Baule Portrait Mask, Ivory Coast
mblo
height 13in (33cm)
Wood, kaolin
Provenance:
René Rasmussen, Paris
James R. Camp, New York
Private Collection, Michigan
Published:
Cannes Catalog, 1958
"Portrait masks were virtually never seen up close as Westerners view them - motionless, with spotlights and without the distractions of the moving costume." (Vogel, 1997: p 112) Masks were stored in bags, out of site of public view in order to prevent the risk of their powers affecting on-lookers.