Author Description

"For over a century, the Yaka, who live in the southwestern corner of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, have produced figurative statuettes, masks, and other objects that have fascinated explorers, merchants and traders, colonial officials, missionaries, and collectors of African art. This book brings together some of the earliest as well as some of the most visually striking examples with a view toward their context in ceremony and curative rituals, namely, their use in chiefly installations, "institutions of affliction," and n-khanda initiation to manhood. Also explored is their interplay with primary artifacts and overarching concepts within Yaka society such as leadership, divination, and sorcery. Moreover, art objects are embedded in the history of a people with earlier and later examples and nuanced changes that occur in society, not the least of which include colonial influences and "anti-fetish" religious movements." -- Publisher's description