TRIBAL ART

 TRIBAL ART

 TRIBAL ART

 

From the goldsmiths of Ghana and the ivory workers of old African kingdoms to the woodcarvers and weapons makers of the South Sea islands, tribal craftsmen have left a legacy of a way of life now rapidly disappearing,any object from a tribal culture, past or ! present, whether used for household purposes or as part of spiritual life, is considered to he tribal art. Most of the tribal art in Britain comes from central or southern Africa, the Pacific islands, Australia or New Zealand, but native American objects also appear on the market occasionally.

Tribal art first reached Europe in the late 15th century when explorers started to bring back pieces for their patrons. Most of the objects became the property of royal and papal courts, where the first collections began.

Nineteenth-century colonial expansion brought other connections with far-off places. An 1897 British military expedition to the Benin Kingdom in West Africa found a highly developed culture with court artists expertly casting bronzes and historical plaques. Some magnificent ivory carvings were also found. Today Benin bronzes are some of the most valuable tribal art works, fetching hundreds of thousands of pounds on the rare occasions when they come on the market.

In this century tribal art has become more widely popular, partly because its influence is clearly seen in the work of artists such as Matisse and Picasso. Many missionaries and diplomats returning from abroad brought back traditional objects, further stimulating interest and feeding the European market. Since the 1950s, modern travel has opened up ever more remote places to specialists and travellers, who now bring back most of the traditional objects reaching the West.

'TOURIST' AND AUTHENTIC TRIBAL ART

 TRIBAL ART

Some of the pieces travellers bring home with them were genuinely made and used in tribal life before being sold, but this is increasingly unusual. With spreading Western influence, thriving local traditions and tribal cultures have declined the whole world over, and many traditional-looking hand crafts are now produced just for the tourist market. Most of this 'tourist' or 'airport' art is poorly executed and exaggeratedly exotic. Rarely, a carver may produce a piece of intrinsic artistic merit, such as the Yaure mask Other­wise, these works have no collector's value.

Experts apply strict standards of authenti­city to tribal art: an object must be made by a master craftsman, and in the traditional manner. It intended for a ritual purpose, the correct ceremonies should have been carried out - although even experts can find this hard to establish. And the object should have been used for its intended purpose - preferably for some time - before being sold.

 TRIBAL ART

For amateurs without much experience, evaluating a piece can be difficult. The best way to develop an eye for the real thing is to visit collections in museums and salerooms as often as possible, to become familiar with the sort of objects you are interested in.

Pay special attention to the look and feel of an object: it can reveal a great deal about age and use. For example, genuine carvings by the Fang people of equatorial west Africa have an oily appearance and sometimes appear to 'sweat' because of the way the wood has been treated. Ivory handles on fly whisks should be smooth and shiny if they have been well used, a look which curios made for tourists will never have. A real Maori hand club will feel well balanced, but an imitation will not.
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