The visual culture of the Yoruba people communicates their spiritual and cultural beliefs through functional pieces used by its people. Representations of idealization and ancestral homage are among some of the most widely recognized subjects.
Like previously talked about African cultures, the Yoruba people have a king who adorns himself in an abundance of beadwork and lavish clothing. When the king wears this beaded crown, his spirit takes on another essence. His feet cannot touch the earth when he is wearing this crown and the spirits of his ancestors embody his own figure. The rest of the Yoruba people see the ancestors looking out from behind this beaded crown rather than the king himself and therefore provides them a direct visual connection to their spiritual beliefs. 
Divination boards used for Ifa are another form of visual art that connects the Yoruba people to their spiritual culture. Divination is a way to for the believer to potentially answer a question or connect with the spiritual world. The divination board is elaborately decorated with relief carvings and a number of symbols. The babalawo recites specific verses to which others may interpret dependent on their own scenarios. These decorated boards may appear to be mainly aesthetically pleasing but hold a much more meaningful purpose when in practice. It would seem that almost everything in Yoruba culture has a defined purpose.
The Egungun masquerades are another interesting aspect of Yoruba visual culture. Representing the dead, entertaining the audience and providing comical amusement are among some of the situations represented by the masqueraders. These dances and performances are a way for the masqueraders to be in touch with themselves as well to present idealized qualities. Overall I found the connections between the spiritual beliefs of the Yoruba culture to have a unique connection to how they visually represent these ideas. I think it is a really beautiful concept to have the visual and spiritual parts of a society so deeply interlinked with one another.
Good choice of pieces, and good point re: the visual and spiritual being inherently integrated.
ReplyDeleteGreat job on the blog reflection for this week. I think that the thesis practice we did in class reflects in your blog for this week. You clearly defined this in your opening paragraph and then laid out with the examples following. This was more of a specific versus broad approach and you had great supporting details and characters for the divination boards and the masquerades. It was an interesting exerpt to read!
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