Kuyu Head, Democratic Republic of the Congo

inventory number "3000" painted in white on bottom reverse and the number "270" painted below and on reverse of base.

Alan Sawyer, Washington, D.C.
Morton Lipkin and Robert Stolper, Amsterdam
William W. Brill, New York, acquired from the above on April 12, 1967
Sotheby's, New York, The William W. Brill Collection of African Art, November 17, 2006, lot 76
Myron Kunin, Minneapolis, acquired at the above auction

Musée de l'Homme, Paris, Arts de l'Union Française, 1953
Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, extended loan, 1968-1976

Musée de l'Homme, Arts de l'Union Française, Paris, 1953, pl. 7
Werner Gillon, Collecting African Art, London, 1979, p. 98, fig. 120
Robert Plant Armstrong, The Powers of Presence: Consciousness, Myth, and Affecting Presence, Philadelphia, 1981, fig. 43
Marie-Louise Bastin, Introduction aux arts d'Afrique noire, Arnouville, 1984, p. 266, fig. 280
Sotheby's (adv.), Tribal Art, No. 42, Autumn 2006, p. 29
No author listed, "The William W. Brill Collection of African Art", Tribal Art, No. 42, Autumn 2006, p. 39
No author listed, "Auctions: New York", Tribal Art, No. 43, Winter 2006, p. 20

Good condition for an object of this age and rare type. Small losses to back of right ear; to points on back of collar, and to proper left upper eyelid. Crater of erosion from insect damage in top of head. Age cracks, including vertical cracks to back of the head around holes. Surface varnished. Fine medium brown patina with areas of dark stain and remains of white pigment. Permanently fixed to metal rod on modern base. Inventory number "3000" painted in white on bottom reverse and the number "270" painted below and on reverse of base.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The Kuyu people, neighbors of the Mboshi, live on the east and west sides of the Kuyu River, a tributary of the Likouala River, which flows into the Congo River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. According to first-hand documentation provided by the French colonial administrator, M. A. Poupon, in his article "Etude Ethnographique de la Tribu Kouyo" (1918-1919), the Kuyu are divided equally among eastern and western groups. Traditionally the eastern group followed the teaching of the Serpent, djo, and the western group followed the Panther (see Bénézech 1988: 56-57). 

The present Kuyu head, formerly in the collection of William W. Brill, belongs to a small group of heads classified by Bénézech (1988: 54-55) as "Style I". Contrary to heads of Style III, heads of Style I were never danced. Instead, their use seems to have been connected with the end of the ceremonies (Anne-Marie Bénézech, personal communication).

Kuyu works of art of similar refinement and age are exceedingly rare. Only a few other sculptures of  comparable quality are known: see Ader, Picard, Tajan, October 16, 1989, lot 54 for another head by the same hand, collected between 1910 and 1914 by Governor Georges Thomann; Enchères Rive Gauche, 17-18 June, 2006, lot 189 for a standing figure formerly in the collection of Pierre Vérité and collected by Aristide Courtois before 1938; Kerchache, Paudrat and Stéphan (1989: 435, pls. 636-637) for a half-figure formerly in the collection of Charles Ratton; and Sotheby's, Paris, June 16, 2010, lot 72 and cover, for a head again collected by Aristide Courtois before 1938. The present head from the Kunin Collection, however, is unsurpassed in its combination of artistic delicacy and savage expressiveness. The composition of drooping eyes in trance-like expression in contrast to a gaping mouth with sharp, ferocious teeth can be understood as an allusion to the moment of transcendence of spiritual power during the important ceremonies. The artist's mastery in depicting this moment beyond time makes this head one of the great masterpieces of Kuyu art.