Lot 106
  • 106

MASQUE, BÉTÉ, CÔTE D'IVOIRE |

Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 EUR
bidding is closed

Description

  • haut. 22,5 cm ; 8 7/8 in

Provenance

Collection Gérard Wahl-Boyer (1944-2014), Paris
Collection Marceau Rivière, Paris, acquis ca. 1995 

Exhibited

Le Mans, Carré Plantagenêt, musée d'archéologie et d'histoire, Masques d'Afrique, 12 mai - 29 août 2010

Literature

Joubert et Rivière, Masques d'Afrique, 2010, p. 28 et 90, n° 21

Condition

very good condition overall. Wear consistent with age and use within the culture.Beautiful dark patina with lighter tones in places.
"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."

Catalogue Note

Chargés d’imposer la paix lors de conflits internes ou venant « se mêler aux combattants au cours de la bataille, lançant des flèches ou des sagaies destinées moins aux adversaires réels qu’aux esprits venus les soutenir », les masques de guerre Bété imposaient leur figure terrifiante, matérialisant les forces hostiles de la forêt (Verger-Fèvre, « Côte d’Ivoire : Masques du pays Wè », Tribal Art, Printemps 2005, p. 108). A l’esthétique de la force, dont les données font « surgir l’inconnu plutôt qu’elles n’ordonnent le connu » (Meurant, Ubangi, 2008, p. 141), répondent ici la magistrale architecture des formes, la patine sombre et le réalisme de la barbe en peau animale.

Un réseau de bandes - ondulantes dans la moitié basse du visage et droites dans la partie supérieure – forme un second masque sur le visage sculpté et illustre magistralement l’inventivité plastique des sculpteurs de cette région, magnifiant l’austère et saisissante beauté de ce masque.

Entrusted with the mission of imposing peace during internal conflicts or "mixing with the fighters during the battle, throwing arrows or spears intended less for real opponents than for the spirits who came to support them" (Verger-Fèvre, "Côte d'Ivoire : Masques du pays Wè", Tribal Art, Spring 2005, p. 108), Bété war masks impress with their terrifying face, materializing the hostile forces of the forest.

The aesthetics of force, whose elements “bring out the unknown rather than ordering the known" (Meurant, Ubangi, 2008, p. 141), are contrasted here by the masterful architecture of the forms, the dark patina and the realism of the animal skin beard.

A network of bands – undulating in the lower half of the face and in the upper part – forms a second mask on the sculpted face and brilliantly illustrates the artistic inventiveness of the sculptors within this region, magnifying the austere and striking beauty of this mask.