Beads, bones, rags, straw, leather, pottery, fur, feathers and blood--these are the raw materials of vodun artworks. The power of these images lies not only in their aesthetic, and counter-aesthetic, appeal but also in their psychological and emotional effect. As objects of fury and force, these works are intended to protect and empower people and cultures that have long been oppressed. In this first major study of its kind, Suzanne Preston Blier examines the artworks of the contemporary vodun cultures of southern ...
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Beads, bones, rags, straw, leather, pottery, fur, feathers and blood--these are the raw materials of vodun artworks. The power of these images lies not only in their aesthetic, and counter-aesthetic, appeal but also in their psychological and emotional effect. As objects of fury and force, these works are intended to protect and empower people and cultures that have long been oppressed. In this first major study of its kind, Suzanne Preston Blier examines the artworks of the contemporary vodun cultures of southern Benin and Togo in West Africa as well as the related voudou traditions of Haiti, New Orleans, and historic Salem, Massachusetts. Blier employs a variety of theoretically sophisticated psychological, anthropological, and art historical approaches to explore the contrasts inherent in the vodun arts--commoners versus royalty, popular versus elite, "low" art versus "high." She examines the relation between art and the slave trade, the psychological dynamics of artistic expression, the significance of the body in sculptural expression, and indigenous perceptions of the psyche. Throughout, Blier pushes African art history to a new height of cultural awareness that recognizes the complexity of traditional African societies as it acknowledges the role of social power in shaping aesthetics and meaning generally. This book will be of critical importance not only to those concerned with African, African American, and Caribbean art, but also to anthropologists, African diaspora scholars, students of comparative religion and comparative psychology, and anyone fascinated by the traditions of voudou and vodun . "An extraordinary tour de force."-- Choice "Extraordinarily detailed....Blier's examination of the entire, often mysterious history of vodun is...in a word, definitive."-- Booklist "A serious study that concentrates on the hidden power of objects and the meaning behind that potency is long overdue. Welcome Susan Blier's African Vodun ....Certainly a must for...those concerned with the psychology of art."--Janet L. Stanley, Art Documentation "[Blier] is usually sensitive to the need to resist imposing Western artistic values and academic methodologies inappropriately upon such art. But she offers the reader a gift even more precious; she offers rare insights into how various art forms--sculpture and home architecture in particular--yield meanings for the African users of such art.--Norman Weinstein, Boston Book Review
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Seller's Description:
Very Good. African History / Art Religion. 8vo. First Edition (1995. ) 8vo paperback with 476 pages. The book is in very good condition very slight shelf wear to front cover. Interior is clean and tight. Profusely illustrated. "The far-reaching influence of the West African voodoo, who still exerts a great influence on the people of this region is covered in this book as well as the creation of art and the rituals of the followers. A serious study that concentrates on the hidden power of objects. The author succeeded, a very good overview." Black-Brown spine/ White-Black text.
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Seller's Description:
Good. Paperback, 6.75 in. x 10 in. Minimal wear. Clean, no writing or marks. Copyright 1995 by The University of Chicago Press. Many photographs, Full-color and B&IW. Acknowledgements, Linguistic Note, Appendix: Collections and Stylistic Features; Sources; Notes, Bibliography; Index.
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Seller's Description:
Very Good in Very Good jacket. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall A beautiful crisp clean hardcover copy in very good condition, lightly bumped lower corners. DJ in very good condition with faint sunning to spine, now in protective mylar cover.
