PhD Theses

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Browsing PhD Theses by Subject "20th century"

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    Modern creative Makonde sculpture.
    (University of Dar es Salaam, 1982) Ntiro, Sam Joseph
    The study sought to investigate on modern creative Makonde sculpture and show as clearly as it can what a Makonde carver looks for when he carves. What has been written down on these pages follow the words which have emanated from the carvers themselves. Frequently the descriptions of their carving activity are crude as they should be, since wood and not words, is their natural means of translating their creative ideas into tangible from the outside world. 56 Makonde carvers who are included in this thesis were not picked at random. The selection of them and their work is the result of many month’s work. Weeks and months were spent before hand, doing preliminary work in selecting those carvers are clear in their minds on what they wish to carve before they start carving. There was no point on my part to ask the carving. There was no point on my part to ask the carvers to show me their sketches. This would have been an insult to them because I knew that Makonde carvers never do preparatory sketches before they start carving. The study has proven beyond doubt that modern creative Makonde sculpture is an integral part of Makonde life and that if anyone wants to understand it fully he/she should be initiated to the Makonde people and work from within their society. Two examples have been given of who were initiated into the African society in order to interpret African creative activities properly namely Mr. Hans Cary who was initiated into the Wasukuma Snake Dancers of Tanzania and Professor Peter Rigby who was initiated into the Masai of East Africa. The approach of this study is obviously different from those of the European critics art historians or newspaper reporters who have written books and articles on African sculpture.