The Chokwe people, thier History and Art
 The Chokwe came from the great southern migration of the Lunda. The myth tells of the rise of power of Mwantiyavwa, the chief of the new Lunda empire, who was the child of a Luba hunter, Chibinda Ilunga and his bride Lweji. Due o internal conflicts around the succession, breakaway movements and migrations were triggered. Later migrations were caused from within ruling lineages, were conflicts were settled by force or by territorial division, resulting in the departure of a new chief followed by part of the court and the people. The new chief, "explorer and warrior", led his people to new hunting, fishing areas and farmlands.
The Chokwe live in a huge, often multi-ethnic territory, which covers the greater part of north east Angola and large areas of Kasai Occidental, south Bandundu and south west katanga, in Democratic Republic of Congo. In present day however, they are more widely spread in various parts of west and north-west Zambia.
Their origins inthe seventeenth century go back to a dissident faction of teh Lunda empire, whos mythical ancestor and cultural hero, Chibinda Ilunga, is believed to have introduced a number of hunting techniques, new forms of magic, ritual and court manners which contributed to the greatness and influence of Chokwe art. He is such an important figure in the Chokwe mythological "history", that many believe that most figures of male chiefs that are sculpted in the classical style are in his likeness.
Most great Chokwe sculpture was collected in the nineteenth century, or are presumed to have been made in the period.
 The Chokwe Pwo African art mask is a female mask. When masqueraded, the performance which is for entertainment, a comedy of manners or social satire, is very popular and is open to every one. In present times, it is mostly masqueraded at Christmas celebrations, political rallies or workshops on rural development run by NGOs.The Chokwe Pwo mask can represent (in caricature form) only women in general, but it can also secretly represent a loved one, or be the source of a firm bond between a pwo mask owner and one of his ancestors.
A lot of care is taken in the pwo African masks presentation, the accessories and adornement can give hints to the fashion and period in which the mask was crafted. The oldest pwo masks have always had beautiful scarification marks and teeth filed to point, which at one time was a sign of beauty. Earrings are further adorned with coins, inported beads, ribbons and little zinc tokens that served as tax receipts in colonial times. |
