Brown and Gold-Tone African Wood Mask from Ghana 'Bearded Nii Amugi' Item ID: 2671805607

"I developed the art of carving at a young age. After school, I'd walk to a nearby workshop to observe carvers busy sculpting different objects from a log of wood. I was surprised to see such beautiful art pieces, and this aroused my interest in learning more. Several times during such visits, I picked up pieces of wood from the workshop and, when I reached home, I tried my hand at carving, following the process I had observed.

"When I completed school, I informed my father about my interest in carving and he was so supportive. He sent me to the master, popularly known as "Jumo," at the workshop where I had been observing his carvers work. I was a familiar person to them and they gladly welcomed me.

"It took me four years as an understudy to my teacher. In 2000, I successfully completed my studies and, since then, I have been actively involved in carving on my own. But anytime my teacher has a large order, he calls on me and I go to assist. I have been able to train two people how to carve. I mainly use sese wood, and nyame dua for my carvings.

"Starting on my own was not so difficult for me, because I diligently served my master teacher and he was willing to send some of his customers to me when he had a number of orders to complete. This is an opportunity I have always cherished, and I also respect him for it.

"Everything hasn't been smooth. I remember a time when I'd get an order and was given a partial payment for it. It was often less than half of the price for the order but, because I wanted to maintain the customer, I wanted to manage with the little he had given. It was difficult to get the wood and I had to travel a long distance to find it. I decided to carve the items right in the woods and later transport the finished carvings. Upon completion, I need a little more funds to transport the finished items. I kept calling the customer and he wouldn't pick up the phone. I was in a fix and had to buy food on credit, which was an embarrassing moment for me. A friend came to my aid to assist me with funds to transfer the goods. The customer paid the balance alright, but I learned a big lesson from it. I would insist on receiving half the price on future orders.

"It is my desire to train more people to carve, and also to educate my child to attain a higher education, since I was not able to reach far. I was born April 15, 1978, in Accra."