Madagascar, la Civilisation du Zébu

As part of its Sculptures et Objets du Bout du Monde (Sculptures and Objects from the Ends of the Earth) exhibition series, the Cultural Service of the town of Orvault, in collaboration with Jean-Yves Coué, will present Madagascar, la Civilisation du Zébu from October 31–December 7. This exhibition, which will be held at the Château de la Gobinière, will be an homage to the creative talents of the artists of the "Red Island," or Madagascar. The many different kinds of works on display will share a common thread, that being a direct or indirect reference to the zébu, or omby. A vital symbol in the local culture, this humpbacked bovine is not only a source of food but also a symbol of prosperity, which makes it the focus of any number of ceremonial contexts.

Visit the exhibition's official website.

L'éclat des ombres

The Radiance of Shadows: Black and White Art of the Solomon Islands will open at the Musée du quai Branly on November 18. Luminosity and iridescence are omnipresent in the maritime environment of the Solomon Islands, a Pacific archipelago of more than 900 islands that harbors vast cultural diversity. The natural contrast of light and dark there is often associated with the “Shadows,” the powerful spirits of the dead. By reproducing the visual effects of their environment in art objects, the living seek to give material expression to the relations they enjoy with these supernatural beings, and through these remarkable objects, the presence of ancestors manifests itself to help men achieve success in their enterprises, whether building a house for the chief or a canoe to sail the seas. Objects relating to headhunting, fishing, harvest, initiation, marriage, funerary rites, and so on are all rooted in this aesthetic.

Visit the exhibition's official website.

Images courtesy of the Musée du Quai Branly

African, Oceanic and Pre-Columbian Art at Bonhams

On November 12 Bonhams will present a large sale of tribal art, comprising a wide array of ancient Mexican stone and ceramic works and a multitude of items from Africa and the South Pacific. Highlighting the sale is a rare Aztec image of the deity Xochipilli-Macuilxochitl, pictured below.

For more information, view the online catalogue.

Image of Xochipilli-Macuilxochitl  -  Aztec, Mexico  -  Postclassic, ca AD 1450–1521

Image courtesy of Bonhams

The Myron Kunin Collection at Sotheby's

On November 11 in New York, Sotheby's will put before the bidders the remarkable collection of Myron Kunin (1928 – 2013), who amassed one of the finest private assemblages of African art in the world. The collection includes masterpieces from all regions of sub-Saharan Africa, and is particularly strong in works of great refinement and classical beauty originating from Ivory Coast, Gabon, and the Congo. 

View the online catalogue.

Maternity  -  Kongo-Yombe, D.R. Congo

Janus-headed power figure  -  Songye, D.R. Congo

Female figure  -  Senufo, Côte d'Ivoire or Burkina Faso

Reliquary head  -  Fang-Betsi, Gabon

Images courtesy of Sotheby's

MATA NYC - November 2014

A new edition of Madison Ancient and Tribal Art will be presented at Arader Gallery on 1016 Madison Ave in New York on November 8–11. Among the participating dealers will be Marc Assayag, Bruce Frank, Patrick Mestdagh, James Stephenson, Michael Oliver and Michael Rhodes. 

For more details, please, visit the official MATA website.

Double Take: African Innovations

Celebrating Africa's continual dynamism and long tradition of artistic creativity, Double Take: African Innovations opens the doors to the Brooklyn Museum's storied African collection with a new, experimental installation that invites surprising and unexpected ways of looking at African art. It suggests universal themes that link seemingly dissimilar works, often across vast distances of time and space, while also presenting them within their own specific context of history and place.

Visit the exhibition's website for more information.

Elephant mask  -  Bamileke, Cameroon Grassfields  -  20th century

Information and image courtesy of the Brooklyn Museum

Gold of the Gods from Java

The Javanese Kingdom remained closed to outsiders for over a thousand years, with only the statues hewn from lava rock at Borobudur displaying the wealth with which the Javanese rulers venerated their gods. This month, the Wereldmuseum in Rotterdam premiered a dedicated exhibition to the splendor of Javanese ceremonial art entitled Gold of the Gods. The installation presents an extensive collection of gold items from the seventh to the eleventh centuries and is on view until April 6, 2015.

Visit the exhibition's official website.

Image courtesy of the Wereldmuseum Rotterdam