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African masks and emotions : in theory and practice / Z. S. Strother

This study examines African masquerade by prioritising aesthetic emotion over Western concepts of disguise. Using case studies from the DR Congo, it analyses how mask dances evoke joy, awe, and the uncanny, shifting emotion to the centre of art historical analysis.

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Accession Number: 35196

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Binding Type: Hard Back

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vernon_tags	Masks, African
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vernon_brief_description	In Western European languages, the word mask exerts a powerful presence as a figure of speech. To masquerade is to pretend to be someone or something one is not. By extension, unmasking is a heroic metaphor for exposing a hidden truth. In this volume, art historian Z. S. Strother counters that narrative, using African case studies to offer an alternative vision of masquerading. She explores the aesthetic emotions aroused by masks, or more precisely, by "dances of masks": joy, wonder, awe, fear, and the release of laughing out loud. -- publisher
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