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Wearable Mask
Collection:CSM Museum & Study Collection
Date: 2025
Artist: Freda Osayuki Igiogbe
Dimensions:
Mask: 220 × 210 mm (22 × 21 cm)
Medium: Black vulcan clay
Object number: C.2025.13.CC
DescriptionA wearable mask, made from vulvan clay, that has been internally glazed.
Artist's statement:
"Inspired by my first sculpture, Ekpo (Masquerade), I created a wearable mask that would allow people to engage with my work in a more intimate way. I wanted to blur the boundary between viewer and sculpture, to invite others not just to observe, but to embody the piece and experience it from within. The mask features a scale-like texture, which has become a signature element across my body of work. This texture originally referenced the raffias worn by traditional masquerade dancers in Nigeria, but over time, it has evolved into a symbolic representation of animal scales.
The form of this particular sculpture was born from a deeply personal place; a long-standing fear from my childhood: masquerades and cats. Growing up in Nigeria, masquerades were a powerful representation of ancestral spirits. Their performances, chasing people and offering blessings, left a lasting impression on me as a child whilst cats were widely believed to be evil or associated with spiritual danger, and those ideas left a lasting mark on me. Despite knowing now that these beliefs aren’t grounded in fact, the emotional weight of those childhood impressions has lingered well into adulthood. Even today, the presence of a cat can still make me feel uneasy, despite my rational understanding that it poses no threat.
This wearable mask became a way for me to confront and reframe that fear, not by rejecting it, but by stepping into it. By adopting the form of something that once unsettled me, I found a way to confront and navigate those emotions on my own terms. Wearing the mask is a kind of performance. It allows me to demystify and reimagine the narratives I grew up with. In doing so, I hope the work also invites others to reflect on their own inherited beliefs, internal tensions, and the complex layers that shape their personal identity."
Artist's statement:
"Inspired by my first sculpture, Ekpo (Masquerade), I created a wearable mask that would allow people to engage with my work in a more intimate way. I wanted to blur the boundary between viewer and sculpture, to invite others not just to observe, but to embody the piece and experience it from within. The mask features a scale-like texture, which has become a signature element across my body of work. This texture originally referenced the raffias worn by traditional masquerade dancers in Nigeria, but over time, it has evolved into a symbolic representation of animal scales.
The form of this particular sculpture was born from a deeply personal place; a long-standing fear from my childhood: masquerades and cats. Growing up in Nigeria, masquerades were a powerful representation of ancestral spirits. Their performances, chasing people and offering blessings, left a lasting impression on me as a child whilst cats were widely believed to be evil or associated with spiritual danger, and those ideas left a lasting mark on me. Despite knowing now that these beliefs aren’t grounded in fact, the emotional weight of those childhood impressions has lingered well into adulthood. Even today, the presence of a cat can still make me feel uneasy, despite my rational understanding that it poses no threat.
This wearable mask became a way for me to confront and reframe that fear, not by rejecting it, but by stepping into it. By adopting the form of something that once unsettled me, I found a way to confront and navigate those emotions on my own terms. Wearing the mask is a kind of performance. It allows me to demystify and reimagine the narratives I grew up with. In doing so, I hope the work also invites others to reflect on their own inherited beliefs, internal tensions, and the complex layers that shape their personal identity."