MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Art students at Columbia High School joined forces with the social studies department for an exhibit in the Domarecki Art Gallery, spending a month building three-dimensional African masks in tandem with learning about them in class. In groups of three or four, students chose an African country and constructed their own version of the nation’s traditional masks, which are often used in rituals and ceremonies.
“We talked about it in September and were able to join forces,” CHS art teacher B. Curtis Grayson III said in a phone interview with the News-Record on Jan. 27 about combining lessons with social studies teacher Kendra Faison. “They all did really well.”
Photography students were also involved, taking photos of the masks while they were in progress. Usually, Grayson’s students spend two weeks on each project they complete throughout the year, but they spent nearly double that time on this one. The extra time was spent learning how to work in groups and how to work in a different medium.
“They had to understand design and go from working in 2D to 3D,” Grayson said. “Normally, they’re working with flat paper. It was a lot of detail work, and they had to make sure to remember that it would be visible all around.”
Sophomore Libby Kosik’s group chose to make a mask modeled after the traditional masks from the Ivory Coast. Kosik, Ava Lee and Gabrielle Kozak tried to match their replica to the real thing, used in traditional celebrations and in times of war, as much as possible.
“A lot of them are made from wood and brass, and we wanted to match that,” Kosik said in a phone interview with the News-Record on Jan. 27. “They weren’t that bright, so we toned down the colors.”
All the materials came from supplies CHS already had on hand: the cardboard came from the cafeteria, and students used paint and construction materials from the classroom. Kosik said working in 3D was the most challenging aspect of the project, because it was something she’d never done before.
“We had never used cardboard like that before,” she said. “We wanted to make it more like a circle and not just like a box. We tried to use papier-mache for part of it, but it didn’t work. We stuck with how it looked on its own and just painted it, and I don’t think it matters. The rough edges look cool.”
Destiny Agosto’s group also tried to make their mask look as close to the real artifact as they could. Modeling their project off of Ghana’s traditional masks used in times of war or scaring off predators, Agosto’s group shaped the mask like an almond.
“Traditionally, they didn’t have paint in Ghana, so they used mud,” Agosto said in a phone interview with the News-Record on Jan. 27. “It’s simple, but there’s a warrior vibe. We tried to make it realistic and use earth tones, but we also added a little bit of color so it wouldn’t be too plain.”
The Ghanaian mask has horns on it, in addition to spider legs on the sides.
“Doing it in 3D was harder than I thought it would be, but we had partners helping,” Agosto said. “It became easier to build up the sides.”
Juniors Allister Ramsey and Leo Brash didn’t choose one country, instead designing their mask from an amalgamation of West African coastal region countries. They also used rustic earth tones and added brighter blues and oranges to contrast the darker colors.
“We cut out the pieces by trial and error,” Brash said in a phone interview with the News-Record on Jan. 27 about the mask, which is wearable. “Then we kept gluing it until it fit our heads.”
Colors weren’t the only influence, according to Ramsey.
“There was a lot of animal influence,” he said. “And there are some human face elements. It was mostly inspired by trees and nature.”
Most of the art students weren’t familiar with the African masks, but one was. Chibuike Akawere’s family is from Nigeria, so he had seen many masks from the country before. He and his group split their mask into four quadrants, each representing a tribe from Nigeria: Igbo, Yoruba, Hausa and Edo. They are the four largest of the many tribes that call Nigeria home; Akawere said he wished there was room on the mask to include more.
“If you go to Nigeria, you’ll probably meet people from all of those tribes,” the senior said in a phone interview with the News-Record on Jan. 27. “I’d seen masks before, but it’s interesting to see how many there are and how different they are.”
Akawere was able to relate what he knew about the masks to the other art students who weren’t familiar with them, and he liked being able to share what he knew.
“People would ask me about them, which I enjoyed,” he said. “This is my culture. I liked sharing it.”
The partnership between the social studies and art departments won’t be the last time Grayson partners with another department, he said. Grayson tries to work with other departments at CHS every year but wants to make a point of doing it more often. The gallery on the first floor of the school can be used by everyone.
“English classes can look at the art and work on descriptive analysis,” he said. “Even math classes can use it, especially if they’re teaching geometry and working on measuring shapes. It’s not just for the art department.”
Photos Courtesy of B. Curtis Grayson III
Columbia High School artists explore African masks in new exhibit added by Amanda Valentovic on
View all posts by Amanda Valentovic →