wood hands

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 figures that depict how strong the men are in working to take care of their women, female figures representing the carriers of the next generation, and a tortoise. The artisan names his original relief panel Balase, which means "unity" in the Bulsa tongue. The panel's raised motifs are formed from hardened calabash.