MAKONDE ART
From Tanzania

The Wickham Collection of Makonde Art
by
Eric Joseph, Research Archivist

One of the five major tribes in Tanzania, the Makonde are a proud and rugged, yet sensitive, people who reside on the high plateaus of northern Mozambique and Southern Tanzania. They come from a great tradition that can be traced back several hundred years. Theirs is a world hinged upon a constant struggle for survival; a world of poverty and toil, yet there is also song, poetry, dance, music, and a unique form of art that is breathtaking in its originality and execution. The Makonde are known worldwide for their intricate carvings, based on life, love, good, and evil. The carvings, some of them surreal to the degree that a Dali or a Picasso would take notice, are considered the most dynamic and unrestrained of all East African art. Through the centuries, their carvings, made from the wood of mpingo and ebony, played a central role in their tribal rituals. Many themes are present in the art of the Makonde, but none are as prevalent as the family, especially the mother figure. The good times and struggles of family life are depicted in equal measure.

Other favored themes consist of the numerous spirits the Makonde believe in, other aspects of faith or religion, and centuries-old folklore traditions. Makonde carvings can range in depiction from naturalistic renderings of human and animal life to almost nightmarish biomorphic amalgamations of same. In some pieces, it is impossible to tell where human and animal figures begin and end. This near-riot of humans and creatures speaks well of tribal beliefs in animism. Makonde art today maintains traditional elements of their human story in a tribal setting, though scores of carvers have been influenced by Western demand for their products, which has led to what is referred to as “Modern Makonde,” carvings designed solely for the tourist market. However, the large majority of the carvings received by Xavier Archives do not fall into that category. The collection was donated by Xavier alum Jimmie Wickham (’61).

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