Elemento escultural de un relicario

Fang-Betsi artist

Not on view

Esta es la más monumental de las cabezas escultóricas creadas por los maestros fang del África ecuatorial durante el siglo XIX. Se entronca en una tradición en la que las esculturas figurativas de los fundadores del linaje se colocaban sobre altares familiares portátiles que contenían preciosas reliquias. Tras haber perdido su contexto a principios del siglo XX, esta cabeza sirvió de fuente de inspiración para artistas occidentales. Adquirida por el poeta chileno Vicente Huidobro poco después de su llegada a París en 1918, tal vez le inspiró el poema «Ecuatorial» dedicado a Picasso.

Sculptural Bust from a Reliquary Ensemble (The Great Bieri), Fang-Betsi artist, Wood, copper alloy, palm oil, Fang-Betsi

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Sculptural Bust from a Reliquary Ensemble (The Great Bieri), Fang-Betsi artist, Wood, copper alloy, palm oil, Fang-Betsi
Sculptural Bust from a Reliquary Ensemble (The Great Bieri), Fang-Betsi artist, Wood, copper alloy, palm oil, Fang-Betsi
Sculptural Bust from a Reliquary Ensemble (The Great Bieri), Fang-Betsi artist, Wood, copper alloy, palm oil, Fang-Betsi
Sculptural Bust from a Reliquary Ensemble (The Great Bieri), Fang-Betsi artist, Wood, copper alloy, palm oil, Fang-Betsi

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