Trowell Margaret, Nevermann Hans. African and Oceanic Art

New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1968. — 270 p.Since the earliest explorations of the African continent and of the scattered islands of the South Pacific, the European mind has been fascinated
by the ritual figures and exotic carved images brought back as gifts or booty by generations of travelers and colonizers. Such objects have long been prized for their strange appeal, but it was not until the beginning of our own century that there first arose a true appreciation of their aesthetic— as opposed to ethnographical—value and quality. The "discovery" of African form by the Cubists and of the obsessive art of Oceania by the Expressionists has led to an entirely new attitude in the appreciation of these mistakenly designated "primitive" arts. The profusion of illustrations in this book—a remarkable panorama of these arts— is ample evidence of the greatness of these highly developed modes of artistic expression.Form and Content of African Art
by Margaret Trowell
The Factors which Determine the Mode of African Art
The geographical conditions. Basic materials and their uses. The craftsman's approach. Map.
Court art. Religious beliefs and ritual objects.
Masks, Figures, and Fetishes. Dancing and the Mask
Masks of strong formal quality. Masks in which decoration plays the major part. Deformity masks.
Janus-headed masks. The wart-hog masks of the Ngere tribes. Animal masks. The antelope headdresses of the Bambara. Headdresses of various kinds.
Figure Sculpture
Characteristics of tribal figure sculpture. Horsemen. The mother and child motif. Figures holding bowls. Caryatid figures.
Fetish Figures. Reliquaries
The Sculpture of Some Ancient African Kingdoms
Nok. Ife (163). Benin. Lower Niger. Dahomey and Ghana. Bakuba. Monoliths from
the Cross River area. Mende and Kissi. Bakongo. Zimbabwe.
Decorative or Applied Art in Africa
Doors, panels, plaques, screens, and wall paintings. Textiles. Smaller artifacts.
The Art of Oceania
by Hans Nevermann
Map. New Guinea. Melanesia. Micronesia. Polynesia.
Bibliography Index Photo credits