The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 24, 2024

Half-Figure

Half-Figure

late 1800s–early 1900s
Wood and iron
Overall: 20 x 6.8 x 8.5 cm (7 7/8 x 2 11/16 x 3 3/8 in.)
René and Odette Delenne Collection, Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund 2010.457
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

This figure would have been used in a powerful association known as Bugabo, specializing in healing, hunting, and fighting crime.

Description

Iron tacks inserted into the lobes of the hairdo indicate that this sculpture was originally empowered with magical and medicinal substances. Thus charged, the figure would have been used in divination and was related to a powerful association known as Bugabo. Members specialized in healing, hunting, and fighting crime.
  • ?-1967
    (Marcel Dumoulin, Brussels, BE, before 1967, sold to René and Odette Delenne)
    1967-2010
    René [1901-1998] and Odette Delenne [1925-2012], Brussels, BE, 2010, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    2010
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, 2010
  • Petridis, Constantine, et al. Fragments of the Invisible: The René and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art. Milan: 5 Continents Editions, 2013, 84. Mentioned: pp. 81, 114; reproduced: p. 85, cat. 29
  • Striking Iron: The Art of African Blacksmiths. Fowler Museum at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA (organizer) (June 3-December 30, 2018); National Museum of African Art, Washington, DC (February 10-October 20, 2019); Musée du quai Branly, Paris, France (November 10, 2019-August 16, 2020).
    Fragments of the Invisible: The Rene and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 27, 2013-February 9, 2014).
  • {{cite web|title=Half-Figure|url=false|author=|year=late 1800s–early 1900s|access-date=24 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2010.457