H x W x D: 22.9 x 8.6 x 6.4 cm (9 x 3 3/8 x 2 1/2 in.)
Type:
Figure
Geography:
Congo
Date:
Early 20th century
Label Text:
Bembe artistic style typically shows careful attention to carved details in relatively small-scale figures. Idealized portraits of ancestors may have individualized scarification markings. The inlaying of reflective white shell or ceramic symbolizes the ability to see into the world of the spirits. This figure's carved jewelry suggests status, and the patina of rubbed camwood testifies to the owner's care. The crack in the back of the figure may show both signs of local repair and inserted earthen substances. One substance that the Bembe place into such figures is not visible: a captured breath, signifying the essence of life or perhaps the power behind words.
Description:
Wood standing female figure, arms bent by torso with hands palm up, knees flexed. Eyes inlaid with white substance, probably shell.
Provenance:
Gustave and Franyo Schindler, New York, -- to 1986
Exhibition History:
Inscribing Meaning: Writing and Graphic Systems in African Art, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, May 9- August 26, 2007; Fowler Museum at University of California, Los Angeles, October 14, 2007-February 17, 2008
Published References:
Lehuard, Raoul. 1989. Art Bakongo: Les Centres de Style, Vol. II, Arnouville: Arts d'Afrique Noire, p. 367, no. G14-1-1.
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