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Bakongo Nkisi Nkondi

November 11, 2021 by BIGdaddy34

Nail Fetish Figure from DR Congo

23″ x 9″ x 10″ & 6.5lbs

Provenance: *May D&F Co. Denver, Colorado, before 1964

*Denver Art Museum, Colorado (inv.1964.292) acquired from the above, 1964

*Cole Harrell, New York, acquired from the above to benefit the Denver Art Museum Acquisitions Fund

Exhibited: Denver Art Museum, Colorado, Frederic C. Hamilton Gallery, 2006-2016

Bakongo Nkondi nail fetishes were used by communities for many reasons including protection against illnesses and evil spirits, and to set in stone contracts and decide argument outcomes. A holy person would activate the statue using magical substances. The Bakongo people also deeply believed in these figures ability to be effective tools to identify and punish wrong doers. The nails would be hammered into the sculpture to provoke action.

Love this Baule figure.

October 28, 2021October 26, 2021 by BIGdaddy34

Baule is a tribe, not an in individual artist. We don’t know who carved it, but it appears to be by a “known hand”, and we are looking into it.

Provenance: Private French Collection (Richard Gabillet).

“Take a look at this beautiful seated Baule figure from the Dave Dahl Collection . Want to see it in person? Schedule a time to view the gallery and the rest of Dave’s incredible African art collection – message us here: Discover African Art“

#africantribalart #africanart #discoverafricanart

https://discoverafricanart.com/

Another from my collection of African tribal art

October 19, 2021October 15, 2021 by BIGdaddy34

A Kuba Bwoom helmet mask from Democratic Republic of Congo. Thanks To Tim Sugden for the photography.

Some people love the colorful, “evergreen”, types like these. I prefer those that have lost their color. Color in the old days wasn’t paint but rather some natural pigment, and the result is that by now, that pigment is mostly gone.

“Kuba mythology revolves around three figures, each represented by a masquerade character: Woot, the creator and founder of the ruling dynasty; Woot’s spouse; and Bwoom. Bwoom’s specific identity varies according to different versions of the myth. He may represent the king’s younger brother, a person of Twa descent, or a commoner. Embodying a subversive force within the royal court, the Bwoom masquerade is often performed in conflict with the masked figure representing Woot.”

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Here’s another prominent piece from my collection

October 14, 2021 by BIGdaddy34

A very rare Tetela mask from Democratic Republic of Congo. Yesterday, I posted a statue from the same tribe. Both are not similar to anything else that I’ve seen. The provenance is terrific: Jean Paul Agogue of Paris. This is worth a lot of money…but if you want to dip your toes into African tribal art, you’re welcome to visit my warehouse in Eagle Creek, Oregon and/or www.discoverafricanart.com for very reasonable prices. We also are adding outposts around the Portland area.

One of my absolute faves, a one-of-a-kind nkisi statue from the the Tetela people of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

October 13, 2021 by BIGdaddy34

I purchased it at the San Francisco Tribal Art Show a couple of years ago.

Another fave from my collection, a superb antique ceremonial mask from the Krahn people of Ivory Coast.

October 13, 2021 by BIGdaddy34

“The Krahn are an ethnic group of Liberia and Ivory Coast. This group belongs to the Kru language family and its people are sometimes referred to as the Wee, Guéré, Sapo, or Wobe. It is likely that Western contact with the Kru language is the primary reason for the development of these different names.”*Wikipedia

Another piece of my absurdly large collection of African art.

October 13, 2021 by BIGdaddy34

This one is a Senufo Kpeli made of copper alloy, which is far less common than those carved in wood.

“The Senufo people, also known as Siena, Senefo, Sene, Senoufo, and Syénambélé, are a West African ethnolinguistic group. They consist of diverse subgroups living in a region spanning the northern Ivory Coast, the southeastern Mali and the western Burkina Faso.”

Here is another favorite from my collection of African art

October 13, 2021October 12, 2021 by BIGdaddy34

a Kuba Bwoom mask from the Democratic Republic of Congo. I have many of these that aren’t as old as this one. It was collected in 1970 and was already old at that time. Here’s a bit of the story of this work of art:

To see a lot more of my collection, visit “Dave Dahl Collection” on Facebook.

https://www.facebook.com/davedahlcollection