Chair / Artist Unknown, African, Chokwe Peoples Angola
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About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 1992/1.136
- Title
- Chair
- Artist Nationality
- Angolan
- Medium and Support
- wood (dyed with vegetal infusion or stained with castor oil), animal hide
- Object Creation Date
- 1900-1925
- Object Creation Place
- Africa (continent)
- Angola (nation)
- Creation Place 1
- Africa (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- Angola (nation)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Robert B. Jacobs
- Dimensions
- 77.47 cm x 39.4 cm x 44.45 cm (30 1/2 in. x 15 1/2 in. x 17 1/2 in.)
- Century
- 20th century
- Primary Object Classification
- Furniture and Furniture Accessories
- Primary Object Type
- chair
- Physical Description
- Two squatting figures decorate the finials; one is elderly, bearded, and scarified, while the other is fresh-faced and young. At the lower left rung, two men carry a slit drum; between the caryatid figures supporting the chair’s front legs appear three men; the central splat has incised diagonal patterns called fuliko. At the center, what is possibly a pointy-nosed European’s face replaces the more habitual chikungu masker.
- Subject Matter
- Inspired by late 17th century Portuguese prototypes called cadeira de sola, this chair exemplifies the cross-cultural hybridization readily found in African art. Above all, chairs like this represent the authority and supreme spiritual power of its owners: chiefs, elders, diviners, or circumcision specialists. When presiding over local disputes, dignitaries leaned on citwamo ca mungu while sitting on animal hides.
- Secondary Keywords
- associated concepts
- chairs
- chairs by function
- furnishings
- furnishings by form or function
- furniture
- furniture by form or function
- objects we use
- people and culture
- political concepts
- sculpture
- sculpture by material
- sculpture by technique
- seating furniture
- single seating furniture
- social science concepts
- visual works
- visual works by medium or technique
- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- Image Size
- 871 x 1207
- File Size
- 51 KB
- Record
- 1992/1.136
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1992-sl-1.136/1992_1.136.jpg
Rights and Permissions
Related Links
Portfolios
IIIF
- Manifest
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1992-SL-1.136:1992_1.136.JPG
Cite this Item
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- Full citation
-
"Chair; Artist Unknown, African, Chokwe Peoples Angola." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1992-sl-1.136/1992_1.136.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed April 19, 2024.
