| This study examines African plastic and performing arts in terms of its cultural context, meaning, and function. My thesis is that African art needs to be re-examined from the eyes of the African. The PDE examines African art in the context of African world view, a departure from the fragmented studies used by many Europeans. Using qualitative and art historical methods, the PDE investigated (1) the structure, meaning and cultural values inherent in African art, (2) the African creative process and what makes them unique, (3) dominant characteristics that recur to give the arts and culture African identity, (4) the impact of African idiomatic expressions in art in the Diaspora.; This PDE argues, that many Euro-American scholars fall short in their analyses, critique and understanding of African art due to an unwillingness to compromise their ideals for good art and to acknowledge the African's traditional beliefs. Important question of common essence and Africaness, provides conceptual frameworks for the critical analysis of African culture, plastic arts production and axis of engagement with other cultures. These were discussed by (1) examining common and divergent issues in the elements and principles of design in African and European art, (2) defining African art as derived from an African worldview, (3) understanding the functional, cultural, formal and collective nature of African art and (4) contrasting between the African and European interpretations of art. The field study and interviews provided opportunities to acquire greater knowledge, understanding and appreciation of African arts, a crucial forum for the examination of African and diasporic expressions, representatives, identities, continuities in the development of conceptual innovation and entry of new perspectives.; The study concludes that the unique features and philosophical connotations inherent in African Art derive from an African worldview; that examining African art outside of these considerations renders analysis that is devoid of the essence of African Art; that African art transcends purely aesthetic terms of conventional art appreciation. It exists and functions as part of an intricate cultural world, and is in its material reality, a visible "portal" into that world. |
