Butterfly Mask - Bobo Plank Mask

Burkina Faso

A Bobo plank mask defined by extreme lateral extension and controlled central compression.

Description

The composition is organised along a dominant horizontal axis, extending outward into a broad, gently arcing plane.

At the centre, a compact facial register concentrates the entire visual weight of the piece. Circular eyes, a short projecting nose, and a horizontally cut mouth are contained within a tightly worked field of repeated triangular incision. This central zone is dense, ordered, and deliberate — a point of compression within the wider structure.

Beyond this nucleus, the form opens into expansive lateral wings. These are sparsely worked, their surfaces largely uninterrupted, establishing a field of visual stillness that contrasts sharply with the concentrated carving at the centre. The transition is abrupt and controlled, creating a clear structural hierarchy across the full width of the mask.

The reverse carries a checkerboard pattern across the lateral sections, reinforcing the bilateral logic of the composition and confirming the intentional organisation of both front and back.

Pigment is retained across the surface. Patina is stable, with light wear at raised planes consistent with handling.

Context

Among the Bobo, plank masks operate within performance where extension across width determines visibility and presence.

In this example, the effect is achieved not through complexity, but through reduction. The concentration of form at the centre, set against the restraint of the wings, produces a clarity that is rarely sustained at this scale.

Provenance

From the Felice Maffei Collection

Acquired in Burkina Faso, 1972

Available on private enquiry.