Guro Mask, Côte d'Ivoire

This finely and sensitively carved mask depicts a young woman who embodies the qualities of ideal beauty amongst the Guro. The broad sweep of her sloping forehead, gracefully arched brows and downcast eyes illustrate her refined character, and there is a charming sense of gentle interiority to the expression. Ariane Deluz notes that young Guro women “adopted coiffures that showed their status, the actual wealth of her family. In this way, men tempted to court her would know whom they were dealing with.” (Deluz in Barbier, ed., Art of Côte d’Ivoire, Geneva, 1993, vol. II, p. 94). Here the coiffure is arranged in an elaborate zigzag pattern that echos the work of the Master of Buafle, one of the great Guro sculptors; one might also notice his influence in the crisp precision with which the features, at once delicate and sharp, have been carved. In the serene oval face, the downcast eyes and the long, beautifully carved aquiline nose, there is an irresistible echo of the work of Modigliani.