Statue, Mossi, Burkina Faso

Issaca Zango, Burkina Faso
Collection Estelle et Alvin Abrams, New York
Collection Marc et Denyse Ginzberg, New York
Sotheby's New York, 2 décembre 1983, n° 101
Collection Thomas G.B. Wheelock, New York

Expositions:
The African-American Institute, New York, Art from the Sahel, 1974
The African-American Institute, New York, Traditional Sculpture from Upper Volta, 24 octobre 1978 - 24 mars 1979
The Museum of African Art, Washington D.C., Traditional Sculpture from Upper Volta, été 1979

Publications:
Hersey, Art from the Sahel, 1974 : 4, n° F-17
Skougstad, Traditional Sculpture from Upper Volta, 1978 : 13, n° 7
Robbins, Traditional Sculpture from Upper Volta, 1979 : 9, n° 39
Roy, Art of the Upper Volta Rivers, 1987 : 158, n° 125
Roy & Wheelock, Land of Flying Masks, 2007, n° 2

Good condition overall; wear consistent with age and use within the culture. Stable open crack to the front, as visible in the catalogue illustration. Patina worn on nose and other projections.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Cette statue, dont le rôle essentiel est d'affirmer l'autorité du chef (naba) s'inscrit dans le corpus très restreint des œuvres relevant, au Burkina Faso, de la sphère politique. Conservée toute l'année au sein du kimse roogo, dans la case de l'épouse la plus âgée du chef, elle fut commanditée par un chef pour le personnifier, des générations durant, lors des festivités annuelles Na-poosum dédiées aux ancêtres - masculins ou féminins (Roy, 1987 : 152-167). Le contexte de leur utilisation et leur conservation dans un lieu fermé expliquent à la fois leur rareté et le style très individuel de chacune. Selon Roy (idem : 158), « un artiste ne sculpte parfois dans sa vie qu'une ou deux statues pour un chef ; et il ne peut travailler que pour un ou deux chefs de la région. Ainsi, l'ensemble des statues conservées par un chef sont souvent le fruit du travail de plusieurs sculpteurs, au cours de plusieurs générations de chefs d'un même clan ».

Entièrement paré des motifs tégumentaires par lesquels les femmes Mossi affirmaient leur statut et leur identité, le personnage témoigne, par la dignité et la puissance de la stature, de l'importance de son rang. Au naturalisme de la pose et des courbes féminines accentuées répond la rigueur de la face épannelée, dont le contraste avec la rondeur de la tête est accentué de profil par la coiffure en haute crête sagittale gyonfo. Superbe patine d'usage, brun rouge, brillante sur les reliefs, dont la profondeur a atténué avec le temps les motifs tégumentaires très finement gravés. cf. Roy (idem : 119) pour une statue stylistiquement apparentée.

Mossi figure, Burkina Faso

 

This figure, whose primary role is to affirm the authority of the chief (naba), forms part of the small corpus of works from Burkina Faso which relate to political life. This figure was commissioned by a chief and would have been kept for most of the year in the dwelling of his most senior wife. The figure was made to be displayed over the course of several generations during the annual na-poosum festivities, which were dedicated to male and female ancestors (Roy 1987: 152-16). The context in which they were used and the fact that they were usually kept in a private place helps explain both the rarity and the highly individual style of these figures. According to Roy (ibid., 158) 'each artist may produce only one or two chiefs' figures during his lifetime for one or two traditional chiefs in his region. A group of figures in the ancestral spirit house of a single chief may represent the work of several different carvers working over a period of decades for several generations of chiefs in one community'.

 

The figure is almost entirely covered with the scarification marks which Mossi women used to assert their status and identity, whilst the dignified expression and powerful body of this figure testify to the important rank of the chief who commissioned it. The figure's naturalistic pose and feminine curves are complimented by the taut planes of the face. Viewed in profile, the sweeping curves of the head are emphasised by the high crested gyonfo coiffure. The figure has a superb red-brown patina, glossy on the projecting areas and with layered encrustation in places that partially obscures the finely incised motifs. Cf.Roy (ibid. 119) for a closely related figure.