In the rainforests, where dwellings were made of wood, the walls and ceiling were covered with mats with complex geometric woven ornaments. In the steppes, clay buildings prevail, and they are decorated with various painted projections, jambs, cornices, and sometimes with various pillars, vultures, etc.

If we turn to the sculpture itself, it is divided into three main genre groups. The first group includes images of spirits, ancestors, or certain historical figures, and for tribes with developed mythology, gods. The second group includes masks used in the rites of initiation of young men and women into the tribe. This group also includes shaman masks, dance masks, and masks of secret unions. The third group consists of sculptural carvings.

The art of wood carving, mats ornamentation, and beaded embroidery is widespread among all the peoples of Tropical Africa, both West, East, and South.

Music. One of the features of African musical styles is their question-and-answer nature, which is complemented by forced polyrhythmics. (The simultaneous sound of different rhythms that merge into a single complex whole). And every musician, dancer, or listener has their own place. The song genre in African music is a situation where the soloist and the choir repeat sentences. The chorus often consists of the audience. Thus, the performance of music in African culture and its perception is a form of communication. The goal is to attract as many people as possible to a musical event.

Unlike in Europe, music in Africa is an integral part of social life. Now even protests resemble carnivals.

Music promotes interaction between people and gives them a place in the community.

A characteristic feature of music is drums. Each tribe has its own drums, and each has its own “language”. There are almost as many “languages” of talking drums as there are language dialects (and there are more than 2000 of them in Africa). Each drum has its own rhythm, creating its own musical style.

The main feature of African culture and thinking in general is a focus on the past. But this past is not frozen, but is constantly present in the present. (Perhaps that is why it is so difficult for Africans to build a modern democratic society without past customs and traditions)

The artist focuses on the human figure. The head is the main element, and the body only indicates gender and tattoos.

The main thing in art is an action, an action (dance, ritual), so art objects are “moving” (a mask, during a ceremony).

African art exists for everyday life, protecting from the evil eye or other forces, evil or good (amulets, fetishes).

In Africa, works of art are an integral part of beliefs and belong to the entire community. For example, African bambara masks are masks with calm faces and closed eyes. They depicted deceased relatives and were used in funeral rites or on holidays. Frightening masks, where human features are combined with those of an animal. They were worn by members of secret societies African statuettes, most of them depicting the dead, or an animal totem, such as the antelope statuette of the Bamana people in Mali.
And finally, the general characteristics of African art are: strong, dramatic expressionism, lack of naturalism and sharp, angular forms. The African artist sculpts free and independent masses and obtains the symbol of a human being. All this is nothing more than stylization, which Europeans realized only in the art of the twentieth century.

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The Arab scientist Abu-l-Fida (thirteenth century) made the first astronomical determinations of the geographical location of Africa, Ibn Batuta reached the shores of Zanzibar via Sudan in his travels (fourteenth century), and the African Lion traveled to Africa in the fourteenth century.

As a result of the Roman campaigns, the western shores of Africa were discovered, and the true outlines of this region were clearly outlined with the discovery of the Cape Verde (1416) and the Gulf of Guinea (1471) by the Portuguese. In 1498, Vasco da Gama rounded the Cape of Good Hope and headed for India.

Following the Portuguese, the Dutch, English, and Danes began to discover the coastline and territory of Africa.

In 1788, the African Society was founded in London to explore Africa. Five years later, similar societies were formed in Germany, then in Belgium, Italy, and Malta.

African art is understood as the art of tribes and nationalities of Tropical (Black) Africa. Until the 19th century, this art was viewed from the point of view of ethnic value and was classified as “naive” (“primitive”) art.

The wave of avant-garde art in the 20s of the twentieth century brought a new perspective on cult sculpture.

Since then, African art has been perceived exclusively from an aesthetic point of view.

Before the discovery of Africa, its peoples developed in isolation. However, the local primitive cultures (the first stage of cultural development, the early period of art evolution) testify to the diversity and richness of the artistic abilities of the population. Living in huts, their inhabitants imaginatively made everything necessary for the home, such as furniture, which attracts attention with its craftsmanship. Made of wood, these products demonstrate the developed sense of form in their creators (they impress not only with their decorative design but also with their comfort). The supports of furniture for sitting were usually made in the form of human or animal figures.

Tables, chests and other objects are richly ornamented. Unfortunately, the name of the artist almost always remained unknown. However, several names have come down to us. Among them is Sultan Njoya, the creator of writing and patron of the arts. The masks and furniture created at his court were known throughout Africa, and their creators often became leaders in their villages.

North Africa is of particular interest for the development of art in this region: Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco (Maghreb countries), and Libya. Neither Greece nor Italy have Roman cities that are as well preserved as Lepti-Magna and Sabratha in Libya, Douga in Tunisia, and Timgad in Azhir. The magnificent works of art found during the excavations – mosaic statues – adorn the museums of the capitals of these countries.

The true capital of North Africa, Carthage sought to resemble Rome in everything. That is why its theater, amphitheater, and circus were huge monumental structures decorated with columns and statues. It was in the theater of Carthage that Apuleius, a famous writer of the second century, delivered his speeches.

Gladiatorial fights took place in the amphitheater, and horse races on chariots and on horseback took place in the circus. The circus was built on the slopes of a hill, where seats for spectators were arranged. The racetrack had the shape of an elongated rectangular field.

In Carthage, there was also an odeon, an indoor space for musical performances and competitions. Its walls were lined with colorful marble, and statues stood in niches.

