Masks and Faces in Contemporary Art: From Picasso to Afrofuturism
A recent article delves into the significance of masks in modern art, charting their transformation from early 20th-century primitivism to today's decolonial and Afrofuturist movements. It opens with a poem by Giuseppe Ungaretti and explores the origins of the term 'persona' (mask). The piece includes a humorous account of an incident that necessitated a physical mask for public display. The modern fascination with African masks began in 1907 when Picasso discovered them at the Musée d'Ethnographie du Trocadéro, which influenced his work, Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. Artists such as Modigliani, Ensor, Nolde, Munch, Magritte, and de Chirico utilized masks to investigate themes of identity and alienation. In the late 20th century, figures like Basquiat, Hazoumè, and Mutu reclaimed masks to challenge racism and consumerism. The article cautions against viewing masks solely as rhetorical tools.
Key facts
- The article discusses the paradox that each person coincides with their own mask, as per the Latin 'persona'.
- Picasso's encounter with African masks at the Musée d'Ethnographie du Trocadéro in 1907 led to Les Demoiselles d'Avignon.
- Modigliani's elongated faces and empty eyes derive from African masks, aiming for spiritual progress.
- Expressionists Ensor, Nolde, and Munch used masks to reveal hypocrisy and alienation.
- Surrealists and Metaphysical artists like Magritte and de Chirico used masks as uncanny objects.
- Jean-Michel Basquiat incorporated skull-like masks in his graffiti to critique racism.
- Romuald Hazoumè creates masks from 50-liter plastic petrol cans, critiquing consumer waste and colonial looting.
- Wangechi Mutu uses masks as prosthetic devices in Afrofuturist works, hybridizing female bodies with machine parts.
- Massimiliano Pelletti merges Hellenistic marble carving with African totemic forms.
- Michele Stanzione's photographic installation at the Equatorial Guinea Pavilion of the 61st Venice Biennale uses light to animate historical masks.
- The article warns against the normalization of masks as mere rhetorical devices in contemporary art.
Entities
Artists
- Giuseppe Ungaretti
- Pablo Picasso
- Amedeo Modigliani
- James Ensor
- Emil Nolde
- Edvard Munch
- René Magritte
- Giorgio de Chirico
- Arthur Rimbaud
- Jean-Michel Basquiat
- Romuald Hazoumè
- Wangechi Mutu
- Massimiliano Pelletti
- Michele Stanzione
- Gustav Mahler
- Simone Martini
Institutions
- Musée d'Ethnographie du Trocadéro
- 61st Venice Biennale
- Equatorial Guinea Pavilion
Locations
- Paris
- France
- New York
- United States
- Benin
- Venice
- Italy
- Equatorial Guinea