Pair of Yoruba Male and Female Twin Figures by Areogun of Osi-Ilorin, Ekiti, Nigeria

Edwin and Cherie Silver, Los Angeles, acquired circa 1980

Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, Male and Female: Couples in African Art, November 3, 1983 - May 6, 1984
Fowler Museum of Cultural History, UCLA, Los Angeles, Isn't S/he a Doll?: Play and Ritual in African Sculpture, November 17, 1996 - November 16, 1997, and travelling:
Minneapolis Institute of Art, November 14, 1998 - January 17, 1999

Herbert M. Cole, Male and Female: Couples in African Art, Los Angeles, 1983, cat. no. 6 (listed)
'Isn't S/He a Doll?', UCLA Fowler Museum News, Fall 1996, vol. 1, no. 2, p. 8
Elisabeth L. Cameron, Isn't S/He a Doll?: Play and Ritual in African Sculpture, Los Angeles, 1996, cover (male figure only) and p. 69, fig. 92
Fowler Museum of Cultural History, symposium program, Play and Ritual in African Art, Los Angeles, 1996, cover (male figure only)
Kim Jones, 'Oh, You Beautiful Doll!', LA Weekly, November 15-21, 1996, p. 67
Joe D. Horse Capture, 'What is a Doll?', Arts, November, 1998, p. 4

Areogun (circa 1880 - 1954) was a Yoruba artist from the village of Osi in the Ekiti region of northeastern Nigeria. Together with his contemporary, Agbonbiofe Adeshina (see lot 60), Areogun is considered one of the greatest Yoruba artists. His artistic talent, which earned him commissions across the northern Ekiti region, is reflected in his name; born Dada, he earned the "praise name" Areogun, a shortening of "areogunbunna", meaning "one who gets money with the tools of Ogun and spends it liberally" (Carroll, Yoruba Religious Carving, 1967, p. 79); Ogun is the Yoruba deity of iron and of those who use iron tools, such as blacksmiths, warriors, hunters, and carvers.