CALENDAR

Masquerades and Metaphors:

Art Exhibition, May 1-30, 2007; Gallery 33, Ventura, CA.

• Masquerades and Metaphors explores the forms, functions and meanings of figuration and figurative imagery in modern African art. Figuration is the process of giving allegorical or emblematic form to something abstract, especially through the use of human or animal figures/symbolism. Imagery refers to the pictorial images found in works of art such as paintings and sculptures especially as they use figurative language and metaphors. Figurative Imagery thus defines the use of an allegorical or emblematic human or animal figure to represent an abstract idea or quality. Figurative imagery abounds in modern African art but so far, there is no sustained analysis of the reasons for its persistence and ubiquity. The exhibition proposes to investigate the meanings of this tendency and provide a critical framework for understanding figuration in modern African art. This exhibition also engages the humanistic ideal in modern African art interpreted as a cultural attitude that places ‘the body in physical and conceptual space’ at the center of art and life. It includes representative examples of artworks by modern African artists who work in a strictly figurative style and others who may have done figurative work in the past but moved on to other styles. The meaning of figurative imagery differs considerably in modern African art as does the styles and aesthetic concepts adopted by artists in their use of such imagery. The exhibition explores these different meanings through a wide range of artworks selected from significant modern African artists including those who adopt an abstract or stylized approach to figurative representation.