Explores the power and potency of surfaces in African sculpture

"Surfaces bridges the spheres of art production and art use in ways that had hitherto been ignored. Surfaces, like materials, can no longer be viewed as simply a subset of style; instead, to understand surface treatment is to reflect on belief, meaning, significance and function of art. The value of this book is that it forces the reader to begin thinking about diverse treatments of art surfaces as integral parts of the total symbolic structures encoded in African art objects. It opens up new avenues not only for reading African art but also for understanding the process of African art creation?how art becomes art." ?Nii Quarcoopome, Curator of African Art, Detroit Institute of Arts

"This book demonstrates without question that the surface of African wood sculpture is a site of intellectual, emotional, and aesthetic deliberation." ?Z. S. Strother, University of California, Los Angeles

Every piece of African woodcarving has an embellished surface, whether it is dyed, pigmented, refurbished, or encrusted with sacrificial matter. Surfaces is the first book to present a detailed study of what happens to African wood sculpture from its creation to its ritual use and "retirement." The six essays by distinguished African art historians investigate cultural practices associated with surface decoration, the practitioners responsible for the applications, and the reasons for the use of specific materials. Luxurious color and black-and-white photographs embellish the text and illustrate the power and potency of African sculpture. A comprehensive listing of colorings and raw materials is also included. For students, museum professionals, and collectors, this book will become an important reference which inspires new appreciations of African art and artistry.

Leonard Kahan is a certified appraiser of African art and curator for the permanent collection of African art at Queensborough College, CUNY.

Donna Page specializes in restoring African wood sculpture. She has curated the exhibition Surfaces at the Museum of the SMA Fathers in Tenafly, New Jersey.

Pascal James Imperato is Distinguished Service Professor at SUNY Downstate.