In Focus

In 1997, Anri Sala discovered a black-and-white 16mm newsreel in a box of his belongings at his parents' home in Tirana, Albania. Sala's parents had thought the newsreel, wrapped in black plastic, belonged to him. However, the newsreel, which no longer had its soundtrack, was made in the late 1970s by the state television.

Annual festivals held throughout Yorubaland incorporate masquerades that celebrate the values and social roles upon which the well-being of the towns depend. The festival, called Epa (or Elefon) in Ekiti towns, is characterized by the appearance of large-scale wooden headdresses. The animals and humans carved on the superstructure of the headdress represent real or mythical ancestors who provide the foundation and continuity of Yoruba society.

The Yoruba have traditionally offered kola nuts to guests in a domestic hospitality ritual or to the deities in the context of religious worship. While gourd containers served these purposes for most people, honored visitors to the palace or other prestigious residences were served from elaborately decorated wooden bowls. The containers are called olumeye in reference to the kneeling female figure holding the bowl.

The Asante, considered to be the most prolific makers of gold ornaments, have the Golden Stool as their royal symbol. According to oral tradition, in the early 17th century, this stool and a bell miraculously descended from the sky and landed on the lap of Osei Tutu, the first Asante king. Gold is the sun's earthly complement; the king, like the Golden Stool, represents the soul and vitality of the Asante nation.