African Masks in Contemporary Art: From Picasso to Hazoumè and Mutu

The article analyzes the function of the mask in contemporary art, starting from a verse by Ungaretti and the Latin meaning of 'persona'. In 1907, Picasso, during his visit to the Musée d'Ethnographie du Trocadéro in Paris, understood that African masks served as instruments of mediation, inspiring him to create Les Demoiselles d'Avignon. Modigliani drew inspiration for his elongated faces. Expressionism used the mask to combat hypocrisy, while the Surrealists and Metaphysical artists transformed it into a disturbing object. Artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat deconstructed colonialism. Romuald Hazoumè criticizes consumerism with masks made of plastic jerrycans. Wangechi Mutu combines female bodies with masks. Massimiliano Pelletti merges marble and African forms, while Michele Stanzione brings historical masks to life at the 61st Venice Biennale. The article warns that the latest Biennale might reduce the mystery of masks.