Male-female couple ·  Mali, Bamana / Dogon · ID: 3048622

Description

wood, pigments, glass beads, encrusted patina, base

The present pair of figures shows stylistic similarities with a Bamana pair from the Myron Kunin Collection offered at Sothebys in New York in 2014 (AHDRC 0077447).

Sotheby’s assigned the Kunin couple to a Dogon style known as “Tomo-ka”. The sculptures of this style originate from the plain of the Seno River where the Dogon mixed with the Bamana and possibly the Mossi. They are characterised above all by the angular stylization of the body and the distinctive shape of the head, with the missing chin that looks as if it has been cut off - characteristics that also apply to the present pair of figures.

Comparing literature

Sotheby's, New York, "In Pursuit of beauty: The Myron Kunin Collection of African Art", 11 November 2014, Lot 8