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Veranda Post
1910-191456 x 132 x 10 in. (142.2 x 335.3 x 25.4 cm)
Olowe of Ise
Nigeria (ca. 1875 - ca. 1938)
Yoruba; made in Nigeria
Object Type:
Sculpture
Medium and Support:
Wood, paint
Credit Line:
Marion Stratton Gould Fund
Accession Number:
1971.13
Location: Currently on view
A royal wife stands with her hands resting on the heads of her twin daughters who hold their breasts in a Yoruba gesture of greeting, devotion and humility. This post was carved to decorate a courtyard veranda in the palace of the Ogoga of Ikere, one of the kings of Yorubaland. The courtyard served as an official area where the king received important visitors and conducted affairs of state. It was important that he show off his wealth, power and sophistication in this space.
This veranda post was carved by one of the most renowned sculptors in Africa, Olowe of Ise. His sculptures were so beautiful that some people believed Olowe harnessed the power of spirits who carved for him. Elaborate hairstyles and scarification patterns (look at the royal wife’s back) demonstrate Olowe’s technical mastery and reflect Yoruba standards of beauty. Traces of layered pigments indicate that these were once brightly painted and regularly refurbished.
[Gallery label text, 2009]
This veranda post was carved by one of the most renowned sculptors in Africa, Olowe of Ise. His sculptures were so beautiful that some people believed Olowe harnessed the power of spirits who carved for him. Elaborate hairstyles and scarification patterns (look at the royal wife’s back) demonstrate Olowe’s technical mastery and reflect Yoruba standards of beauty. Traces of layered pigments indicate that these were once brightly painted and regularly refurbished.
[Gallery label text, 2009]
Provenance
Everett Rassiga (1922-2003), New York (dealer); purchased from him by the Gallery in 1971
Keywords
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Additional Images
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Exhibition List
This object was included in the following exhibitions:
- Harris K. Prior Memorial Exhibition 4/2/1976 - 5/2/1976
- Olowe of Ise: A Yoruba Carver for Kings 3/11/1998 - 9/8/1998
Bibliography
This object has the following bibliographic references:
- Article Author: Kreamer, Christine Mullen. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. Susan Dodge Peters, ed. Memorial Art Gallery: An Introduction to the Collection. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery in association with Hudson Hills Press, 1988. Page Number: 246-247
- Article Scope: Reproduction only. Memorial Art Gallery. Gallery Notes. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery, 1935-1995. Issue Date: September 1986.
- Article Author: Pasztory, Esther. Article Title: Hieratic Composition in West African Art. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. The Art Bulletin. New York, NY: College Art Association of America Volume Number: 52, Issue Number: 3. Issue Date: September 1970. Page Number: 301, Figure Number: 4 (in situ)
- Article Scope: Entry and reproduction. John Pemberton, III and John Picton. Ibeji: The Cult of Yoruba Twins. Milan, Italy: 5 Continents Editions, 2003.
- Article Scope: Entry and reproduction. Roslyn Adele Walker. Olówè of Isè: A Yoruba Sculptor to Kings. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1998.
- Antonio Acosto Mallo and Pilar Llull Martinez de Bedoya. Art of Black Africa. Lagos, Nigeria: Tribal, 1992.
- Article Author: Meyerowitz, Eva L. R. . Article Title: Wood-Carving in the Yoruba Country Today. Africa. Volume Number: 14, Issue Number: 2. Issue Date: 1943. Page Number: 66-70 (in situ)
- Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. William Fagg and Margaret Plass. African Sculpture, an Anthology. London, England: Studio Vista, 1964.
- Linda Q. Green. The Yoruba Housepost. , 1973.
- Jacqueline Delange. The Art and Peoples of Black Africa. New York, NY: E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc., 1974.
- William Fagg and John Pemberton, III. Yoruba Sculpture of West Africa. London, England: William Collins Sons, 1982.
- J. C. Moughtin, ed. The Work of Z. R. Dmochowski: Nigerian Traditional Architecture. London, England: Ethnographica, 1988.
- Henry John Drewal and John Pemberton, III. Yoruba, Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought. New York, NY: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1989.
- Article Author: Pemberton, John. Article Title: Art and Rituals for Yoruba Sacred Kings. Museum Studies. Chicago, IL: Art Institute of Chicago Volume Number: 15, Issue Number: 2. Issue Date: 1989. Page Number: 100-102, Figure Number: 5, 6 (in situ)
- Warren Robbins and Nancy Ingram Nooter. African Art in American Collections: Survey 1989. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1989.
- Article Author: Walker, Roslyn Adele. Article Title: The Ikere Palace Veranda Posts by Olowe of Ise. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. African Arts. Volume Number: 24, Issue Number: 1. Issue Date: 1991. Page Number: 77-78; 104
- Olówè of Isè. Washington, DC: National Museum of African Art, 1998.
- Judith Perani and Fred T. Smith. The Visual Arts of Africa: Gender, Power, and Life Cycle Rituals. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1998.
- Article Author: Hollis, Sara. Article Title: Yoruba: Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought. Article Scope: Article and reproduction. Arts Quarterly. New Orleans, LA: New Orleans Museum of Art Volume Number: XIII, Issue Number: 1. Issue Date: Jan-Mar 1991. Page Number: 1, 4-6, Figure Number: 2 (in situ)
- Peter Garlake. The Kingdoms of Africa. Oxford, England: Elsevier-Phaidon, 1978.
- Z. R. Dmochowski. An Introduction to Nigerian Traditional Architecture. London, England: Ethnographica, 1990. Volume Number: 2
- Carol Thompson. African Art Portfolio: An Illustrated Introduction: Masterpieces from the Eleventh to the Twentieth Centuries. New York, NY: The Museum for African Art, 1993.
- Poetry through art: by the students of the Young Mothers Program. Fairport, NY: New York State Literacy Center, 1991.
- Article Scope: Mention and reproduction. Marjorie Searl and Lu Harper. The Memorial Art Gallery: 100 Years. Rochester, NY: Memorial Art Gallery, 2013.
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