removed from performance and transformed into museum objects, their larger critical and artistic messages became lost. Conservators have to be mindful of the cultural, spiritual, and/or sacred values that objects may carry when thinking about how they handle, conserve, and preserve them both inside or outside of institutional walls. Also referred to as “nontangible significance”. Conservators are encouraged to be treat objects with both tangible and nontangible attributes with cultural dignity. In today’s museum profession it is now considered good practice to consult with representatives from the community the objects originated from as a precursor to, and shaper of the conservation process. This is a largely well known process that takes place among Native Americans in the United States, but African objects have not been accorded their conservational due diligence, as Africans lack a national power base. They do not usually have indigenous status in collection holding countries and therefore can not rely on recognized rights.

In Mellor’s article, The exhibition and conservation of African Objects: Considering the Nontagible”, it notes that objects can be categorized in the terms of “magic”, “sacred”, and “power”. Magic transpires when supernatural forces are invoked to produce otherwise unexplainable, often individualized results. In most cases, it is not about the object itself as much as it is the magic the object holds. For example, the material properties of wild silk used in the woven wrappers of the Dogon of Mali, are defined by women in terms of its tensile strength, durability, and brilliance as well as its medicinal and magic properties are identified as unrivaled values or daoula. Sacred objects function within the more structured realm of traditional African religions and constitute the largest category of African material culture. Objects of power, maintain intrinsic power and are viewed as having a will of their own, can independently carry out deeds, and can control the behavior of human beings. In many cases, these characteristics only carry significance when within cultural context. However, they are still key aspects to consider when handling and making conservation decisions.

Although nontagible significance found throughout African art may not deter conservation treatments from taking place, conservators should maintain knowledge of this type of information and aim to treat all objects with respect of the cultures the originated from.

Preventive Conservation

Long-term preservation of objects is stated as the goal of the conservation professionand all measures and actions should be aimed at avoiding and minimizing future deterioration or loss. Things that cause deterioration, loss or harm to an object are referred to as agents of deterioration. Agents of deterioration include physical forces,firepests,light(ultraviolet, infrared),incorrect relative humidity,thieves and vandals, water,pollutants,incorrect temperature,and dissociation. African masks are constructed using various materials, both inorganic and organic, and therefore can be affected by multiple agents of deterioration. They can exhibit inherent vice issues from undergoing chemical and consequent physical changes from exposure to agents of deterioration. When agents of deterioration are multiplied they accelerate chemical reactions resulting in faster deterioration. Many objects are include synthetic materials, such as plastics. Examples of deterioration include hardening, discoloration, crizzling, and softening/separation of plasticizers.

In the case of African mask constructed from wood, the main causes of damage are careless handling and environmental conditions. The agents of deterioration that cause particular harm include light, humidity and insects.

Light

Light causes cumulative damage and is irreversible. It can turn light woods dark and bleach out dark woods. For wooden mask with painted decoration on the surface, the pigments can be left discolored and faded. Many masks have attached decorations made of textiles, feathers, hair, bark, skin or leather. These materials can be even more susceptible to light damage than wood and can soon become faded and brittle. To prevent further light damage one can limit the amount of light that comes into contact with an object. Objects can be placed in storage outside of areas that come in contact with direct sunlight, and blinds or curtain can be used to help limit the direct sunlight that may enter into an storage area and fall on an object.

Humidity

Wood is composed of cellulose and therefore extremely vulnerable to fluctuations in humidity. When humidity rises the wood absorbs water and causes swelling. When the humidity decreases, wood releases moisture and shrinks. These responses to changes in humidity can cause wood to split or crack and may damage its finish. High humidity can also promote the growth of mold. Humidity in wooden objects is addressed by maintaining a stable environment without fluctuations in temperature or the relative humidity. If an environment is stable in relative humidity (between 40-60% relative humidity), wooden objects will not dry out.

Insects

Insects affect almost every form of cultural objects. In the case of wooden masks, some insects will burrow into the wood, eat their way through the wood grain and lay eggs. As the larvae mature, they tunnel out to the surface leaving exit holes. Any sawdust-like material found under a wooden mask could signal active insects. In general objects should be inspected for pest consistently, especially organic materials that are more susceptible to attracting them. If an African mask is deemed infested it can be isolated by being wrapped in plastic and then a conservator should be consulted. Other response methods to eliminate pests can be used as well, depending on the type of pests involved.

