sowei mask, unrecorded Bassa artist

Artwork Overview

sowei mask, mid-late 1900s
Where object was made: Liberia
Material/technique: wood; pigment; palm oil; carving
Dimensions:
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 38 x 26.5 x 28.5 cm
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 14 15/16 x 10 7/16 x 11 1/4 in
Credit line: Gift of Jill Zinn
Accession number: 2007.2922
Not on display

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Images

Label texts

Debut

The blackened sowei or “ancestral spirit” mask, traditionally colored with plant materials, embodies the initiation of young girls into the Sande society. This marks their transformation into full members of their community. The symmetry of form, downcast eyes, high forehead, and elaborately coiffed hair represent an idealized woman valued for her modesty, wisdom, and refinement. These masks represent the society’s ancestral spirit, Sowei, and were historically the only wooden masks commissioned, owned, and worn by Bassa women.

Debut

The blackened sowei or “ancestral spirit” mask, traditionally colored with plant materials, embodies the initiation of young girls into the Sande society. This marks their transformation into full members of their community. The symmetry of form, downcast eyes, high forehead, and elaborately coiffed hair represent an idealized woman valued for her modesty, wisdom, and refinement. These masks represent the society’s ancestral spirit, Sowei, and were historically the only wooden masks commissioned, owned, and worn by Bassa women.

Exhibitions

Kris Ercums, curator
Kate Meyer, curator
2013–2015
Kris Ercums, curator
Kate Meyer, curator
2016–2021
Kris Ercums, curator
2021–2023
Kris Ercums, curator
2021–2022