Earlier this year I took a sculpture class. The above head took me five months (and it’s not even nearly finished). But that was never my intention; my goal was to learn to see through the eye of a sculptor. I wanted a new perspective while evaluating African art, and I must say this course was a very enriching experience. I would advice it to everybody. For example, the feeling of actually trying to shape an eye, with all its difficulties and possibilities, stimulates you to look with a whole different perspective to all the following eyes you encounter. I now also understand the reason why collections formed by sculptors are always so strong; they easily spot the plastic qualities of African carvings. They recognize the struggle of a fellow artist of balancing the volumes and his pursuit to create a powerful sculpture. More than ever, the inventiveness and talent of so many anonymous African artists succeeds in impressing me. There’s a reason why they are often called ‘masters’.
