Wall Relief Panel with Animal Motifs by African Artisan, "Bambara Dogon Board"

Dogon boards were traditionally placed on doors, and incorporated animal and human symbols to protect the entrance to the home. The Dogon are an ethnic group living in the central plateau region of Mali, in Western Africa. Artisan Ayoma Alhassan presents his interpretation of a Dogon board, incorporating male and female figures facing each other to represent balance, as well as bird, tortoise and antelope motifs. The artisan names his original relief panel after the Bambara people of Western Africa. The panel's raised motifs are formed from hardened calabash.