109 FIG. 3: Field photo showing a Zambian Pwo mask, identified as Luvale (though most probably Chokwe), in performance. Photo by Margaret Carson Hubbard, 1935. Brooklyn Museum. FIG. 4: Likishi dance costume with Pwo mask that appears in the Hubbard photo (fig. 3). Luvale or Chokwe, Zambia. Late 19th or early 20th century. Fiber, wood, seedpods, hide, metal, hair, bark, reed, beads. Brooklyn Museum, Museum Collection Fund, 36.548, 36.554, 36.549, 36.550a–b, 36.551a–b, 36.552, 36.553. of tooth sharpening by filing. Carvers may instead opt to highlight the lips and bypass the representation of teeth altogether, but evident triangular teeth are certainly part of an established Chokwe stylistic vocabulary (figs. 1, 5–7).2 The above Marie-Louise Bastin reference to carvers working in accordance with canons that “reflect the collective concept of the ancestral spirits” is quite pertinent in understanding a Chokwe carving style, particularly in its “negotiation” of a naturalistic vs. a more or less stylized approach to recreating anthropomorphic facial features in masks. The earlier and better established (and more widespread) of Chokwe art forms are those made in relation to the hamba ancestral religion. Altars, figures, figurative posts, and various implements were dedicated
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