Figure: Seated Male on Stool 18th–19th century (215+/-90 years) Dogon peoples This commanding figure positioned at the center of a circular stool is defined by the emphatic bilateral symmetry and formal clarity favored by Dogon sculptors. The composition is striking for the elegant integration of the figure and the structure of his seat that consists of two parallel discs joined by a central post and five carved supports. The vertical axis of the figure’s upper body is continuous with the stool’s central post. His sweeping elongated legs terminate in feet planted firmly on the surface of its b
Figure: Seated Male on Stool 18th–19th century (215+/-90 years) Dogon peoples This commanding figure positioned at the center of a circular stool is defined by the emphatic bilateral symmetry and formal clarity favored by Dogon sculptors. The composition is striking for the elegant integration of the figure and the structure of his seat that consists of two parallel discs joined by a central post and five carved supports. The vertical axis of the figure’s upper body is continuous with the stool’s central post. His sweeping elongated legs terminate in feet planted firmly on the surface of its base. These limbs curve outward at the level of the thighs echoing the slightly bowed structural elements that span the perimeter and feature a lizard carved in relief. The figure’s eyes are closed and his facial expression suggests a meditative state. He holds a percussive instrument in joined hands. A series of three bands encircle either one of his upper arms – a decorative motif that is repeated below on both the legs of the stool and figure. The lower half of the composition is devoted to an expansive treatment of the seat whose two parallel but interconnected discs have been interpreted as metaphors for the parallel spheres of heaven and earth (Ezra 1988:98). According to Hélène Leloup the design of such seats developed in the southern plateau of the Bandiagara Escarpment but their use was extended to its central region (1998:120). The outer band of both seat and base is embellished with a dense abstract pattern evocative of ideas of life-force and power. The zoomorphic imagery that bridges them references the role of the lizard as well as the crocodile, serpent, tortoise and rain bird as intermediaries between divinity and humanity in Dogon cosmology (Van Beek 2001:128). While the original context for this imposing work is undocumented, such figurative creations by Dogon masters are considered to have been commemorative in nature. Michel Leiris emphasized thei
Size: 1312px × 1943px
Photo credit: © MET/BOT / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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