Malian Decorative Art

The Dogon people are an ethnic group that lives on the Bandiagara cliffs facing the Niger River basin in the Republic of Mali, West Africa, and have a population of approximately 250...

An impressive large hand carved wooden granary door from the Dogon Tribe in Mali. The Dogon symbols are believed to invoke ancestral spirits wich guard the stored grain. Each door is...

Oumar Bocoum Mali, 1990's Spectacular Malian wedding hanging. Fulani weaver Oumar Bocoum from Segou is known to have learnt his distinctive style...

Large conical leather and straw tribal Fulani hat, Mali West Africa Fiber hat with leather applications that comes from the Fulani people in West Africa. It is typically worn by the Wodaabe, a nomadic cattle-herder subgroup of the Fulani. It is covered in leather straps both at the brim and top and with decorative leather elements in the middle. At the very top of the hat there is a knob which is covered in leather. At the base of the hat there is a chinstrap. The hats were featured on dancers in the 2018 music video "All the Stars" by the artist Kendrick Lamar...

Attractive tribal art and decoration object. Midcentury traditional terracotta grain storage jar from Mali (Dogon) Handmade vessel with fine ethnic geometrical decoration all around....

20th century tribal hardwood Dogon window panel The Dogon tribe is one of Africa's most fascinating tribes, but also a vanishing one. Located in the region of Mali, in West Africa, south of the Niger Bend, they've been living there since the 15th Century. The Dogon are best known for their religious traditions, their mask dances, wooden sculpture and their architecture. Historically, Dogon villages were established in the Bandiagara area in consequence of the Dogon people's collective refusal to give up their religious and cultural beliefs a thousand years ago. Dogon insecurity in the face of these historical pressures caused them to locate their villages in defensible positions along the walls of the escarpment. Because of this isolation, their art has remained one of the most authentic on the African continent and it has remained mostly intact. A striking design feature of Dogon architecture are the carved doors, windows and doorways which portray ancestral figures to protect the people of the village and their families. The representational carvings of ancestors serve to keep spirits at bay and offer protection from worldly and unworldly sources of harm. Primordial beings, ancestors, Kanaga masks...

Primitive African pestle with gorgeous patina.