91 and to present the avant-garde as a trans-cultural and trans-historical phenomenon. In his 1915 book, Negerplastik, Einstein became one of the fi rst to characterize African masks and sculptures as “art.” The illustrations in the book, which include some objects that are exhibited in this Rietberg Museum show (fi g. 19), were enthusiastically received by avant-garde artists such as Höch and Hausmann. Coray also owned a copy of Negerplastik. At the time, the call for an aesthetic renewal through African art’s cubist forms also had a political and social dimension. Einstein saw African art not only as the foundation for the emergence of a new kind of artist, but also more broadly for that of a new kind of individual. The aesthetic and political importance attributed to African artifacts at the dawn of the twentieth century has not been much considered since then; however, the Western conception of Africa as a continent that is without history, without dynamism, and anchored in tradition continues to persist. The exhibition contests this, notably through the inclusion of Portes Oranges (Orange Carriers) (fi g. 20), a work by Senam Okudzeto (Ghana, United Kingdom, and United States), whose approach is to explore practices and techniques that she refers to as “Afro-Dada.” Like the Dadaists before her, Okudzeto infuses objects of daily life with new meanings and uses them as “ready-mades.” Portes Oranges is made up of metal orange carriers used by women, young and old FIG. 17 (facing page left): Hannah Höch, Denkmal I (Monument I), from the series Aus einem ethnographischen Museum, no. VIII, 1924–1928 Collage on cardboard. Berlinische Galerie. © Berlinische Galerie. Photo: Anja Elisabeth Witte 2016 ProLitteris, Zurich. FIG. 18 (facing page right): Horned mask, gu, attributed to the Master of Bouafl é. Guro, Côté d’Ivoire. 19th century. Wood. Museum Rietberg, Zurich, inv. RAF 466, acquired from Han Coray, ex Paul Guillaume. © Museum Rietberg, Zurich. Photo: Rainer Wolfsberger. FIG. 19 (above left): Mask, nyangbai. Toma, Guinea. 19th century. Wood, black pigment. Museum Rietberg, Zurich, inv. RAF 21, donated by Eduard von der Heydt. © Museum Rietberg, Zurich. Photo: Rainer Wolfsberger. FIG. 20 (above): Installation view of Portes Oranges by Senam Okudzeto. © Museum Rietberg, Zurich. Photo: Rainer Wolfsberger. alike, who sell oranges in the streets and at bus stops in Ghana. Through its use of these objects that are part of the women’s economy, the installation works as a kind of ironic counterpoint to the arguably phallic symbolism of Marcel Duchamps’ 1914 Porte-bouteilles while also symbolizing modern urban Africa. What emerges above all from Dada Afrika is the idea of an equality of artistic manifestations, whatever their origin. In that, this show distinguishes itself clearly from “Primitivism” in the 20th Century, curated by William Rubin at MOMA in 1984. Dada Afrika is not restricted to a presentation of formal affi nities between the major names of modernism and the avant-garde and the Oceanic and African objects that are identifi ed to the visitor as the more or less demonstrable exotic sources of their inspiration. Instead it seeks to establish and present a dialog of equals. As is so often the case in matters involving human communication, that dialog as it developed was not entirey exempt from prejudice and misunderstanding, but in the case of the Dada artists, it was entered into with respect and recognition for the importance of non-Western cultures. Dada Afrika Through 17 July 2016 Rietberg Museum rietberg.ch 5 August - 7 November 2016 Berlinische Galerie, Museum of Modern Art berlinischegalerie.de
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