Visitors to the various regions within the African continent are frequently surprised by the lack of clothing worn by traditional or rural people. Despite few cloth coverings, though, the locals are draped in jewellery and decorations. Indeed, using the body as a canvas for a particular type of art has long been a tradition amongst many of the world’s earliest inhabitants. The African tribes have five main ways of beautifying or decorating their bodies. These are:
1. Scarification
2. Body painting
3. Beadwork
4. Jewellery
5. Mutilation
Scarification involves cutting, burning or whipping the body to create permanent scars. These are frequently inflicted in specific shapes and sizes, and indicate something about their host. For example, the pubescent girls of the Nigerian tribe Ga’anda are scarred with delicate designs on their stomachs, backs and shoulders to indicate that they are entering womanhood. The Sudanese tribe of Shilluk uses scarred dots across the forehead to convey details about that person’s heritage.
Body painting is a common method, and is used in religious rituals, celebrations and to indicate sexual maturity. The colours frequently represent the tribe (as a sports jersey would indicate what team the spectator supports), or can be used to convey a specific message about that person. Oil, clay, chalk, ash and plant products (fruit, sap etc...) are traditionally used to create different colours and textures. The Nuba males in Sudan are painted and decorated all over their body between 17 and 30 years of age to indicate their life stage, while other tribes only use the paints for worship or mourning.
Africans are famous for their use of colourful beads, both on their body and in their accessories, hair and clothing. Certain colours and patterns usually represent certain aspects of the wearer, such as gender, number of children, power, achievements and so on. When colonialists began to arrive in Africa, they brought with them exquisite glass beads, which the Africans held in such high regard that they even traded human slaves for them. Apart from these, they also used ivory, fish bones and shells for beads.
Jewellery was made using leather, hair, grasses, beads, bones, shells and seeds. It came in the form of traditional necklaces, bracelets, ankle chains and rings, but also as headdresses, foot detail, and strings of decorations draped over the hair, back and stomach. When jewellery was made from a rare or valuable substance, like coral or certain types of woods and shells, they became more valuable to those wearing them.
Mutilation includes lip plugs, earlobe plugs, neck rings and similar methods of changing the body structure and appearance. These take years to effect, and become the identity of the tribes making use of them. They often result in a bizarre physical feature, such as bottom lips that have a disk the size of a dinner plate in the soft tissue, or elongated necks that have been stretched by gradually increasing the number of copper rings around them.
Art is a fascinating way of identifying a group of people, or of expressing personal ideas and preferences. The African people have used it extensively to establish their own identities and cultures.
http://www.ezakwantu.com/Gallery%20Scarification%20-%20African%20Body%20Modification%20Clips.htm
African body art uses the human body as a way to express an individual's status, spiritual beliefs, or ethnic affiliation. It can be created on the body itself in the form of tattoos, scarification, body painting, or coiffures. Body art can also be created for wear on the body in the form of garments or jewellery.
African body art changes the wearer into an object shaped by colour, movement, textures, patterns and designs.
Sometimes body art can have protective symbolism, created to help a person during dangerous life changes such as movement from childhood to adulthood.
For centuries, the African body fuelled many Westerners' prejudices about Africans. The image of "naked savages" long poisoned the relationship between African and Western peoples and lead to many Africans abandoning their own distinct attire in favour of Western dress.
Today many Africans embrace a variety of traditional forms of body adornment, creating a sumptuous visual display and turning each decorated person into a vibrant and unique work of art.
Tribal body art is used to express beauty or social status among people in certain tribes. Depending on the method of body art, depends on what meaning the form of art has for the person. In some tribes women stretch their lips as a sign of beauty. Generally the women with the lip plugs/plates are considered to be much more beautiful than those without.
