ART is life, and life is for living. This is the essential function of Mankind. Everything interrelates. African life and thought are inseparable. Art is an implement of power; it bridges the gap between Man and his Gods, and Man and Nature. The ability to understand art, does not depend on the ability to see and appreciate but to understand the culture of the people, to know the past). When considering AFRICAN ART, one can be sure that the ART OF RHODESIA is certainly the last to come to one's mind; that is, if one excludes the Prehistoric Artist of Rhodesia and the ART of the Zimbabwian culture, and concentrates on ART executed after the PIONEER PERIOD (circa 1857) to the turn of the century. Comparatively little has been written on the aspect of local art, and when it bas, it is primarily concerned with SHONA SCULPTURE. Rhodesian art is primarily functional, and the range of materials as well as the range of techniques are equally vast. The art of sculpture and carving particularly in wood, is a well-known characteristic of Africa. Rhodesia, however, does not offer such a vast selection of traditional art today, whether in wood, stone or metal. The carvers in Rhodesia, unlike those of some African States have long since downed their tools as there are no longer the rituals that at one time inspired the artist. These rituals have almost died out and the Kings that were his patrons have been out of power for centuries. The destruction of traditional African values is inevitable because of cultural change, white civilization, and more recently, ex:ploi ta tion has forced the traditional carver to become a carpenter or to join a co-operative in order to provide Tourist Art. Intro., p. 1.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:rhodes/vital:2481 |
| Date | January 1974 |
| Creators | Des Fontaine, Fayne |
| Publisher | Rhodes University, Faculty of Humanities, Fine Art |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis, Masters, MFA |
| Format | 80 leaves, pdf |
| Rights | Des Fontaine, Fayne |
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