Mask and costume, Dabila Ouattara, Côte d'Ivoire, 1994 WA506950

The masks in the Brighton collection were purchased from their makers by anthropologist Karel Arnaut during the course of his fieldwork in Côte d'Ivoire between 1992 and 1995. It started as a research collection to document the present state of craft production in the Bondoukou region.

Most of the objects were either purchased from the makers (sculptors, weavers, blacksmiths or other artisans) or bought at the local market. A number of the older objects such as the drums, were given as gifts.

The collection is the result of active collaboration and sometimes lively negotiation between the makers and the anthropologist. The makers were informed of the proposed destination of the objects and the kind of budget that the collector was working on for the museum.

These notes are all directly derived from Karel Arnaut's research. The photographs and sound recordings are also his.

Bedu objects in Brighton Museum's collection