In the center of Carthage and other cities of North Africa, there was a forum, a square for citizens to gather. The forum was surrounded by columns. The Capitol, the upper temple, which was located on the highest point in the city, was obligatory.

The cities were decorated with arches that were built in honor of some important event or deity, emperor or noble person.

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Various geometric signs, drawings, and ornamental compositions on the walls of dwellings, household items, and fabrics have magical (protective) and aesthetic (decorative) significance. A defining characteristic of the traditional religious consciousness of African peoples is the religious and mythological picture of the world. It takes on specific features in different ethnic groups, but it has in common the idea of the interaction of supernatural and natural forces, their mutual transformation.

The world of the supernatural includes the main deity who generates (or from whom the world arises), minor deities (spirits) of water, forests, land, and ancestors, whose souls act as intermediaries between deities and people; ancestors play a special role, because they combine the properties of two worlds – the natural and the supernatural: the dead are members of a certain community of people, beings of another dimension, belonging to which makes them capable of influencing the fate of living people. That is why ancestor worship plays a central role in traditional African religions.

Traditional beliefs are closely linked to rituals and initiations, which represent the ritual and symbolic side of African ethnic life. Different rites correspond to important events and stages of human life. Thanks to these rites, personal characteristics acquire social significance and are included in the orbit of social relations. These rituals accompany births, manhood, entering the age of marriage, marriage itself, childbirth, old age, and, ultimately, death of an African. A special role is played by the rites of initiation into secret unions, which are still preserved among many African peoples. The task of these unions is to guide all aspects of the life and activities of the members of the communities where they originated. The secret unions resolved issues of war and peace, carried out diplomatic missions, organized a kind of education system, supervised compliance with traditional morality, and performed the functions of judicial bodies, and practiced traditional religion. The main purpose of these unions was to raise useful members of the tribe.

The central figure in the ceremonies of secret unions was the mask. No ritual was performed without its participation. As a rule, each secret union has one main mask, a symbol of power and authority. This mask protected the community members from disaster and misfortune. When girls are initiated, this mask teaches them ritual dances, housekeeping, and everything else they need in life. In the Poro men’s secret union, a mask that imitates an animal’s head is called a gbel-la.

The mask was primarily used during initiation ceremonies and was kept in a ritual bush located in a place well hidden from view, on a kind of altar. The mask and all cult and ceremonial objects are regarded as shrines, as relics. A head mask could be seen only a few times in a lifetime.

Masks were made of a special kind of wood, painted in colors that corresponded to their character, and eventually restored or replaced. In addition to masks associated with initiation rites, there are also seer masks, masks of peace, war, justice, danger, luck, hunting, harvest, competition, fire, new year, singers’ masks, and others. The colors of the masks vary. For example, the Wobe craftsmen of the Ivory Coast use black, red, blue, green, and white. Black represents power and physical strength, while red represents power and strength. The seer mask helps to find out the truth. It can only be worn by healers and wise elders. The kuan mask is used in the fight against evil sorcerers, and only old people are allowed to see it. The war mask and its costume, made of raffia, are red. It is an image of spilled blood and a sign of readiness to shed the blood of enemies.

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African arts and crafts play a key role in the cultural exchange between Africa and other regions of the world. Elements of African art, such as masks, sculptures, textiles, and ceramics, are often the object of study and admiration for artists and collectors from around the world.

African art inspires contemporary designers in various fields, including fashion, interior design, graphic design, and many others. Elements of African ornamentation, color schemes, and traditional techniques are often reflected in contemporary works of art and design.

African arts and crafts play an important role in preserving the cultural heritage and traditions of African peoples. By studying, documenting, and promoting these artistic traditions, we help preserve the history and identity of various cultural groups.

The production and sale of African handicrafts and art provide a vital source of income for local communities. The development of these industries helps to stimulate economic development and supports local industries and artistic traditions.

Through the study of African art, people are able to better understand and appreciate the cultural diversity and traditions of different peoples. This contributes to a tolerant and open society where different cultures can coexist while preserving their uniqueness.

African arts and crafts are an important part of the global cultural heritage and have a huge impact on the modern world. Its beauty, diversity, and significance continue to amaze and inspire people around the world.

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A special place among the finds is occupied by terracotta heads (sizes range from several cm to life-size) of a pronounced African type, characterized by sharp, almost grotesque expressiveness, vigorous modeling of generalized volumes, expressive and juicy modeling of the main facial features. The images show some similarity in style to Yoruba sculpture (this suggests that the Nok culture was created by the ancestors of the modern peoples of Western Sudan). Sculptural images of animals decorated with ornaments (an elephant’s head, a figure crouching like a monkey), pearl jewelry, fragments of dishes, polished stone axes and tesla, which were probably used for woodworking, were also found. Of great interest are fragments of ironware, which, according to the English archaeologist Bernard Fagg, who was the first to find these items, belong to the initial stage of processing this metal in Africa.

Portraits of the Nok culture were associated with burial rites. This tradition has survived in many cultures of West and Central Africa. The statuettes of people and animals also indicate that Nok plastics were already capable of conveying the dynamics of movement. This achievement of plastics has been preserved only in the sculpture of the lower Congo and in Angola. Certain features of Nock plastics continue to exist in the art of many peoples of West and Central Africa. For example, Baluba (Democratic Republic of Congo) sculptures have hairstyles similar to those of Nock heads; Yoruba (Nigeria) have similar shapes of eyes and lips; masks of the Nigerian Ibib and Ekoya tribes resemble the so-called “Janus heads” known from Nock culture.

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