|
Mask performances have been
important rituals on the Island of Bali for more than one thousand years.
 Bali is one of the few places where the ritual art has never disappeared -
and is in fact thriving. Carvers are producing more beautiful and elaborate
masks than ever, and thousands of people worldwide collect these compelling
pieces of art. The proliferation of artists and performers indicates that
the tiny island is undergoing a cultural renaissance, the centerpiece of
which is the tapel – the beautiful Balinese mask.
Worn in a performance
accompanied by Balinese gamelan music, the mask is the catalyst for the
rhythms and movements of the performers.
Balinese masks take on a
broad range of sculptural forms. Striking glossy surfaces are achieved by
endless sanding and several coats of paint. The expressive tautness of a
mask’s features is the hallmark Balinese style.
Masks are used in four
traditional Balinese dramas: the Topeng, enacting stories from the times of
the old Balinese kingdoms and establishing a link with the ancestor world;
the Barong, which involves giant puppets and animals serving as protective
spirits enabling a village to ward off evil; the Wayang Wong, which performs
the Ramayana, a great Hindu epic dramatizing the triumph of virtue
over vice; and the Calonarang, which challenges local witches by appealing
for the support and protection of Durga, the Queen of Witches and Goddess of
Death.
The three types of masks
used in these dramas depict humans, animals and demons. Human-looking masks
can be full face or three-quarter face (extending to the upper lip), or can
have a moveable jaw. They represent certain character types rather than
specific people. Heroes and heroines are stereotypically handsome, with
refined features matched by the movements of dancers. The coarser the
character, the more the features are exaggerated: eyes bulge, mouths and
noses thicken, and teeth are fangs; colors also reveal character.
A few examples of masks used
to enact some of the characters in Balinese dramas are shown below. These
images were taken from items offered for sale on this website.
The heroes of the great
Hindu epics, the Ramayana and Mahabharata, have served as role
models for
 the Balinese for many generations. In the Wayang Wong, the
ancient stories of the Ramayana are translated to mask dramas
enacting the battle between truth and justice and the forces of evil. This
is the mask of Jatayu, the fearless King of Birds, who sacrifices his life
trying to rescue Sita from the clutches of Rawana in the Wayang Wong drama.
His brave and passionate nature are expressed by his vibrant eyes, spiky
teeth, and snakelike tongue, and his nobility is proclaimed by his
gold-crowned forehead.
The monkey mask is one of
the most expressive in Balinese drama. Widely carved eye holes allow the
 performer to convey a range of emotions. This expressiveness is further
enhanced by the moveable jaw, which can be manipulated to great effect. The
monkey typically follows the Barong Ket in a drama, teasing the Barong and
establishing a friendly relationship with him.
The chief servant of the
widow and a student of black magic in the Calonarang drama, Rarung first
 appears as a beautiful woman. She transforms herself into her leyak
state and wears her fierce mask. Her name translates as “the ability to
dispose of objects,” specifically dead bodies, and she possesses the power
that allows the ashes of the dead to be absorbed by the sea. Her eyes are
regarded as bulging hot like fire. She was originally created from human
blood and can transform herself into a tiger.
Kumbakarna,
from the Wayang Wong drama, is noted for his huge mouth, exposed gums,
numerous
 large
teeth and lower fangs, an enormous flaring nose, and red-and-white bulging
eyes. He has a prodigious appetite for food and sleep and his name is often
applied to those who have the same habits.
|
