Description
A specific group of families controls the production and performances of this type of abstract wooden plank mask with geometric designs in red, black, and white. Stemming from the village of Boni and belonging to the Bondé family, this mask was performed in honor of a historic ancestor. He was a person of short stature and is remembered as a masterful hunter who spent long periods of time alone in the forest.
Provenance
Wright Gallery, New York, N.Y., by 1983 [originally collected by William Wright in Upper Volta, according to object inventory card of R. Faletti, copy in curatorial file]; sold to Jeffrey Hammer and Deborah Stokes, Chicago, Ill., by 1983 [this and the following according to object inventory card of R. Faletti, copy in curatorial file]; sold to Richard and Barbara Faletti, Chicago, Ill, May 14, 1983; given to Joan Faletti Scottberg; given to the Art Institute, 2000.
Accession Number
155955
Medium
Wood and pigment
Dimensions
63.5 × 20.4 × 15.3 cm (25 × 8 × 6 in.)
Classification
masks
Credit Line
Gift of Joan Faletti Scottberg, the Faletti Family Collection
