Influence of African Art on the African Culture

                                        By: Liz Hunhoff

          African art has been used by African for thousands of years. It also has influenced the African culture in many different ways. From music, to sculptures, to paintings and drawings, the African culture has been influenced in some way by each of those things.

          One piece of African art that influences the African culture is the masks that are made. The masks are to be used by only certain people in the community. Usually, these people need to belong to a particular group within the community in order to gain the right to use the special and powerful object. After earning the right to use the mask, individuals must undergo special training, trials, and tests before they can actually use the object.

          The African mask serves many purposes, such as teaching, making laws, policing, entertaining, and contacting the spirit world. Young men who attend brush school use one mask; called the brush mask, to help them learn about the responsibilities they will face as men and to prepare them for their initiation ceremony of becoming a man. Other times, masks are used in ceremonies to try and cure people with deathly diseases.

          An African mask is just one piece of art that has influenced the African culture. It is very sacred, and is not to be used for decoration. The African mask isn’t the only thing that is sacred to Africans. There are the sculptures, paintings, drawings, and music that have made the African people who they are today.

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