About
The Bwa people from Burkina Faso have a prominent spiritual society called Do. Do is both the religious society and the spirits themselves, who are the sons of the creator god, worshipping and embodying the energies and powers that create life. Two types of masks make their appearance just after crops are planted: the first type of mask called bieni, is ephemeral, made of leaves, grasses, feathers, and vines to represent Do who will celebrate the cycle of life and replenish nature. Covered in flora and feathers the masker is distinctly inhuman, accented with a conical nose and dorsal fin crest at the top of the head, this spirit is about life, fertility, regeneration, and reintroducing man into nature. The second type of mask called nwamba, an example of which is displayed here, varies in size, shape, patterning, and animal imagery, but is made of wood and represents auxiliary nature spirits. Painted with red, black, and white, the geometric designs expose spiritual, political, moral, and economic messages when read and interpreted by initiates. The plank masks (nwantantay) are completed by a large raffia costume and dynamic interactive choreography. Nwamba dance after the harvest when the farmers return to the village and integrate back into society.