The History of Art in Africa and India

Hinduism, its teachings and philosophies, is distinctive for its absence of a central figure. No founder, prophet, or origin story are tied to the growth of Hinduism, yet they have designed a path for redemption, a belief that through reincarnation we reach a higher varna, and become closer to liberation. 

While some sources say that Hindu temples are small and sparse, you can see the ornate architectural fabrication of artistic movements such as Islam and European Renaissance in the Hindu Shore Temples, which were resurfaced from the Bay and Bengal.  At the Southern tip of the Ganges, in Mamallapuram, monuments to Hindu history carved in stone shows in great detail the deities and figures that the Hindu people admire. The most impressive monument, shared by both this film & Living With Art, would be the Kandariya Mahadeva, which honors Lord Shiva. This structure has 3 tiered temples, and one of the most ornate exteriors ever carved in stone.  The engravings are of sexual rites, as sex is the source of life, and at the center of the Mahadeva temple is the a Lingum, a phallic, totem-shaped cylindrical structure to honor Shiva, who populates the Earth. 

     At the other end of the spectrum of creation is the River Ganges, as the concept of death & reincarnation pervades their teachings.  Arti ceremonies aim for the "removal of pain" caused by the constant regenerative nature of reincarnation. They involve a sacrificial offering of food for the deities of Hinduism, and involve all four elements, which is why the offerings are lit by candle and set afloat on the river (matter, fire, water, and air).  

African Art: A Legacy of Oppression offers insight into the meaning of African artifacts from different points in history. The political and social context of many pieces of art are discussed. Adam Hochschild specializes in the art that emerged from the Congo, where the the leaders of the European conquest of Africa committed a 40-year mass homicide, killing half of the population of that country.  King Leopold was the political leader of Belgium from 1865 to 1909 of led many European powers to Central African to exploit such natural resources as ivory and rubber, as well as occupy the societies that existed there, employ all of the populations of natives as slaves, only to eventually trade and commodify them.  

Journalist Paul Solomon and scholar Ramona Austin  discuss the importance of masks in ritual culture, but from more of an interpretive/artistic standpoint, only brushing on the history that would have brought about these artifacts. Their findings intersect Living With Art's readings on the art of the Nok tries, the royal alters of the Benin people, and the use of terracotta, ivory, brass,  and wood in making ceremonial offerings.  Austin's selection of sculptures draws on the same art that came from the Bamana cultures in the 13-15th century, which featured themes of mother & child, nurturing the young, and personifying the female contributor in tribal culture.  

The collection of Congo art the Tervuren Musesum is still maintained by the external culture that once imposed harsh colonial rule and caused a massive genocide there. Moving the collection to Central Africa, where it was created and respected socially, would make more sense, instead of continuing to profit off its display in a world far-removed.  Surely, the European powers of Britain and Belgium have modernized and improved their political agenda, but it should be left to the United Nations or another international arts committee to decide which culture should hold this massive collection.