Treatment Conservation

Conservators of ethnographic objects typically approach treatments conservatively, with stabilization of original materials being the primary goal. A basic approach to treating a mask can be done by dusting with a soft paint brush directed towards a vacuum cleaner nozzle that has been covered with a piece of plastic screening or cheesecloth. The application of oils and waxes should be avoided and decorations or attachments should not be removed .

However, the basic approaches to treating an African mask, as noted above, is being questioned as conservators are now having to consider an object's potential metaphysical significance to their people of origin, also considered their sacredness. Arguments have been made that many African masks lose their sacred significance after being used or being removed from their cultural context. The claim is that the objects have temporary usage. In some cases this is true, but not in every country. Cultural values change over time and a conservator may have to apply treatments that won’t compromise a mask from being reactivated and again serving its role within the same cultural context.

Conservators are being called upon to potentially alter their treatment from being based solely on scientific grounds to also include one with a remedy that enables the object to be used or remain sanctified to its community (though the two are not necessarily mutually exclusive). They have to be aware of the past and present history, traditions and cultures the objects they are treating originate from in order to make better informed treatment decisions.

Case study: Treatment of a Dogon Kanga Mask

The treatment of the Dogon Kanga mask began as an effort to prepare the object for stabilization. The Dogon people are from Mali, Africa and the Dogon Kanga mask is worn during their Dhamma ceremonies to honor a recently deceased family member and to help transport the soul of the deceased away from the village. The mask had dyed plant fibers around the face, woven plant fiber mat attached to the back, and a majority of the mask was painted in black and white pigment. Conservators had to consider its ceremonial use and how that affected the structure of the mask as it would have come into contact with dirt and other natural elements throughout the ceremony.

The main condition problem involved the attachment of the cross pieces to the vertical element, which was causing the mask to be unstable and mobile. There was also the attachment of cords that were considered to not be a part of the original material, but could have been applied during a previous treatment. Conservators reattached the cross pieces in an alternate orientation that would have been consistent with how it would have been when used in a Dhamma ceremony. The cords that were not considered to be original elements were removed and replaced with new lashing cords that were made from tyvek covered with Japanese tissue that was painted to match the dark covered hide. Tyvek was chosen for its strength and dimension while the painted tissue was used for its surface and texture these materials were chosen because they can be distinguished from original materials upon close examination. They also have good aging properties.

Case study: Laser cleaning of 19th century Congo rattan mats

One of the materials used in African mask is rattan, a material also used in textiles, and other art forms. This material tends to attract dirt, soot or carbonaceous deposits and other agents of deterioration found in the environment. The Bobo peoples of Burkina Faso, Maliuse rattan in the Nyâga (escort masks). Part of one of the two type of leaf masks worn by the followers of sibe, it is connected to the cult of Dwosa, and only appears at night. Dafuru combines a body made of the leaves of the néré, mahogany, and shea nut, with a head made of rattan. This mask, dedicated to Kwele Dwo, only participates in funerals.

The treatment of rattan has been seen in the laser cleaning of the 19th century Congo rattan mats. Laser cleaning of organic materials is an area of conservation that is continuing to be explored in areas such as wooden artworks, paper, and textiles. The techniques are widely used in the conservation of cultural heritage objects as advanced cleaning tools, and is controllable with a high precision, reducing the risks of damaging the bulk material below.

Here test were done using the fundamental (1064 nm) and second harmonic (532 nm) wavelength of a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser to measure threshold values both for surface damage and color changes for different types of rattan samples. Optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, UV–vis spectroscopy were also implemented in order to determine the efficiency of laser cleaning and to assess possible deterioration effects that may have occurred as a result of laser irradiation. They were were used to irritate mat fragments in order to remove the unwanted materials. The results showed that it is possible to select a range of laser fluences to remove the black dust layer without damaging the rattan material.

Conservation Science

Conservation science is the investigation of material culture using scientific methods and analytical techniques. African Masks have been extensively studied by Conservation Scientists, for example the study that focused on The Significance of Surface in Central African Masks: Pigment Identification of Polychrome Wood Masks from the Congo. The study focused on polychrome surfaces using microscopic and microanalytical techniques. The coloring materials of different chemical composition and microstructure were sampled from a group of eight polychrome wood masks from the Kuba region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Researchers used forensic imaging, X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy and ultraviolet, visible, near infrared (UV/Vis/NIR) spectroscopy, dispersion, polarized light microscopy (PLM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) in order to ascertain the chemistry and composition of the masks.

