Photographs © Tim Hamill
BAGA, NIMBA GREAT MASK 4, 51", $2500, Guinea,
SOLD
The most important of the Baga art forms is the great mask, or Nimba.
It represents the mother of fertility, protector of pregnant women,
and presides over all agricultural ceremonies. The dancer, wearing a full
raffia costume, carries the mask on his shoulders, looking out through holes
between the breasts. In use, such masks rise more than eight feet above
the ground; they often weigh more than eighty pounds. Most show a standardized
pattern of facial scarification.
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