This research has been carried out to exam tribal body art in order to understand its relevance within the tribe. It will help me to understand why many people in tribes has body art and for what specific reasons. This research will also help to to examine how the body art is created.
http://www.face-painting-fun.com/cultural-face-painting.html
Tribal or Cultural Face Painting has been used for many motives. For hunting, religious reasons, and military reasons (mainly as a method of camouflaging) or to scare ones enemy. Several tribal fighting techniques were calculated to strike terror. Some warriors entered battle naked except for a loin cloth, but their bodies were streaked in bizarre examples in red and black paint. Decorating one's face in various patterns and shapes has been a part of the cultural make-up of many societies since the beginning of time. Face painting is a common theme across cultures as divergent as the Indigenous American tribes in North America and various tribes in Africa and South America. In Native American Tribes, Face Painting has been used for artistic expression since ancient times. The art of transforming ourselves with make-up and masks is a universal phenomenon. Before we sought to vent our artistic impulse on a cave wall, we painted on our faces and bodies. Indigenous peoples of the Amazon have said that in this power to change ourselves, we demonstrate our humanity and set ourselves apart from the world of the animals.
Patterns developed over time to signify a variety of cultural events and these, conveyed an emotional meaning that was attached to them. The wide range of patterns that a face painter can create, enhance the emotions and meaning of the cultural events. The patterns can be color specific or randomly geometric seemingly without any significance. The shapes and colors convey a strong bond and meaning amongst people who have a face painting tradition. They are a connection to their past and carry a very strong cultural meaning in their lives. Tattooing was practiced and known by the ancient Egyptians, starting during the Middle Kingdom. Geometric designs have been found tattooed on the chests, shoulders, arms, abdomens and thighs of the mummies of dancers and royal concubines.
The reason tribes use face art to transform themselves may be varied. Sometimes they choose to do so as a part of a tribal ritual or at other times they do so to mark their status (as is the case with some aboriginal tribes), but the colorful and dynamic language of the face painting remains the same.
Raw materials used for Tribal Face Painting
Tribal Societies, who still follow the ancient custom of face painting, choose the colors according to the available raw materials. In ancient times, only primary and locally available colors like red, blue, yellow or white were used. Sometimes by sprinkling dust or soft bird feathers, special effects were achieved. Nowadays most tribesmen choose to use branded face paints. Painting a face is an art, perhaps the very first art, going back to the origins of human culture. Artists paint bold, mask-like designs inspired by imagery from Nature, imagination, and traditional masks. Unlike dance and music where the most charming modes and sweetest strains disappear before they are understood, painting captures the emotions and expressions and retains the impact for a long period. Painting is essentially a combination of lines, forms, colors, tones, texture and space. It attempts to convey the spoken and unspoken expressions with the strokes of a brush.
Face painting is considered to be an important tradition among Native Americans. It is much more than just a beautifying practice. It’s a sacred social act of distinction and a cultural heritage. On special occasions faces of the tribe members are painted to augment one’s appearance and power. Each tribe of the Indians has its own and unique way of face painting. For Native Americans Indians, roots, berries and tree barks are most commonly used to make the dyes for face painting. These natural raw materials are ground and made to a paste to make the dye. Clay of different hues is also used in Native Indian face painting. These wonderful colors along with the ideal face painting designs do create a desired effect. The process envolved a strict ritualistic order, that is maintained during the application of these colors. The colors are first applied around the nose and only the index finger and middle finger is used for the application. The rest of the face i.e. the forehead, chin and eye areas are then carefully covered with paint. For some face paintings they would cover their face and then plaster it down with mud leaving the holes for the eyes and mouth. Generally the warriors would paint their faces with colored clay. They would then do the design of their tribe. Each tribe has its own designs for war and ceremonies. After warriors came home from a hunt, they would have a big feast, cutting up the animal they hunted and killed. They would play a lot of games, containing parts of the animal they killed. The Indians would use every part of the animal they killed.
The Plains Indians used paints to adorn themselves, their clothing, their homes and their horses. Though their culture lacked a written languages, the pictures and symbols they drew were rich in meaning and told the stories of the people. Many different colors of paint were used, originally made with the materials at hand — plants, clays, even duck dung. Reds were by far the most popular color, but early natives used brown, red, yellow, black, blue, green and white as well. With the availability of pigments from white traders, 19th century Indians used other colors as well. A yellow paint was made from earth from the Yellowstone River, as well as from bull berries and pine tree moss. Blue was obtained from duck droppings found on the shores of lakes, or from blue-colored mud. White earth and clay were used to make white paint. Green was made from plants, copper ore or mud. The pigments were placed over a fire to dry, then ground into a fine powder on mortars of stone or wood. They were then mixed with tallow. The colors, kept separate in small buckskin bags, were mixed with hot water when the artist was ready for them.
