Mask - Wood - Yaure - Ivory Coast

A Yaure mask, Ivory Coast, of oval hollowed form, with a goatee, a protrudingbeak-like mouth beneath a slender nose framed by big slanting eyes, with zoomorphic tapering ears, scarification marks on the cheeks, vertical ridge in relief to the center of the forehead, encircled by zigzag patterns, intricately incised coiffure, surmounted by two Kalao birds, pierced through at the rim for attachment; blackened, shiny patina, traces of age and ritual use, provenance Amadou Bouaflé. Yaure masks symbolize the 'yu' or spirit power. (. . .) Yaure masks are worn predominantly on two occasions: the Je celebration and the Lo ceremony. The first purifies the village after a death and helps the deceased's soul on its way to its final resting place. Painted masks are mainly worn by dancers during this ceremony, while for the Lo ceremony, masks covered with black pigments appear. . . Lit. : Boyer, Alain-Michel, Patrick Girard, Marceau Rivière, Art Premiers de Cote d´Ívoire, Sepia, 1997; 83, 84. Amadou Bouaflé, during his performance on 30. 12. 2019 in his house in Abidjan, Ivory Coast (Last photo) .