Mask
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Luba Peoples, 19th century
Wood, (Ricinodendron rautanenii)
Royal Museum for Central Africa, RG 23470
(collected by O. Michaux in 1896)
photo R. Asselberghs, RMCA Tervuren ©
Luba Masterworks at the LACMA ‘Shaping Power: Luba Masterworks from the Royal Museum for Central Africa’ is the first exhibition to inaugurate LACMA’s new African art gallery and related educational programming. July 7, 2013 – January 5, 2014]]>
Source: The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)
“Shaping Power” explores the artistic traditions and emblems of power from the LubaKingdom, one of the most influential in Central African history. Coorganizedwith the Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA) in Belgium, aselection of rare and outstanding sculptures from the Luba people of theDemocratic Republic of the Congo are on view. Objects include figurativethrones, elegant scepters, royal cups, intricately carved headrests, andancestral figures, rarely seen in the United States and on view for thefirst time in Los Angeles.
The exhibition conveys the beauty and complexity of Luba art and cultureand presents one of Africa’s remarkable sculptural and philosophicaltraditions. While many Luba works appear to have utilitarian purposes,they are symbolic objects, imbued with spiritual attributes and esotericknowledge. As treasures of kings, chiefs, titleholders, and diviners, theyalso served as emissaries to create affiliations extending the realm. Wideemulation of Luba aesthetics and political rituals further enlarged theirreach. These same objects were and continue to be memory devices, encodingthe histories and precepts of Luba kingship.
Royal emblems were vital to the formation and expansion of the LubaKingdom, a highly influential central African state that has flourishedfor the past several centuries in what is now Katanga Province of theDemocratic Republic of the Congo. Sculpted thrones, magnificent scepters,and commemorative figures all played significant roles in shaping thepowers of a sophisticated African royal culture.
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