Detail View: The AMICA Library: Female Mask (kpeli-yebe)

AMICA ID: 
CMA_.1989.48
AMICA Library Year: 
1998
Object Type: 
Sculpture
Creator Name: 
Sabarikwo of Quazumon
Creator Nationality: 
African
Creator Role: 
artist
Gender: 
M
Creator Name-CRT: 
Sabarikwo of Quazumon
Title: 
Female Mask (kpeli-yebe)
Title Type: 
Primary
View: 
Full View
Creation Date: 
c. 1900
Creation Start Date: 
1880
Creation End Date: 
1920
Materials and Techniques: 
wood, brass, and pigment
Dimensions: 
Overall: 31.1cm x 16.2cm x 9.2cm
AMICA Contributor: 
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Owner Location: 
Cleveland, Ohio, USA
ID Number: 
1989.48
Credit Line: 
John L. Severance Fund
Rights: 
Context: 
Sabarikwo's reputation as a master sculptor extended throughout the Boundiali region and beyond. His distinctive style of delicate lines and exquisitely balanced forms was particularly suited for capturing female beauty, composure, and generative power---the subject of this mask. The deep black luster of the surface evokes the firm, oiled skin of young Senufo maidens. The raised mark on the forehead refers simultaneously to a palm nut and a vulva, symbolic of the powers of life and regeneration. The head above the main face, positioned where images from dreams and visions are sometimes placed, intensifies the theme of female beauty.
Related Image Identifier Link: 
CMA_.1989.48.tif