SITTING IN its Plexiglas case, the wood object looks, at first, like any other museum artifact.

Removed from its original context in ritual ceremonies, the head carved by the Fang people of West Africa confronts us with its serene expression and regal cheekbones, leaving us to wonder about its origin and meaning while offering no tantalizing clues -- other than being something beautiful to look at -- as to its purpose.

But thanks to the curators of "Art/Object: Re-contextualizing African Art" at San Francisco's Museum of the African Diaspora, visitors will get a clearer picture of the everyday uses of fascinating sculptures and objects created by tribal or indigenous cultures.

By integrating archival footage, video and photography of the people who have created and continue to use the colorful masks, costumes and ceremonial items on display, the show offers visitors a chance to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation of what the objects mean and the people behind them.

Film, rituals

Organized into five sections, "Art/Object" quickly moves beyond the Fang piece, carved in the 19th century, to an adjacent monitor screening the 8-minute short "Fang, An Epic Journey," by New York filmmaker Susan Vogel.

The witty film takes a biting, satirical look at the voyage of a piece of sculpture. Vogel charts its neutering (many African objects had certain anatomical features amputated before being displayed in the West) and its artificial aging (the application of dark patinas and other alterations to suggest antiquity). She skewers the surrealist and modern art circles who fetishized such objects, posing pale Man Ray beauties with abstract-looking masks. And she ends the film with the sculpture's acquisition by a wealthy, blond collector.

From there, viewers can detour into a small theater to watch another film showing ritual masks of butterflies, leopards, snakes and crocodiles in use during an African initiation ceremony. It's an academic documentary meant for educational purposes rather than an aesthetic exercise, but it does a good job of immersing viewers in a coming-of-age ceremony in a Dossi village in West Africa.

Users, makers

The exhibit also introduces us to two important figures of West African religious practices -- the priest and priestess. Through a handful of photographs, we meet Kolawole Oshitola, a Yoruba diviner, or babalawo, and Mamissi Toyi, a priestess. And we're treated to an unfortunately small number of objects used in ceremonies, including an intricately carved circular divination tray and horn-shaped tapper to summon spirits, and a painted statue of celebrated African water divinity Mami Wata.

More satisfying are two large sections devoted to costumes and masks worn by performers during ceremonies, and the blacksmiths who fashion tools used for spiritual practice and protection. Highlights include a 20th-century dark-wood granary door from Mali whose rows of carved figures protect foodstuff, and a selection of ceremonial spoons, iron gongs and horns.

More videos, including a short documentary of an Ele/Gelede ceremony in Western Yoruba and Michael Johnson's film of a funeral celebration show the energy of dancers wearing raffia and fiber costumes and intricate, elaborate masks similar to those on display. The sights and sounds help bring the objects -- and the people and stories behind them -- to life.

Contact Jennifer Modenessi at jmodenessi@bayareanewsgroup.com.