Female Mask (Gambanda or Kambanda)

Realized in typical Central Pende style, this mask is believed to represent gambanda, the chief's wife. In light of Pende theories about gender and physiognomy, the mask is an ideal expression of a woman's facial features and thus reflects her calm, obedient, peaceful, and self-controlled demeanor. The intricate hairstyle consisting of hundreds of miniature twists imitates a once fashionable hairdo. Pende sculptors inherited their position and often worked on the outskirts of the village so that few could see them at work.

This female mask would have performed in a collective multimedia event with audience participation.