The People of Mali

Today, most of the population of Mali (estimated at 10,878,000 in 1995) is African. The major groups are the Bambara (the linguistic name for the Bamana and Bamakan people), Fulani (the English name for the Fulfulde or Peul groups), Soninka (which includes the Marka), Senoufo (the linguistic name for groups also referred to as "Senufo"), Songhai, Maninke (includes the Malinka and the Maninka), and the Dogon. Nomadic Tuaregs and other Berbers roam the Sahel and parts of the Sahara. In all, there are thirty-two languages listed for Mali, but French is the official language and Bambara is widely used. The Bambara are the largest cultural segment, but the Dogon (roughly 5% of the population) are world-renowned for their artwork and dance festivals (Grimes 1996; "Mali, Republic" 1998).

The influence of the Bambara extends far beyond the areas that they inhabit. Art historians often include in discussion of the Bambara style the works of the Khassonke (of the Kassonke linguistic group- about 1% of the population of Mali), Malinke, Marka (of the Soninke group) and Minianka (the Minianka are of the Senoufo Mamara). Different variants of style cannot be easily identified from pieces that have been collected (Luezinger 1960, p. 76). While there are some distinctive differences, their sculpture was all in the hands of the Nuni (today called numuw)-- the caste of ancient stock of Mande smiths spread over an extensive area of the Sudan (Luezinger p. 76 & Ulrich 1996).

With the majority of the people Muslim, it is remarkable that there are several cultures still practicing traditional religion and making traditional art. They use as inspiration an array of animals including cheetah, oryx, gazelle, giraffe, warthog, lion, leopard, antelope and jackal. An abundance of kapok trees, baobob, shea trees, and gum trees provides a source for their extraordinary art ("Mali, Republic" 1998). It is these indigenous cultures that are the subject for this research.

Interesting comparisons can be found between the ethnic groups of the Senufo (of northern Cote d’Ivoire and western Mali), and neighboring Bambara, the Dogon, and the Kurumba (primarily of Burkina Faso but also into Mali). Similarities may also be found in the work of the Mossi, Marka, and Bobo (some Bobo groups referred to as Bwa). This is not surprising, since people frequently travel and long distance commerce and expansionist politics have played such an important part in African history. Forms, ideas and functions of art are also highly mobile and interactive. A single kind of art may traverse thousands of miles, showing only slight stylistic changes and meanings (Martin & O’Meara 1995, p. 225). While each culture produces unique works with meanings often known only to the people who produce them, these similarities can not be ignored. The African carver enjoys almost unlimited creative freedom. Even where he seeks to reproduce a pre-existing model that has been enshrined by tradition, he is still at liberty to add his own variations and flourishes, thus complicating documentation of style (Balogun 1990, p.27).

The Concept of "Art"

Traditional arts are predominately three dimensional. In this region, there are similarities in form and spirit; the same synthesis of human form with elongated bodies, stylized features. In all cultures there is abstraction of animal forms with similar markings or motifs and horns as decoration. While the term "abstract" is a term used to describe twentieth-century modern art inspired by these works, one may also use it to describe the African art. These artists were not naive or untrained individuals-- distortions were deliberate and executed in such a way as to express what was beautiful or to make sense of their world-- to come closer to the unknown. Many of these pieces were very spiritual in nature--they are not "Primitive." As Balogun has written, "Beauty in art is not necessarily dependent on a faithful imitation of nature, an approach that the world has absorbed through exposure to African art" (1990, p. 27)

In the writings of Hampate Ba, one of the most profound philosophers of Mali, we have learned "weavers, sculptors, potters and smiths were members of exclusive societies in which the masters, assisted by their servants, taught the apprentices the sacred craft. Rather than derive money...they devoted themselves to the sacred craft in order to please the gods and the spirits of the ancestors" (Meauze 1968 p. 12). Craftsmen were classed according to their crafts and were considered to be capable of neutralizing or unleashing the forces of nature to punish or reward (Ibid. p.12). Today, carving, smithing, pottery making, weaving--and pyrography (wood burning gourds), a more recent craft of the Bamana-- are all seen as ways to supplement a family’s income.

In much of Africa, the concept of "artist", as we know it in our Western cultures, is unknown. The artists did not consciously set out to make a work of art. They considered the piece a success if it fulfilled the task, as task that was primarily functional--economic, magical or religious (Wassing 1968, p.6). The artist is one from the community who happens to better at woodcarving or better at weaving or making weapons that another. They may even receive commissions from neighboring villages. The artists’ names were originally known, but without writing, their names were soon forgotten and they are only remembered by their work. In many cases, the owner or others may have known the name of the sculptor. Early collectors failed to ask, labeling the work simply by the culture from where it was obtained (It is also important to note that many pieces were collected far from where they originated). Likewise, there is no single word for "art" in the African languages; there are actually a number of such words for things that are beautiful or things that are made. The Bamana of Mali use words for sculpture: mafile fenw, laje fenw, meaning "things to look at" (Blier in Africa 1996, p. 31).
See some masquerade trends today.

Beliefs

For the Bamana, man is the seed of the universe. His art is used in ceremonies intended to control the environment. Man does not exist as an individual, but as a person (the word person means "mask" from the Latin word per-sona the artificial face worn by actors), as suggested by Marcel Mauss (Laude in Huet 1978, p.17). Marcel Griaule (who has done extensive studies of indigenous cultures) has written that the "dancer plays the part reserved to the wooden object, the sculptured mask that covers his face or head" (ibid. p. 17). Initiation societies integrate the Bamana beyond the village, bringing together persons for common purposes. There are six different initiation societies among the Bamana (resources do not agree on the hierarchy of these societies) -- each with its own founding ancestor, god or spirit, and its own symbols, masks and rituals. Much of the art the smith produces is for one or the other of these societies.

Among the Bamana, the Dogon, the Senufo and the Kurumba (and others of the western Sudan), the earth is the symbol of female fruitfulness-- whether in times of a rich harvest or in times of drought. When the rain falls, it represents the male life-giving principle to the farmer. Life has constantly to be renewed, the rhythm of the seasons signifying death and rebirth. In order to intervene in these events, he has invented an official who is known by different names--Master of the Land, Father of the Land, Lord of the Land. The bearer of the position is traditionally a descendant of the first man who made the land arable and founded the first village. He occupies the position of high priest and decides when the work in the fields is to be done. He carries out the ritual of the earth cult; calls for rain in drought and sends it away if it lasts too long. The Master of the Land (whatever is title may be) is the spiritual leader and preserver of tradition (Wassing 1968, p. 178).

WHO ARE THE BAMANA?

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