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Masks: People
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The art of masks exists since Pharao's times, when people were believing in the power of eternity, and, for many reasons, these beliefs have held true until the present. This can be seen in many a contemporary religions rituals, such as, spiritualism, in which the masks still enjoy frequent use. Masks can have different meanings: beauty, happiness, a moment of fantasy, myth, decoration, creativity, celebration and culture. Masks have a traditional place in the celebration of carnival, which can be observed in some famous places. The use of masks during the life of the Venetian Republic remains one of mankind's notably eccentric practices. Indeed, masks have been worn in cultures throughout the world for thousands of years, but perhaps never with such fervent pageantry as in Venice.
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Historically, African masks were only to be worn by chosen or initiated people for special ceremonies related to such important events as war preparations, harvest, funerals, or hunting. Masks are believed to embody the spirit of an ancestor, and symbolize a message of wisdom, prosperity, security, and power. Carvers undergo many years of specialized apprenticeship until achieving mastery of the art. This is important to Novica master carvers, who proudly mention it in their biographies, for it means they have earned the honor to replicate ancestral masks, as well as to create original designs.
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Since at least Paleolithic times people have used masks. Made of wood, basketry, bark, corn husks, cloth, leather, skulls, papier-mâché, and other materials, masks may cover the face, the entire head, or the head and shoulders, and they are sometimes considered part of an accompanying costume. Masks vary widely in their realism or abstraction, their use of symbols, and their ornamentation. The kachina masks of the Pueblo peoples, for example, have only minimal facial features, whereas masks of the Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest are often elaborately carved and painted, may have movable jaws or other parts, and may even open to reveal a second mask beneath the first. Occasionally, a mask is not intended to be worn on the face, for example, the enormous ritual masks of Oceania and the tiny fingertip masks of Inuit women.
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The tribal people of Madhya Pradesh wear masks, which they call Mukhada, during festivals and ritual dances. Mukhadas are made using the most inexpensive and readily available material. Pumpkin hollows, waste paper, cardboard and wood is used for these masks. Sometimes, a gourd hollow is ... used for masks - in such a case, the mask is elongated in shape as compared to the round shape possible from a pumpkin hollow. A pair of holes is provided in the masks to peep through. However, similar holes are not provided for the nose, mouth and ears.
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Throughout the world masks are used for their expressive power as a feature of masked performance. They are a familiar and vivid element in many folk and traditional pageants, ceremonies, rituals and festivals. Many of these are of an ancient origin. The mask is often a part of costume that adorns the whole body and embodies a tradition important to a particular society of people.
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Alyssa Ravenwood has been sculpting masks for theatre productions since 1988. Her masks are seen in performances by theatre companies and schools in the USA, Europe, Canada, and Japan. She was awarded the Portland Drammy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Mask Design and is a two time winner of the Best Performance Mask Award at the Ink People Maskibition. She has taught mask making and mask performance workshops at theatres and Universities across the US.
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