Indian artists painted with straight willow branches (which acted as rulers to draw straight lines) along with short, flat sticks that he or she used to trace a pattern onto a hide. Brushes were made from chewed cottonwood or willow sticks, or from buffalo bone. Each color had its own brush.
Significance of the Colors
Colors in Native American culture have special significance. Red is a violent color; it is the color of war. Strangely enough black, which is considered to be an inauspicious colors in most cultures, is the color of ‘living’, worn on the face during war preparations. White predictably is the color of peace. The color green when worn under the eyes is believed to empower the wearer with a night vision. Yellow is the most inauspicious color, it is the color of death, as it is the color of "old bones." Care should be taken not to wear a lot of yellow, and is worn only when a person is in mourning. Also yellow, means a man has lived his life and will fight to the finish. Each Indian tribe has its own and unique way of face painting. Face paintings can be the lightest streak of color on the face. It can also mean covering their faces completely.
19th Century Seminoles
While early 19th century Seminoles would paint their face and hands for special occasions, this practice was no longer done in public by the late 19th century. It was done on special occasions only, to augment one's appearance and power. All face painting should be done sparingly, and with high regard for the occasion. It might not be out of place at a battle re-enactment or for a serious ceremony, but would be entirely inappropriate for an encampment or for a casual demonstration. A reenactor would be misplaced if he painted himself while he lounged around camp, or while stomp dancing in any except a Green Corn Dance. It would be a big mistake to put on face painting without having a genuine reason or need. Face paint was a way the Seminole drew upon the natural powers in his world to add to his own. A rough parallel might be the personal strength many Christians find in a crucifix hung from their neck.
In India
Body painting and face painting are being practiced in Indian culture since ancient times. Men painted their bodies and faces for camouflage when they went hunting. Face painting is a ritual in Indian villages in their religious festivities, dance and drama. Face painting is very much a part of Indian folk culture and tribal art even today. People are often seen getting their faces painted in different styles during temple festivals and religious events in India. Face painting is also an intrinsic part of the rich dance and drama culture of Indian life.
Kathakali
As all the stories depicted in Kathakali relate to mythological characters and as the natural stage is nothing more than a few square feet, lit by a single coconut oil fed lap, the entire get up is designed to generate an atmosphere to suit the story. The loud instrument used, the make-up and costumes employed, the painting of the faces, the display of the 'Chutti' as part of the facial make-up, are only the instruments used to achieve this objective. Irrespective of the individual who puts on the costume of a character like Nala, the audiences sees only Nala. The individual artiste is fully submerged by the elaborate make-up. It is, however, true that the outstanding talents of an individual artiste cannot be contained within the formal frame-work of a standard costume. In course of time, the individual does make an impression on the audience, but on a basis quite different from other histrionic arts. The costumes are thus intended to make the play as impersonal as possible.
The costumes are very elaborate and fall into basic types. The make up is equally elaborate. While being made up, the actors lie on their backs as the make up men work on their faces. The facial makeup is designed in such a way as to indicate the intrinsic nature of each and every character. Pacha, Kathi, Thadi, Kari, Minukku and Theppu are the different types of make-up followed in Kathakali which are determined according to the basic qualities of the character portrayed. The underlying purpose is to create in the minds of the audience an atmosphere of the supernatural.
Henna Art
Women in India are traditionally painted henna on their hands and feet, insides of their arms and up their shins most often for a wedding, or other special occasion. Sometimes the chest, neck and throat will be tattooed. The subject matter is rather abstract, and often incorporates religious and auspicious symbols.
The history and origin of Henna is hard to trace with centuries of migration and cultural interaction it is difficult to determine where particular traditions began. There is very persuasive evidence that the Neolithic people in Catal Huyuk, in the 7th millennium BC, used henna to ornament their hands in connection with their fertility goddess. The earliest civilizations to have used henna include the Babylonians, Assyrians, Sumerians, Semites, Ugaritics and Canaanites. The earliest written evidence that mentions henna specifically used as an adornment for a bride or woman's special occasion is in the Ugaritic legend of Baal and Anath, inscribed on a tablet dating back to 2100 BC, found in northwest Syria. Henna has also been used extensively in southern China and has been associated with rituals for at least three thousand years, during the ancient Goddess cultures. The use of Henna in the 4th-5th centuries in the Deccan of western India is clearly illustrated on Bodhisattvas and deities of cave wall murals at Ajanta, and in similar cave paintings in Sri Lanka. The evidence proves henna usage in India seven centuries before the Moghul invasion, and hundreds of years before the inception of the Islamic religion, which began in the mid-7th century AD.
