Unfair as it may be, most American children are first exposed to art in a European framework. We are introduced to masters such as Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso and Claude Monet and the works that were crafted on their artist easels, but what of the fine art traditions from other parts of the world? All cultures have their fair share of talented artists, but they don’t always choose to express themselves on canvas or in a block of marble.

For African tribesmen, wood, ivory, bronze and pottery were the materials and intricately carved masks were the end result. An African tribal mask might have been inspired by various animals and mythical deities, and they became an intrinsic part of tribal rituals. These days, the legacy of these innovative artists’ lives on in the form of decorative wall art.