AFRICAN FACES. An Homage to the African Mask

AFRICAN FACES

This beautiful book was born out of the passion and artistic insight of Marnix Neerman and Hugo Martens. One hundred and twenty-eight masks have been photographed in such a unique style that their artistic nature is revealed to the utmost. Each mask has been shot from the front and from the rear, and detail shots reveal each mask as an almost autonomous work of art.

And yet, these masks are not considered works of art in their countries of origin, but rather tools that have a function and a meaning in socio-religious life. Many of these masks have never been displayed or published before and come from reference collections such as the Museum for Middle Africa in Tervuren, Belgium; the Etnographic Museum in Antwerp and private collections in Belgium, France, UK and USA. 'African Faces' was produced in cooperation with the archive of the Yale university, "Tribal Art" magazine, "Parcours des Mondes" in Paris and many other experts and will become a future reference work when it comes to the African mask; the powerful photographs accentuate the artistic value of the masks like never before.

Marnix Neerman is a private collector of African masks and a dealer in contemporary art. Hugo Maertens is a well known photographer and has worked for different publishers and museums worldwide. Herman Brussens is emeritus professor of African art and cultural history at the University of Ghent.