Levels

The following moodboards aim to spatialize the three levels, corresponding to The Body, The Mind and The Soul in the video game engine. For the purpose of this example, I have focused on the Fulani mask utilised in burial ceremonies in Nigeria.

LEVEL 1:

Similarly to Chris Marker and Alain Resnais’ film ‘Statues also die’, I argue that objects plundered from imperial exhibitions die and perish, having been decontextualized, displaced and looted from their space of origin. Essentially, this level begins with the object’s symbolic and spiritual ‘death’ - the one of being destined to form part of the Western museum collection. The masks suddenly shift from still objects into animated spirits, becoming personified and having a life of their own; this process leads the audience into understanding the wider context from which they have been displaced. The level constitutes a digital ‘diorama’ - a spatialization of the western museum gallery showcasing its collection. Upon getting closer to each mask, pop-up windows and widgets illustrate important archival documentation about the mask’s origin, accompanied by other objects utilised as counterparts in the ceremony the mask was initially destined for.

This process eventually leads into a new cycle of life of the masks by allowing their stories to be told and re-told.

(Graphical User Interface) containing pop-up widgets with background information about West African masks digital archive prototype will be tested utilising the Fulani mask, used in burial ceremonies in Nigeria

LEVEL 2:

The player then teleports into a West African mask workshop, where the embodied knowledge of its maker is spatialized. This symbolizes life - the craft, the technique and its material qualities are explained, laid out and understood in the context of its space of origin. The embodied knowledge is transmitted over generations, allowing the object’s essence to come back to life. Different levels of interactivity such as pop-up text and animated objects, accompanied by archival and found footage construct the wider picture of the West African mask, recontextualizing and re-assigning meaning to it.

The maker will use a special axe, called ‘azde’ to carve and chisel away the general shape and work down into the mask’s features

African tribal artists are always men, and they are trained for several years, either as an apprentice carver. The father shares his skills with his son, continuing their craft through the family line. respectable role in African tribal society, as the creator of such spiritually significant

The wood is especially chosen for its shape and its grain apprentice to a master line. These artists hold a significant objects. moodboard of materials and spatial features is

West African maskmaking is a worldwide known heritage, art and craft

The mask is coloured with materials such as charcoal, mineral pigments and caolin (a powdered clay material)

LEVEL 3:

Finally, the afterlife level is portrayed as a re-enactment of the burial ceremony, where the wearer of the mask - the dancer - becomes a mediator between the living and spiritual world of the dead, a mediator between ancestors and other entities. The mask is generally worn by an especially chosen dancer who gives it life by wearing the mask in a costume that takes on a new identity. The ceremony symbolizes a celebration of life, where the object’s essence takes new other-worldly forms. This level is a spatialization of Northern Nigeria’s roundhut villages (a form of vernacular architecture), where the Fulani tribe settled in the medieval age. The mask’s origin is traced back in space and time, where the rituals it has been destined for are re-enacted.

Within the communities that make them, these masks are primarily spiritual objects that are made to be used. Africans believe that wearing masks and using them during ritualized performances such as weddings, funerals and secret society initiations can connect them with spirits beyond the real world.

During the burial ceremony performance, the wearer of the mask enters a trance-like state that tribes believe will allow them to communicate with ancestors, or to control the forces of good and evil.

The re-enactment ceremony is a digital spatialization (diorama) of a roundhut village in Northern Nigeria; roundhuts are a form of vernacular architecture specific to West Africa.

Afterlife Moodboard

The baobab is often referred to as the “Tree of Life” as it provides life-sustaining shelter, clothing, food, and water for both humans and animals of the African savanna regions. Every part of the tree is used by humans: The bark is fire resistant and is used for making cloth and rope.

Smudging (the burning of special herbs such as sage) and smoking a special ceremonial pipe may be incorporated into funeral rituals, led by the tribe’s medicine man or spiritual leader.