Mask (Rom)
Ambrym
Object Label
On the island of Ambrym, masked performance is controlled by a complex system of copyright. Rights to the knowledge of mask and costume construction, as well as rights to perform them, must be purchased from the man who owns a mask’s copyright, and often only by men of certain ranks.
This rom mask was never meant to be seen as an isolated sculpture and cannot be fully understood without the dynamic costume, the performer’s movement, the accompanying music, and the audience’s response. Rom masks are typically adorned with feathers, barkcloth, leaves, hair, and other materials and are worn atop a costume of banana leaves. Each mask represents a specific ancestor spirit and would be performed publicly to show off a man’s newly achieved right to wear it.
This rom mask was never meant to be seen as an isolated sculpture and cannot be fully understood without the dynamic costume, the performer’s movement, the accompanying music, and the audience’s response. Rom masks are typically adorned with feathers, barkcloth, leaves, hair, and other materials and are worn atop a costume of banana leaves. Each mask represents a specific ancestor spirit and would be performed publicly to show off a man’s newly achieved right to wear it.
Caption
Ambrym. Mask (Rom), 19th–20th century. Wood, pigment, plant fibers, 21 × 11 1/4 × 7 1/2 in. (53.3 × 28.6 × 19.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Altria, 2008.26.5.
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Gallery
Not on view
Collection
Culture
Title
Mask (Rom)
Date
19th–20th century
Geography
Place made: Ambrym, Malampa Province, Vanuatu
Medium
Wood, pigment, plant fibers
Classification
Dimensions
21 × 11 1/4 × 7 1/2 in. (53.3 × 28.6 × 19.1 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Altria
Accession Number
2008.26.5
Frequent Art Questions
I find this to be very similar to modern cubist art.
and this too!Well that would be because cubists, Picasso in particular, did draw inspiration from North African masks and the arts of the Pacific Islands.These masks come from two cultural groups of Vanuatu, a series of islands in Melanesia in the Pacific ocean. Though perhaps aesthetically similar, the works of a cubist painter and these masks serve drastically different purposes.The first example you sent me for example was used in rituals tied to important life events, namely circumcision. The four faces represent the mythical woman Nevimbumbao and her children.
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