|
|
African and Oceanic Art from the Barbier-Mueller Museum, Geneva: A Legacy of Collecting
|
|
|
|
|
Ornament: Male Figure with Raised Arms
Mali; Inland Niger Delta, 13th–15th century
Copper alloy; H. 4 1/2 in. (11.4 cm)
Provenance: [Merton Simpson, New York, before 1983]; Barbier-Mueller collection, since 1983
|
|
Both an astonishing graphic and technical achievement, this work is the unique and highly original creation of a master metalsmith. The dazzling accumulation of delicately rendered details on the man's face, hairstyle, and garment distract the viewer from the complex nature of the overarching composition: that is, a male figure with oversized arms and hands reaching above and framing his head and grasping two symmetrical red copper war axes or agricultural implements. Beyond the formal accomplishment of the composition, the work's complex manipulation of various colored metals attests to a virtuosic mastery of the lost-wax casting process.
See the Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History to learn more about Jenne-Jeno and the Inland Niger Delta.
|
|
|
Back to main page for this exhibition
Back to images from this exhibition
