Tourist piece

Hi everyone.

I have what I am sure is a fairly recently made tourist piece that I got in Nigeria last week. I am not a collecter at all- I am a Registered Nurse and I do a lot of work in Africa, I tend to get items as gifts from patients- most if not all are tourist items which I enjoy looking at. I have never actually researched any item given to me. This piece, however, is really odd- and I have not seen anything like it- making me think it is recently done... as it appears to have sort of a Christian influence. The person who gave it to me gave me the interesting information of "Its wood, its wood."
I would like to get some sort of information about it (ie is it Yoruba, Ibibio, etc... and is it at all typical, and how did such an object come to be made (It looks like a small totem pole, with some carved persons with musical instruments- without stain or finish and a whole lot of dirt, and such which I have not yet removed for fear of messing the object up)
However, I keep trying to post the photos and I seem to be a bit clueless about how to get them compressed. Is there someone who can tell me how to do this?
Thank you !

Hi Katie

If you send the photos to me (sprice@hsc.vcu.edu) as e-mail attachments, I'll be happy to post them for you.

Regards, and welcome to Afro-Dit.

Steve Price

Hi

Katie sent me the pictures of her piece. Here they are:

















Thanks, Katie.

Steve Price

Dear Mrs. Taggert,

your piece is a fine old piece of christian influenced art from the Yoruba. I would attribute it to the workshop of Father Kevin Caroll that worked there in the 1940/50.

Here are some background information from my next article on Yoruba art :

To come back now to Areoguns son Bandele, we need to focus the background of father Kevin Carrol. Artist like Areogun ( which was already mentioned in the text), his son Bandele ( b. 1910 - ), Oshamuko ( d. 1945), and Lamidi Fakeye ( b. 1925) were the core of the project. Even the carvers were not christians , Father Kevin Carroll worked with them to establish a own christian nigerian art to integrate them into the church service. The artists worked for the churches and also for the traditionalists, so the Yoruba iconographie found its way into the chrstian art of Nigeria. They also produced many figures that were sold to foreign countries, like America and Europe. Many of their works can be found in small missonary museums across Europe.


I think your piece could be done for a church as a colum or for a traditional use as well. I hope this information may help.

Best regards

David Zemanek

thanks

Thanks.
So- this actually is not a piece created for tourists?- and I guess it is not really all that new (Though compared to other artifacts...still a baby) (I was given the piece in Lagos, after a very long trip to Uyo and Ituk Mbang in the south region)

Of course, having an answer creates a few more questions. I am assuming that there are many many pieces similar to this piece, as it was apparently done in a workshop situation which created a lot of woodwork- so I do not need to insure it or anything correct?
On the top of the column- which I did not photograph there are two feet- no body, do I then assume that this piece is unfinished by the carver?

How should I clean it? Should I take it to the art museum for cleaning? (We have a very good museum here in the state capital)-


Thank you so much- I am so thrilled to have something that was actually not created 2 weeks ago!

You all have been so helpful, I may have to post a few other items I picked up in Eritrea a few years back....

Thank you

Well,

Thank you David, It comes as a nice surprise to me that this is not something made essentially for the market. After reading your post I looked up Carroll on the net and the few photos I could find did really resemble my piece!!

Of course knowing some information creates a few more questions.

From your description, it seems that a lot of carving like this piece was created in Nigeria during the 40's and 50's. So, Can I assume this piece has little monetary value and does not need to be insured?

How should such an item be cleaned? Should I take it to the conservation department at the State Art Museum- or am I being just a bit too cautious?

When you say traditional use, as opposed to a church column- what do you mean?

And lastly- the top of the column, which I did not photo has two feet on it, no body. Do I assume that the carver intended to carve out a body and for some reason or another did not and cut it at the feet?

You have been so helpful, If I can get my camera to work, I'm going to post some other items I got when in Eritrea which I have also been curious about. Though, in this forum, I have seen little mention of E. Africa....

Dear Mrs. Taggart,

the piece does have of course a little value. So make the lowest possible insuranse for transport. But if you love the piece make an higher one. To your questions: The carver around father Caroll also worked for the kings and the secret societys like Ogboni or other ones. They had a place in both world. In the new modern christian influenced world, and in the traditional religious world.
So can find interesting works of the artists also in traditional use.
Your piece is quite interesting, because the carver is known.
I don´t know how to clean the piece. Removing dust and spiderwebs is one thing you can easily do, but doing more would destroy the patina.

Best regards

David Zemanek

Hi People

I have taken the liberty of moving this thread, originally part of the Afro-Dit Show and Tell Board, to this forum because of its obvious relationship to the content of David's essay.

Steve Price