Browsing by Author "Larbi, Stephen"

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    Bamboo as a viable medium for sculpture
    (2003-11-28) Larbi, Stephen
    The objectives of this project are to offer a general introduction to bamboo as a sculptural material and to identify bamboo species that are more convenient for carving. However, in order to fully explore the potential of bamboo, development effort should be directed at the key areas of preservation, designing and technical studies which will be essential to identify factors which govern current bamboo usage and those which will influence its use in the future. Once these issues have been addressed, bamboo will be ideally recognised as a principal sculptural material for the 21st century and beyond. The project also aims at producing sculpture in the round, relief sculpture and construction and assemblage using bamboo. The outcome of the project will therefore be valuable to art educators, sculptors, visual artists, art students and curators. The report would serve as a reference material on bamboo sculpture. It would be beneficial to sculptors as well as Ghanaians to substitute wood with bamboo in order to save the forest, and finally it would also create the needed awareness for the existing materials in Art Education and institutions of learning. The Research methods used are the Experimental, Descriptive and Analytical. The research tools employed are interviews, observations and photography. Among the works done by the researcher was laminated stool. Firstly bamboo culms were split and constructed into boards and beams, and later carved and constructed into a stool. Other images and figures were also carved with gouges, and finally polished with lacquer to enhance their beauty. In all ten pieces of art works were made through the use of bamboo throughout the processes. Chapter one deals with the Introduction, the Background study, the Problem Statement, Objectives and Hypothesis. The rest are Delimitation, Limitations, Definition of Term, Importance of the Research ‘and the Arrangement of the Text. Chapter two surveys the Literature Review in which materials relating to the topic are discussed in detail from various sources. Chapter three also introduces Tools, Materials and equipment used in the project. Chapter four deals with Methodology. Chapter five constitutes Appreciation (Inventory, Technical qualities, interpretation and functions of the work. Chapter six contains the Main Findings. Chapter seven are the Summary, Conclusions and Recommendation.
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    The Cultural and Aesthetic Significance of Motifs on Selected Asante Temples
    (2008-07-18) Larbi, Stephen
    Asante temples are small edifices built over one or two hundred years ago to house the shrines of some of the deities of the Asante. They are adorned with beautiful motifs which tell a lot about the culture of the Asante. But the lack of adequate and comprehensive studies on them has kept them away from the public. This study therefore studies the history of selected Asante temples and the cultural and aesthetic significance of their motifs. In order to achieve the objectives of this study, the researcher used the qualitative research method. The primary sources of data of the study were interviews and observation. They were carried out at the villages where the temples are located. The researcher selected some people from the villages where the temples are who could provide him with the primary data and consulted them for the data. He also contacted some scholars of Asante culture for the primary data. The secondary data was obtained from books and the internet. The motifs tell a lot about the religious beliefs and social norms of the Asante. They also reveal a lot about symbolism in Asante art and serve as decorations on the temples. They symbolise concepts and beliefs personified in human and animal forms and geometric shapes. The findings go to confirm the theory that African, and for that matter Asante, arts are influenced by the culture (believes, practices, notion of beauty and world view) of the people. The arts are also used to send symbolic, social and religious messages to the people.