African art mural themes

All the tribal African art murals can be divided into three broad themes.

The first of them is a kind of symbiosis of the Forest and the Settlement.

Members of the tribes wear special masks and outfits, paying tribute to this duality.

For example, the masculine principle is presented in the form of an elephant, the strongest animal.

And the feminine, on the contrary, is well-groomed, as far as possible from the “natural” image, representing civilization and contrasting with the wild, unbridled masculine.

The second theme is the relationship between the sexes.

Art in Africa has often been used (and is used) as a kind of “therapy” that allows family problems to dissolve and evaporate.

The third big theme is the problem of controlling natural and supernatural forces to achieve what you want.

Each region of the continent has its style of art.

In the western region, it is customary to pay tribute to great ancestors and make symbolic sacrifices, which greatly affects the overall picture of local art objects.

In Central Africa, art is more applied, and original earthen architecture, embroidery, jewelry and leather products, and intricate hairstyles are common here.

But no matter what African art mural, the work is always bright and cheerful, because it is designed to sing of life!

Nowadays, African motifs are very popular all over the world.

Prehistoric African art Murals

At first, African art murals were cave paintings.

And later they were used to decorate the walls of royal palaces or sacred huts, with motifs that ranged from geometric shapes to hunting and war scenes.

The earliest known African art mural, such as the Blombos cave engravings ( c . 70,000 BC), pit skin eggshell engravings  ( c. 60,000 BC), or cave stones Apollo 11 (25,500–23,500 BC) were probably the work of the yellow-skinned Bushmen.

An indigenous people of southern Africa.

The Bushmen are the oldest known natives of South Africa.

But exactly how they came to be and how far back their history goes is a mystery.

It is not even clear whether their ancestors were responsible for pictographs and petroglyphs that have been found in various prehistoric sites in the country.

However, the old Bushmen are related to the best and oldest works of art murals in the world at sites throughout South Africa.

Characteristics of African rock art murals

The general character of the ancient African art murals is naturalistic. And many murals can be seen as pictograms.

That is, they express ideas and are not “art for art’s sake”.

The vast majority of the figures are humans and animals.

But a few other objects are probably symbolic, although their meaning is not always clear.

The prehistoric color palette used by Bushmen artists in their rock art consisted of earth pigments. 

Red and brown from bole or hematite; yellow from iron ocher; white from zinc oxide; black from coal or soot; blue from iron and silicic acid.

The blue is especially unusual and does not appear in the rock art of Europe.

The thin lines found in Bushman paintings were drawn with thin hollow rods, sharpened, and used as needles.

Ethnic African art murals

Abstract African art

African Abstract art mural is famous all over the world and more so in Africa.

The abstract elements of African art forms also influenced later art movements across Europe.

African artworks often favor visual abstraction over any naturalistic artistic representation.

It is mainly because the art forms of Africa mainly represent objects or ideas that portray a situation that involves the objects.

This can be seen in the Ile-Ife head portraits, which greatly represented people and abstract elements.

Human figure

A prominent and vital theme of African art murals is the representation of human forms and images.

Human beings are the main element of most African murals.

And in many forms of art, humans collaborate with animals.

There are also art forms that portray semi-animal semi-human representations.

In ancient times, during trade between Africa and Europe, human representations found their way onto European ceramics, which then saw into African artistic cultures.

Performance art

A distinctive feature of African art mural is that it is intended more for interpretation than for static purposes.

Utilitarianism and three-dimensional art forms from Africa are used in ceremonies, traditions, collaborative programs, and other cultural events.

For example, African masks and intricate costumes are popular at community and religious events.

Modern African art Murals

Modern African art murals are generally distinguished.

Because in them the black figures that stand out from the background prevail.

And in this sense, the people are painted in pure color in a reduced and stylized way. 

Using the straight line to draw the arms and legs.

Also, the use of earthy colors predominates, trying to imitate the background of primitive rock art.

And likewise, the composition and placement of the figures, as protagonists, give movement to the scene.

It is a very happy and decorative art.