Ayisi, EricO.
An Introduction to the Study of African Culture
. London: Heinemann Educational Books, 1979. 125 pages. An excellent introductory volume at a level suitable for students. Good chapters on the Family, Household and Lineage, Sex and Marriage, and Festivals.
Bettelheim, Bruno.
Symbolic Wounds
. Glencoe: Free Press, 1954. Very interesting book concerning initiation rites in Black Africa. Discusses in detail some of the rituals in the initiation process.
Fisher, Eberhard and Himmelheber, Hans.
The Arts of the Dan in West Africa
. Wurich: Museum Rietberg Zurich, 1984. Although the title of this book mentions only the Dan and the Art, it includes examples from other groups in the area. It uses a very interesting classification of the Dan masks.
Gnonsoa, Angele et al.
Masques vivants de C“te d'Ivoire
. Colmar: S.A.E.P., 1985. Clearly defines the African mask of the Ivory Coast as being a tripartite institution: religious, social and political.
Meyer, Laura.
Black Africa
. Paris: Terrail, 1992. Well illustrated. Focus on the influence of religion and magic on traditional African Art. Traces back and explains the origins and reveals the secrets of black African Art. Very little on initiation rites though.
Price, Christine.
Made in West Africa
. New York: E.F. Dutton and Co, 1975. Many different forms of West Africa are featured in this book. Photographs of artwork and sculptures. The art objects are organized in alphabetical order by sculpture names.
Prown, Jules D. "Mind in Matter: An Introduction to Material Culture Theory and Method,"
Winterhur Portfolio
, vol. 17, no 1, Spring 1982, pp 119. This article explains in detail Prown's method for object analysis.
Rosenberg, Donna.
World Literature, An Anthology of Great Short Stories, Drama, and Poetry
. Chicago: NTC Publishing Group, 1997. A very good selection of world literature including selections from Africa (317-439), Latin America, The Far East, Continental Europe, among others.
Segy, Ladislas.
African Sculpture Speaks
. New York: Hill and Wang, 1969. A beautiful book filled with photos of African sculpture. This book gives much detail about the sculpture and where the ideas that inspired them came from.
Segy, Ladislas.
Masks of Black Africa
. New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1976. Very well illustrated, more than 260 photographs. Talks about myths, rituals and dances in Western and Central Africa.
Thompson, Robert Farris.
African Art in Motion
. Los Angeles/Berkely: University of California Press, 1986. An illustrated book that focuses on the History of African Art. It also gives detail information about various regions and how their art was influenced.
Vogel, Susan.
African Art, Western Eyes
. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1997. In this catalogue/book, Susan Vogel puts aside our definition of art. She proposes a means for understanding Baule culture from the viewpoint of Baule individuals themselves. She uses their own comments about their every day life and how they interact with their objects.
Wassing, René S.
African Art: Its Background and Traditions
. New York: Portland House, 1988. Establishes an analysis of the various aspects of the African artistic tradition by placing the art within its cultural context.
Willett, Frank.
African Art, An Introduction
. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1971. An illustrated work, which explains standards and use of African art and makes a strong independent argument for West African origins.
