The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 28, 2024

Buffalo Mask

Buffalo Mask

early to mid-1900s

Description

Among the Bwa people, masks with human, animal, and fantastic traits typically represent protective bush spirits. This mask’s horns and muzzle identify it as a bush buffalo. Masked dancers appear during the dry season for initiations, funerals of elders, market days, harvest celebrations, and annual renewal rituals to protect the well-being of the community.
  • at least 1968–1969
    Katherine C. White [1929-1980], Gates Mills, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1969–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Fagg, William. African Tribal Images: the Katherine White Reswick Collection. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1968. Reproduced: cat. no. 31
    Lee, Sherman E. “The Year in Review for 1969.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 57, no. 1 (January 1970): 2–50. Reproduced: p. 41, fig. 128; mentioned: p. 147 www.jstor.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 411 archive.org
    Kathman, Barbara A. A Cleveland Bestiary. Cleveland, OH; Cleveland Museum of Art, 1981. Mentioned: p. 16, p. 60; Reproduced: p. 17
    Henry John Drewal. African Art: A Brief Guide to the Collection : the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1989. fig. 17
    Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991. p. 153
    Connell, Timothy C., and Jackson J. Spielvogel. World Art Transparencies. Cincinnati: West Educational Pub, 1998. Acetate 43
    May, Sally Ruth, Jane Takac, and Barbara J. Bradley. Knockouts: A Pocket Guide. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2001. Mentioned and Reproduced: pp.67-8. no. 70; listed: p. 118.
    Donley, Gregory M., "A New Face for African Art", Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine. Vol. 42 no. 04, April 2002 Mentioned & reproduced: p. 6-7 archive.org
    Petridis, Constantijn. South of the Sahara: selected works of African art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2003. Reproduced: cat. 5, p. 40 - 41
    Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine. Vol. 43 no. 09, November 2003 Reproduced: cover archive.org
    Petridis, Constantine. "A New Installation for African Art in Cleveland." Tribal: the Magaine of Tribal Art. 9 (3) no. 36 (Autumn-Winter 2004): 68-73.
    Franklin, David and C. Griffith Mann. Treasures from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art; London, Scala Publishers Ltd, 2012. pp. 288-9.
    Basquiat, Jean-Michel, Sam Keller, and Iris Hasler. Basquiat: The Modena Paintings.Berlin : Hatje Cantz ; Riehen/Basel : Fondation Beyeler, 2023. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 35, fig. 2
  • A Cleveland Bestiary. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 15-December 16, 1981).
    CMA 1981: A Cleveland Bestiary, October 14-December 9, 1981, cat. no. 11, repr. p, 17.
    Year in Review: 1969. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 27-February 22, 1970).
    CMA 1970: "Year in Review 1969," CMA Bulletin LVII (Jan., 1970), p. 47, no. 128, repr. p. 41.
    CMA 1968: African Tribal Images: The Katherine White Reswick Collection, cat. no. 31, repr.
  • {{cite web|title=Buffalo Mask|url=false|author=|year=early to mid-1900s|access-date=28 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1969.2