Magazines - Tribal Art  

By Jan Elsen

Introduction
Almost twenty years have passed since the first exhibition called Beauté Fatale was held at the Credit Communal in Brussels. This innovative exhibition and the catalogue that accompanied it fast became the principal reference for those interested in Central African weapons and helped elevate this specific art form in the eyes of collectors, many of whom had previously considered only masks and statues.
Taiwan recently hosted not one but two installments of a newly conceived exhibition on the subject, the goal of which was to present examples of the highest possible quality. The selection of weapons for this exhibition and its accompanying book was made from several major museums as well as notable private collections. Central Africa is distinguished from most of the rest of the world by the tremendous variety and range of the weapons that have been produced there, and each piece included in the exhibition represents the most accomplished artistic achievement of its type for its given region. One of the aims of the project was to showcase the ingenuity of African craftsmen, who were able to create masterpieces using only the most basic of tools. Many of the forms are so intricate that it is sometimes hard to imagine that they are, in fact, weapons. However, with the exception of currencies and insignia in the shape of weapons (and certain relatively recent creations), most of these weapons are much more functional than one might imagine. These weapons are indeed utilitarian objects but they combine design and function to a remarkable degree.