In his discussion of twentieth-century art, Gombrich explains how even the most experimental contemporary art is connected in some way to what has gone before.

During the Chinese Bronze Age (the Shang and Zhou dynasties) court intercessions and communication with the spirit world were conducted by a shaman (possibly the king himself). Notable are the, Dogon people from Mali; Edo, Yoruba, Igbo people and the Nok civilization from Nigeria; Kuba and Luba people from Central Africa; Ashanti people from Ghana; Zulu people from Southern Africa; and Fang people from Equatorial Guinea (85%), Cameroon and Gabon; the Sao civilization people from Chad; Kwele people from eastern Gabon, Republic of the Congo and Cameroon.

Tubular bronze fragments with little branches were discovered here as well, probably representing trees, and also bronze leaves, fruits and birds. Medieval art grew out of the artistic heritage of the Roman Empire and Byzantium, mixed with the 'barbarian' artistic culture of northern Europe.

In the Benin Kingdom, also of southern Nigeria, which began around the same time, elegant altar tusks, brass heads, plaques of brass, and palatial architecture were created. But to these geometrical devices suggesting the use of space, he has added a new one of equal importance: the treatment of light. Images Donate icon An illustration of a heart shape Donate Ellipses icon An illustration of text ellipses. Sub-Saharan African art includes both sculpture, typified by the brass castings of the Benin people, Igbo Ukwu and the Kingdom of Ifẹ, and terracottas of Djenne-Jeno, Ife, and the more ancient Nok culture, as well as folk art.

By using the Web site, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agreed to be bound by the Terms and Conditions. On the other hand, the story of art as here conceived could not be told without a reference to the architectural background. the one northern artist to come most directly into contact with the Roman atmosphere of Carracci’s and Caravaggio’s days . The earliest complex art in Japan was produced in the 7th and 8th centuries in connection with Buddhism. Full marks for usability – if he talks about a painting, he puts a full colour decent sized reproduction in!