Inventing Masks : Agency and History in the Art of the Central Pende

The author of this study, Z.S. Strother, spent nearly three years in Zaire studying Pende sculpture. Her research reveals the rich history and lively contemporary practice of Central Pende masquerade. She describes the intensive collaboration among sculptors and dancers that is crucial to inventing masks. Sculptors revealed that a central theme in their work is the representation of perceived differences between men and women. Far from being unchanging, Pende masquerades promote unceasing innovation within genres and invention of new genres. This book sets out to demonstrate, through first-hand accounts and many illustrations, how Central Pende masquerading is a contemporary art form fully responsive to 20th-century experience.