Period: 19th century
Materials: Wood
Dimensions: 53.5 cm
Provenance
John J. Klejman, New York
Mozes S. Schulz Collection, USA
Private Collection, Los Angeles
Private Collection, Brussels
Pace Primitive, New York
Dalton Somaré, Milan
Private Collection, Milan
Dogon Female Figure and Sculpture from Mali
This extraordinary Dogon female figure, originating from the Bombou Toro region of Mali, stands among the most radical and innovative examples of ancient African art. Deeply rooted in Dogon iconography, the sculpture is distinguished by a remarkable formal modernity and by a sculptural construction that transcends traditional naturalistic conventions. The anatomy of the figure has been completely geometrized according to the principles of one of the many styles developed within Dogon statuary. The body is deconstructed and recomposed through a logic that privileges the organization of volumes over realistic representation. The masses unfold according to a rigorous and coherent rhythm, while the geometric lines running across the surface evoke ritual scarifications reinterpreted as structural elements of the sculptural language.
One of the most remarkable aspects of the sculpture is the simultaneous coexistence of multiple movements within the same composition. The arms are doubled: two, ending in fan-shaped hands, are raised upward, while others emerge from the same elbows to support the object placed before the abdomen.
This duplication introduces a dynamic complexity that breaks with the traditional stillness often associated with African sculpture. The same process of abstraction is applied to the feet, flattened and integrated into the base, which take on a fan-like form while deliberately retaining the correct number of toes in a surreal manner.
Through its conceptual complexity and compositional freedom, the construction of the figure recalls the language of Synthetic Cubism, while developing entirely independently within the African artistic tradition. The work demonstrates how Dogon sculpture shares with modern art a profound capacity for formal invention and abstraction.
The entire surface of the figure is covered with a thick sacrificial patina, evidence of the sculpture’s long ritual life. The practice of sprinkling human figures and sacred objects was common in rituals performed on personal and ancestral altars, in binu sanctuaries, on altars dedicated to the Nommo, and on yaupilu, altars reserved for women who died during pregnancy or childbirth.
During sacrificial ceremonies, numerous ritual substances were poured onto these objects, including the blood of sacrificed chickens, sheep or rams, millet porridge, mixtures made from baobab fruit and seeds of Parkia biglobosa, burned herbs, charcoal and oil from Lannea acida.
These sacrificial materials acted as vehicles for nyama, the vital force upon which physical well-being, mental balance and social order depended. According to Dogon belief, nyama, present in all living beings, could be released from one support and transmitted to another through sacrifice.
The deeper meaning of these rituals is reflected in the Dogon word for sacrifice, bulu, derived from the root bulo, meaning “to revive” or “to resurrect.” Through rituals of libation and aspersion, both the sacred object and the individual performing the sacrifice were placed into a state of purity, vitality and regeneration.
Only one other female figure of comparable style is known. The extreme rarity of this corpus considerably enhances the historical, artistic and collector’s importance of this exceptional Dogon sculpture from Mali.