This study resulted in the finding that six masks exhibit similar materials with only two of the masks being outliers. Pigments used in constructing the masks were identified using non-invasive or destructive methods. The masks appear to have been constructed from a tropical wood and painted with pure or mixtures of pigments in single layers. The colors were applied with an organic binding medium, most likely palm kernel oil, and include: iron oxides and hydroxides (red and yellow ochre), kaolinite white, smalt, ultramarine, carbon black, and possibly Tukula paste (powdered wood from an African tree of the Pterocarpus genus).

The use of conservation science in museums can aid in better understanding of how curators should handle objects, whether in areas such as preventative conservation (i.e. storage), or treatment.

Conservation Training

• North American Programs in Conservation

• The South African Institute for Heritage Science & Conservation

Conservation Labs

Below is a list of conservation labs that have worked with conserving African Art.

• Avenir Foundation Conservation and Collections Resource Center

• CHETWYND TEXTILE CONSERVATION SERVICES

• The Conservation Center

• The Conservation Science lab at the Indianapolis Museum of Art

• The Fine Art Conservation Lab

• The Getty Conservation Institute

• National Museum of African Art Conservation Lab

• Smithsonian Museum Conservation Institute (MCI)

• The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

Cultural Institutions

Below is a list of cultural institutions with extensive African Art collections.

• African Art Gallery- Milan

• African Art Museum

• Brooklyn Historical Society

• Brooklyn Museum

• George Washington University Museum I The Textile Museum

• The Metropolitan Museum of Art

• musée du quai Branly - Jacques Chirac

• Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts

• National Museum of African American History and Culture

• National Museum of African Art

• Newark Museum

• Nike Centers for Art and Culture

• The Pigorini

• The Royal Museum for Central Africa

• Seattle Art Museum

• Zeitz MOCAA - Museum of Contemporary Art Africa

Further Reading/Watching

• African

• African Art

• African Masks

• https://www.dma.org/press-release/african-masks-art-disguise

• African Textiles

• African art in Western collections

• America’s Forgotten Landscape Painter: Robert S. Duncanson

• Behind the Mask

• Characterization of blood in an encrustation on an African mask: spectroscopic and direct analysis in real time mass spectrometric identification of haem

• Connecting to Collections Care

• ICCROM (2004) Conserving textiles: Studies in honour of Agenes Timar-Balazsy. Retrieved on April 7, 2018 from https://www.iccrom.org/sites/default/files/ICCROM_ICS07_ConservingTextiles00_en.pdf

• Egypt: The pottery of ancient Egypt

• Elephant Mask

• Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond (2016). Feather Identification with Dr. Carla Dove. Retrieved on April 2, 2018 from https://www.vmfa.museum/connect/feather-identification-dr-carla-dove/

• Hornbeck, Stephanie E., Intersecting conservation approaches to ethnographic and contemporary art: ephemeral art at the National Museum of African Art. Objects Specialty Group postprints (American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. Objects Specialty Group) 20 (2013)

• Mellor, Stephen, From delicious to not quite right: subtleties in discerning the authenticity of African art. Objects Specialty Group postprints (American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. Objects Specialty Group) 14 (2008)

• Masks

• The Masks of Africa

• Mellon Grant Puts African Art at Center of Research and Conservation Project

• Mellor, Stephen P. The exhibition and conservation of African objects: considering the non-tangible. Art tribal no. 7 (2004 Winter)

• Moffett, Dana; and Mellor, Stephen, The curator-conservator collaboration: remembering Roy Sieber. African arts 36, no. 2 (2003)

• Musée du quai Branly - Jacques Chirac

• Museum Anthropology

• Museum Leaders in Training: The Art of Conservation

• National Museum of African Art

• National Pest Management Association

• Pest Control Technology

• Protecting and Preparing African Art

• The Significance of Surface in Central African Masks: Pigment Identification of Polychrome Wood Masks from the Congo

• SKIN-COVERED MASKS FROM THE CROSS RIVER REGION OF NIGERIA AND CAMEROON AT THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN ART: A TECHNICAL STUDY

• Systematic Entomology

• Thinking Conservator

• What Is Conservation Science?