Introduction to African Arts
Senior 3 · Fine Arts
Introduction to African Arts
Lesson 4 of 4
25 min
At Nyanza, in the Southern Province, stands a reconstruction of a traditional royal residence of the Kingdom of Rwanda. It has no bricks, nails or iron sheets. A great dome of thatch is laid in neat layers over a frame of poles and woven reeds, the entrance is shaped like an arch, and the courtyard is enclosed by a woven fence. Inside, woven screens divide the space. A whole building is a work of art, made with the same skills that produce Rwanda's famous baskets. In this lesson you will study Rwandan art forms, how they are made and what they mean, and see how Rwandan art connects with the African traditions you studied in Lessons 1 to 3.
Definition
Ububoshyi: weaving and basketry, the craft of making baskets, mats and screens from plant fibres.
Agaseke: a Rwandan coiled basket with a pointed lid, woven from grasses and sisal, used for storing things and as a gift.
Imigongo: Rwandan art of raised geometric patterns moulded from cow dung and ash and coloured with natural pigments.
Ububumbyi: pottery, the craft of making vessels from clay.
Cultural heritage: the objects, places, skills and traditions a nation inherits and passes on.
| Art form | Materials | Examples | Typical features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basketry and weaving (ububoshyi) | sweetgrass, papyrus, sisal, banana fibre | agaseke, flat trays, mats, screens, fences | coiled construction; triangles, zigzags and diamonds in dark and natural colours |
| Imigongo | cow dung, ash, natural pigments | wall panels, boards, tiles | raised spirals, zigzags, lozenges and nested squares in black, white and red |
| Pottery (ububumbyi) | clay | water and cooking pots, beer pots, decorative pieces | round forms, burnished surfaces, impressed or incised decoration |
| Wood carving | local hardwoods | milk pots, bowls, stools, drums, spoons | smooth, polished, rounded forms; often with woven lids or covers |
| Architecture | poles, reeds, grass thatch | traditional houses, royal residences | domed thatched roofs, woven walls and fences |
| Performance and adornment | fibre, beads, cloth, bells | costumes of intore dancers | headdresses of long pale fibre, beaded ornaments, leg bells |
An agaseke is built from coils: bundles of fine grass are wrapped in flat strips of sisal and stitched, round and round, from the base upwards. The pattern comes from switching between natural and dyed sisal as the weaver works (Figure 1). Because each coil sits on the one below, shapes are built in steps, which is why agaseke patterns are geometric. The pointed lid, often tall and conical, completes the form.
Baskets have long been used to store and carry food and valuables, and to carry gifts at important family occasions such as weddings. Today agaseke is also made for sale by many weavers' cooperatives and is widely seen as a symbol of Rwanda, of welcome and of peace.
You met imigongo in Unit 3 as a source for digital motifs. As an art form, its key features are its relief (raised ridges, not flat paint), its geometry (spirals, zigzags, lozenges and nested squares) and its limited palette of black, white and red, traditionally from natural materials. It comes from the east of Rwanda, and it was revived by a women's cooperative near Kirehe after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, when the skills had almost disappeared.
Rwandan art is a living tradition. Basket weavers, imigongo makers, potters and carvers sell their work in markets, craft centres and abroad, and painters, sculptors and photographers show contemporary work in galleries and art centres, especially in Kigali. According to the Rwanda Cultural Heritage Academy (RCHA), Rwanda has eight national museums. They include the Ethnographic Museum in Huye, with collections of baskets, pottery, carving and tools; the King's Palace Museum in Nyanza; and the Rwanda Art Museum in Kanombe, Kigali, which shows modern and contemporary art.
Worked example 1: analysing an agaseke
Describe: a coiled basket with a lid, in natural and dark fibres, with a dark band that climbs the side in steps.
Analyse: the repeated horizontal coils create rhythm; the stepped diagonal band adds movement; the contrast of dark and pale makes the pattern clear.
Interpret: the careful, even stitching shows patience and skill; the basket's use for gifts gives it a meaning of respect and friendship.
Judge: a strong design in which the method of making, coil by coil, creates both the form and the pattern.
Worked example 2: comparing Rwandan and Central African art
Compare an imigongo panel with Kuba raffia cloth (Lesson 2).
Similar: both use bold geometric patterns, such as zigzags and lozenges; both were traditionally made by skilled specialists, often women in the case of imigongo; both use natural materials and a limited palette.
Different: imigongo is rigid, raised relief on a wall or board; Kuba cloth is soft, woven and embroidered textile. Kuba patterns often change as they go, while imigongo patterns are usually regular and symmetrical.
<em>Inside Rwanda's first non-profit contemporary art institute</em>, from IGIHE English. Notice how contemporary Rwandan artists work, and look for any links to traditional forms such as weaving or imigongo.
Warning
Accuracy and respect. Describe Rwandan art in its own terms, using correct Kinyarwanda names, and do not mix up imigongo (raised relief) with flat painted patterns.
Tip
Pattern, fibre, function. Three words that sum up much traditional Rwandan art.
Practice
What is agaseke, and how is it constructed?
Why are agaseke patterns geometric rather than curved?
Give three features of imigongo.
Name two national museums in Rwanda and say what you could see in each.
Give three characteristics of Rwandan art, with an example of each.
Compare Rwandan art with the West African art of Lesson 1: one similarity and two differences.
Project. Interview a basket weaver, potter, carver or imigongo maker in your area, or study one object at home. Write a short report: what it is, how it is made, what it is used for, and what it means to its owner. Add a labelled drawing.
1. A Rwandan coiled basket with a pointed lid; bundles of grass are wrapped in sisal and stitched round and round from the base upwards.
2. The pattern is built stitch by stitch and coil by coil, so shapes form in steps: triangles, zigzags and diamonds.
3. Raised relief ridges; geometric patterns such as spirals, zigzags, lozenges and nested squares; a palette of black, white and red from natural materials (any three).
4. For example: the Ethnographic Museum in Huye (baskets, pottery, carving, tools); the King's Palace Museum in Nyanza (a reconstructed royal residence); the Rwanda Art Museum in Kanombe (modern and contemporary art).
5. For example: geometric pattern (imigongo); fibre and weaving (agaseke, royal residence); function with beauty (milk pots).
6. Similar: art is linked to social life and ceremonies, and geometric pattern is important in both. Different: West Africa has many masks, figure sculptures and cast-metal works; Rwandan traditional art focuses more on basketry, imigongo, pottery and architecture.
7. Check: the report covers making, use and meaning, with a labelled drawing and the name and permission of anyone interviewed.
Which Rwandan art form would you most like to learn from a master maker, and how could you use it in a modern design?
Further reading
Sources and credits
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
