This is a resource for the enhancement of teaching and learning in world art studies. It provides access to primary visual source materials in England, from art collections held at the University of East Anglia, Norwich and the University of Durham. At its heart is a database of images from these two important collections.
This site is protected by international copyright laws. As a user of this website you can access, print or download the content on this website for personal, educational and non-commercial purposes. You cannot publish, perform, present, broadcast, rent, lease, distribute or otherwise make public the content in any manner or format. You cannot modify or manipulate the content, nor interfere with any existing copyright notices. The copyright to the content of this site is all held by its original authors.
Welcome
Welcome to the 'Artworld Community'. In this section users can utilize most of the interactive features of the Artworld web site. In order to take full advantage of these features, you must first be registered and logged in.
Logging in
You can log in by clicking on the link which appears below the grey bar at the top right hand-side of the page. If you have not yet registered with Artworld, this can be done in an instant by, likewise, clicking on "log in" and then completing the registration form.
ARTWORLD has arisen from a need to address some of the most persistent problems in learning and teaching from world art and archaeology collections; objects are often widely dispersed, out of context and too fragile to interrogate effectively. Recent developments in technology have made it possible to solve these problems. Digital recording and the latest broadcast media allow intense scrutiny of otherwise inaccessible objects to a greater number of people whether learners or teachers.
The Sainsbury Centre is one of around a hundred university museums in the UK which are regularly open to the public. Sir Robert (1906 -2000) and Lady Lisa Sainsbury donated their collection of world art to the University of East Anglia in 1973 and the Sainsbury Centre first opened its doors to visitors in 1978.
World Art Studies means the study of the visual arts of all periods and of people everywhere. The School of World Art Studies and Museology at UEA is one of the few institutions in Britain where art history is taught from this broad perspective. As well as covering the arts of Europe in detail, students may also explore the arts of Asia, Africa, the Americas and the Pacific.
Africa is written as a first and second year undergraduate module covering mainly the traditional arts of sub-Saharan Africa. It is organised around a network of key themes and sub-themes which derive from anthropological and art-historical investigations of the material in the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts. It has been designed to be freely explored in a non-hierarchical way. Texts and discussions have been contributed by lecturers and students and represent a number of different points of view. They may be viewed in any order in order to stimulate new links to fresh ideas.
All five senses provide the perceptual data to activate an aesthetic response, but for the visual arts we are primarily concerned with sight. How much of our response is cultural or learned, and how much is 'natural' or innate is still a contentious issue (reactions to seeing snakes, rats or spiders vary from one person to another, but also one culture to another).
The term ‘Akan’ covers an ethnic or linguistic and culturally linked group of people in Ghana and the Ivory Coast with a well defined political and social organisation, based originally on a military model. The most powerful were the Asante. Powerful chiefs of the vanguard, left wing, right wing, bodyguard, etc. bore allegiance to the Asantehene, the paramount chief. Numerous independent Akan states existed in Southern Ghana, some calling themselves ‘Fante’ rather than Asante, but organised on a similar model. They all shared a tradition of migration from further north.
The Peoples Republic of Angola was, until 1975, a Portuguese colony stretching inland some 600 miles from the Atlantic coast. The land is mostly savannah with pockets of tropical forest in the north. Much of Angola consists of undulating plateau up to 2,000 metres high, separated from the coast by an arid plain.
One of the Akan group from the south-east of the Ivory Coast around Krinjabo and the lower reaches of the Comoé river. They are divided into a number of hierarchical kingdoms. Like the Asante, each king or chief is the incumbent of a ‘stool’ enshrining the dignity and spiritual ancestry of the people. Although his position is inherited, it remains subject to the approval of his elders and people.
One of the lagoon peoples living to the east of Abidjan belonging to the Akan group. Atye origins are uncertain and their language differs. They have their own distinctive style of carving. Body parts are clearly demarcated with grooves indicating knees and ankles. Small ivory finials, notable for their detail, have been attributed to them. These appear originally to have been attached to staffs or fly whisks.
Additional Material
I still have the default Drupal template in place, so don't worry about the look of the site at the moment.
I want to get the structure as solid as possible before the site gets too big and more difficult to alter, so I haven't inputted much content yet.
You can see that I have already experimented with the Taxonomy module. At this point there are 2 ways in which you can access taxonomy terms. On the left there is a menu which include the following categories:
* Countries and regions
* Cultural Groups
* Study modules
The term 'criticism' is derived from a Greek verb, which means "to discern, to judge, to operate by discriminating" (Kerchache. 1988.p277). This act of discrimination requires the application of values. This is an important element in the development of African art, as value judgements were based on aesthetic criteria, determined by Western notions of art and underlying social processes.
What is the canon of African art? One answer to this question may be formed by looking at the pictures in books on African art, and probably quite similar answers could be obtained from displays in art museums and analysis of the prices which such objects realise at auctions. Canons, like all forms of classification, are historically contingent and subject to change. While the canon of European Renaissance or Impressionist art may be stable today, the canon of African art remains unstable.
Hairstyling and hairdressing have great cultural significance in Africa. Coiffures have been regarded as diagnostic of ethnic origin, gender, phase of life cycle, as well as simply fashion; and have been related to power, age, religion, and politics. The transitory yet highly visible nature of hair ensures its suitability as a medium for personal and social expression.
