_The Power of Foreign Peoples
_Fante Drum with Breasts, The Akan people of Ghana, Late 19th Century. Wood, string, hide. Height 37.2". UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History, X85-321. Gift of Clayre and Jay Haft.
This drum was carved from wood, accented with decorative strings and hide. This drum is possibly part of a movement of drums carved during the 20th century for drumming ensembles by an Asante carver Osei Bonsu. They typically feature a pair of women’s breasts that protrude from the surface of the drum and are surrounded by several references to life and power. This particular drum and its breasts depict Queen Victoria of Great Britain. She is flanked on either side by the native authorities who helped establish and maintain order and control in colonial Ghana. An Akan chief is featured on the Queen’s left side, holding a state sword. The figures below him are similarly holding symbols of political power. The rest of the drum is decorated with objects that make reference to everyday life in the Akan community. Although this drum and those like it were created for the purposes of entertainment and celebration, the underlying message that the artist is communicating is the colonial power structure that exists by way of the British Empire. It also gives a nod to the internal political hierarchy already in place within the Akan government. All of this culminates in a message of coexistence of power within a colonized African nation. The Akan people are vowing to uphold and abide by the rules and law set in place by the foreign governing body of the British. It is an indirect assertion of the power of Great Britain.
This drum was carved from wood, accented with decorative strings and hide. This drum is possibly part of a movement of drums carved during the 20th century for drumming ensembles by an Asante carver Osei Bonsu. They typically feature a pair of women’s breasts that protrude from the surface of the drum and are surrounded by several references to life and power. This particular drum and its breasts depict Queen Victoria of Great Britain. She is flanked on either side by the native authorities who helped establish and maintain order and control in colonial Ghana. An Akan chief is featured on the Queen’s left side, holding a state sword. The figures below him are similarly holding symbols of political power. The rest of the drum is decorated with objects that make reference to everyday life in the Akan community. Although this drum and those like it were created for the purposes of entertainment and celebration, the underlying message that the artist is communicating is the colonial power structure that exists by way of the British Empire. It also gives a nod to the internal political hierarchy already in place within the Akan government. All of this culminates in a message of coexistence of power within a colonized African nation. The Akan people are vowing to uphold and abide by the rules and law set in place by the foreign governing body of the British. It is an indirect assertion of the power of Great Britain.