Secret societies in the city

Exhibition of Malawian masks and costumes is a powerful blend of human and spirit worlds

‘It is pointless to try to be discreet as a white man in Africa.” That’s the view of Canadian photographer Douglas Curran, who has brought a bold exhibition of Malawian masks to Joburg.

Curran is exhibiting Nyau masks, photographs and videoed dance rituals from Malawi at the Origins Centre at Wits University in Braamfontein.

The Elephant Has Four Hearts blends photographs, masks and videoed footage of the magical and frightening dance ceremonies of the Chewa people who originate in Central Malawi.

Nyau is the religion of the Chewa; it teaches moral codes as well as what’s obscene, what’s sensual and what’s cruel. Some of the mask forms are believed to have been in use since 800AD.

The masks are sometimes quietly sinister and at other times fiercely threatening; they can also be entertaining.

In a Nyau ceremony, the women sing, the men drum and dance; there’s a spontaneous choreography in the give and take between masked dancer and audience, animated by the dust on the ground.

But this is not entertainment like cabaret or ballet. It’s part of religious practice. And these are not your average African masks, of the sort one can buy at the Bruma or Rosebank flea markets.

Ben Smith, director of the Origins Centre, said masks from Central Africa were different to those from West Africa, and not as well known.

The masks are from Malawian secret societies. Those who have been initiated will know the secrets of these masks, what they mean and why they are made.

So, if you don’t originate from these societies, why should you look at these things?

Quite simply, because they are beautiful, and because Malawians who commute to Joburg for work have been part of the city’ s community since apartheid times, and their culture is one part of the complexity of our urban society.

But should you be allowed to see this if you aren’t Nyau?

Smith spoke about the exhibition at a lecture demonstration in Killarney Mall this week, and dealt with this problem of secrecy and public display.

“When there are Malawians in the audience,” he said, “they are so proud that their rituals are being performed.”

We cannot access their secret meanings, but their appearance is unforgettable.

Not all of these masks are worn on the face. Some are, but the collection includes elaborate and highly inventive costumes, made with a head-spinning array of materials and colourful fabric.

They can cover the whole body — there’s a mask in the form of a bus, a helicopter and a massive roan antelope, into which several dancers can fit.

“I’m going to the funeral, lock up the chicken,” is the subtitle of a photograph of a mask named Ndapita ku Maliro, taken at Lungunzi Village in the Kachinadamoto district of Malawi, which Curran photographed in 1999.

“Lock up the chicken” is an order to refrain from sexual relations during the time of funeral rites.

In Furnace, a mask, burnt black by the pot on the top of its head, symbolises how political leaders have enticed women away from their husbands to attend rallies.

The Elephant Has Four Hearts is a provocative exhibition of religious practices. The photographs are astonishing in their boldness, and the masks will knock your socks off — powerfully blending the human and the spirit worlds.

ý The Elephant Has Four Hearts is at the Origins Centre at Wits University, Braamfontein, until January 23. Entrance costs R25.

If you wish to see the entire museum display, the cost is R45 for adults and R25 for under 12s. Tel: 011-717-4700.