Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 2008 - 48

Kola described important considerations for his masks,
such as the necessity to use appropriately aged wood: hard
enough but not dead. The wood must cure for three months
or the mask may eventually crack. He always guarantees his
work by using appropriate wood. Kola also prefers symmetry
in his masks and spends time standing above them and looking
at them upside down to help achieve that symmetry. Nigerian
masks can occasionally have a double series of four "beads"
on the forehead area (although the number of beads and the
pattern of them vary signiﬁcantly as an in-depth exploration of
these masks reveals). He explained that his beads signify power
at the head (mask), with the fourth row signifying a "fourth
dimension" which aims for balance in the midst of power. I
found myself wondering why the world's military uniforms or
government and corporate business regalia have not yet adopted versions of this symbol.
Kola thinks that he does his best work in the early morning hours. "I need to get up early and drive far away into the
bush, away from noisy cars and away from my children demanding biscuits!" he laughs. "For me, 8 to 10 a.m. is the ideal
time to carve the head. My brain is cold and fresh and I can
fully concentrate. I also prefer to do important ﬁnishing work
at this time."
The challenges he faces as a mask maker seem daunting.
"Too often we are forgotten in the bush," he says. "Too often
our ancestors are forgotten. There is very little patronage nowadays. I make a decent living but many do not. Nigeria does not
generally promote the carver as an artist and is not inclined to
promote African heritage to the extent that it needs promoting.
Prominent mask makers from the past are in museums, but the

world seems to show little interest in the current generation,
which seems less likely to stand on accomplishments of our
ancestors. Our children don't see the value of carving without
proper promotion. Also we mask makers generally lack appropriate documentation. We generally lack good cameras to
protect and record what we are doing" (Adeola 2006).
Behalji-Merin reminds us that earlier cultures worldwide
supported the mask maker with dignity and privileges. "...
[T]he creator of the masks belonged to an elite [group] and
did not have to go to war or to the hunt. Thus gods protected
those who gave them form. The mask maker worked in secret,
in the tranquility of the forest. He was given much time in order
to create in deep concentration ﬁgures of ancestors, fetishes,
and masks. His work served the good of
the community" (Behalji-Merin 1970,
47). Today most people view the contem...if I need
porary traditional mask maker's work
with a curious sense of ambivalence, not
inspiration, I
only in Kola's West African region but also
don't go to books
in most regions of the world.

Agebike Oguneyemi
Iron Masks
Agebike Oguneyemi, a blacksmith in
the community, has specialized in metal
masks, though not as frequently as he used
to. He has created metal masks from very
thick concentrations of iron as well as from
light weights of iron. "I have my health (a
blacksmith needs strength), appropriate

or pictures.
I have all the
inspiration I need
when I remember
the masks of
my father, my
grandfather, and
great-grandfather.

The name of this Epa mask is Ejio from the area known as Aree Afao Ekiti in the Ekiti Kingdom. The original
was carved by Kola's grandfather about 90 years ago, when his father worked alongside prominent carvers like
Obembe Ologunde from Ilesa, Agbonbiofe from Efon Alaye, and Oyemolatiran Olayanju from Owo in Ondo State.
The original had been eaten up by ants. The king of Aree Afao Ekiti asked Kola to repair it. He has copied several
masks like this one for important royal members of the Yoruba community.
The multiple mask is ﬁxed on the head of the masquerader, who can see from the hole of the mouth of the front
view. This front mask depicts the òrìsà Orunmila while the back mask depicts the òrìsà Obatala, who serves as the
protection from the rear in case of any attack. The carved out portion of the masks has the head shape of the
masquerader who must eventually carry it when dancing.

W I N T E R

2008

THEATRE

DESIGN

TECHNOLOGY

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 2008