Aboriginal Face & Body Painting
Aborigines who inhabit central Australia have inherited specific face painting designs from their ancestors. These designs are painted onto the face and body using ground ochre mixed with water. They are applied either in stripes or circles. Even the modern paintings of the Central and Western Desert are characterized by these specific designs. It seems the aboriginal tribes have devised an entirely new language of painting, using cryptic symbols for different things. Body painting, decoration and personal adornment traditionally carry deep spiritual significance for Australian Aboriginal people. Body painting is carried out within strict conventions that are primarily related to spiritual matters, although the creative nature of these activities is also acknowledged. The particular designs or motifs used by individuals reflect their social position and relationship to their family group and also to particular ancestors, totemic animals and tracts of land. People are not free to change their appearance at will; they must conform to respected patterns. In many situations individuals are completely transformed so that they 'become' the spirit ancestor they are portraying in dance.
http://chenmikehk.hubpages.com/hub/Elongated-Ear-Body-Art
The elongated ear lobe that could be found in Borneo is a dying art. Ear lobes were elongated by piercing at an early age and brass weights ear rings are put on for the sole reason of elongating the ear lobes. It was suppose to signify beauty for the wearer and men and women can be found to have elongated ear lobes. Maybe men’s grooming did not start with the modern age after all.
Elongated ear lobes also signify status. The longer it is the more significant that person is to the tribe. Perhaps the length is due to age as the ears can only be elongated over time. In Eastern tribal communities, elders are respected. So the longer the ear lobes are, the older the person is.
It is a dying art form because as the tribes emerge from the jungle to join the modern world, long ear lobes were found to be impractical in the city. Stories are told that it was cumbersome for youngster to play basketball with their dangling ear lobes. Often the ears were caught and injuries caused. Is it any wonder that it is no longer practiced in the urban society? You can still get a glimpse of such body art in the jungle villages where these tribal people can still be found.
Dayak
Dayak Tribe
The Dayak or Dyak are a people indigenous to Borneo.It is a loose term for over 200 riverine and hill-dwelling ethnic subgroups, located principally in the interior of Borneo, each with its own dialect, customs, laws, territory and culture, although common distinguishing traits are readily identifiable. Dayak languages are categorised as part of the Austronesian languages in Asia. Estimates for the Dayak population range from 2 to 4 million.
Penan
More About Penan
No Amazon products found
The Penan Tribes
The Penan are a nomadic aboriginal people living in Sarawak and Brunei. They are one of the last such peoples remaining. The Penan are noted for their practice of 'molong' which means never taking more than necessary. Most Penan were nomadic hunter-gatherers until the post-World War II era when many they were settled mainly in the Ulu-Baram district but also in the Limbang district of Sarawak. They eat plants, which are also used as medicines, and animals and use the hides, skin, fur, and other parts for clothing and shelter.
Kelabit
Kelabit Tribe
The Kelabit people, who has close similarity to the Lun Bawang people, maintain that Lun Bawang people were once Kelabit people who originally resides the Kerayan-Kelabit highland of Central Northeast Borneo. In the seventeenth and eighteenth century, they gradually migrated to the low lands near today's Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei.
Orang Ulu
Ear Weights
Orang Ulu
Orang Ulu ("remote people") is an ethnic designation politically coined to group together roughly 27 very small but ethnically diverse tribal groups in Sarawak, with a population ranging from less than 300 persons to over 25,000 persons.
Kenyah
Kenyah
The Kenyah, traditionally being swidden agriculturalists and living in long houses (uma dado'), is an umbrella term for over 40 sub-groups that mostly share common migration histories, customs and related dialects. Kenyah lived in long houses in a small communities. Each long house consists of families who choose their own leader (headman)
No comments:
Post a Comment