Reclining Woman
Here, a woman leans sideways on a lavish checkered textile that contrasts with the bold arabesque pattern of the vertical backdrop. This reclining pose recurs in several works throughout the exhibition. While Western viewers often associate it with the archetype of the odalisque from nineteenth-century Orientalist paintings, the pose in fact echoes one that would be regularly adopted across West Africa by women at home while entertaining guests at both formal and informal occasions. Rather than suggesting sensuality, the self-assured posture is one that allows the sitter to display her elegant outfit and express her sociability.
Artwork Details
- Title: Reclining Woman
- Artist: Seydou Keïta (Malian, Bamako ca. 1921–2001 Paris)
- Date: 1975
- Geography: Mali, Bamako
- Medium: Gelatin silver print
- Dimensions: H. 5 1/8 × W. 7 1/2 in. (13 × 19 cm)
- Classification: Paper-Photographs
- Credit Line: Gift of Susan Mullin Vogel, 2015
- Object Number: 2015.499.2.2
- Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing
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