German original, uploaded:
On the market
In June 2019, Wardin Wamba, after his annual return from Congo, launches two “white woman” masks of the kind used in kifwebe dances in south-east Luba. At first I do not notice the special quality of the version of a mature woman, because of a fresh and oversized bushy beard made of raffia straw. Later, Wardin bravely cuts it off, and the mask instantly transforms into a slender, well-proportioned mask body of the kind pleasing to the eye and depicted in Felix (“Luba Zoo,” see below). So, on the first occasion, I only acquire the version of a young girl who populates the world of traditional Luba female sculpture, one has to say ‘adultimately’. It is a typical dance mask: light, rubbed to a shine internally through the chin and skullcap of a slim dancer, with a view through three openings, and up to the top of the elaborate coiffure many practical drilled holes on three levels for fastening the costume. Wardin’s comment that the ‘Belle Madeleine’ mask appeared with the popular animal masks and his reference to “books and the internet” made me search Google Search and found what I was looking for. Here I quote a number from the random offer at ‘Google Images for …’, where my uploads also appear – always without being asked: >>
