Bird Figure
- Artist Culture
- Inyai-Ewa artist
- Date
- possibly 18th–19th century
- Material
- Wood, plant fibers, clay, pigment
- Classification
- Costume & clothing, sculpture
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 107
- Dimensions
- overall width: 67 3/4 in. (172 cm)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Morton D. May
- Rights
- Contact Us
- Object Number
- 101:1975a,b
NOTES
With its unusual height and dramatic presence, this figure seems to hover in the air. To create this impressive sculpture, the artist carved the head and body from wood, wove the wings from plant fibers, and assembled the parts. Although mixed materials are common in arts of the Sepik region, the large scale of this object is unique.
This bird figure was among a group of related sculptures collected during the 1960s on the upper Korewori River, a tributary of the Sepik River. Exhibited in a New York City gallery in 1968, the group inspired surprise and admiration among the visiting public. However, there is no documentation to explain the sculptures’ indigenous significance or ritual contexts.
Provenance
- 1968
D'Arcy Galleries, New York, NY, USA
1968 - 1975
Morton D. May (1914-1983), St. Louis, MO, purchased from D'Arcy Galleries [1]
1975-
Saint Louis Art Museum, given by Morton D. May [2]
Notes:
[1] An invoice dated January 8, 1968 from D'Arcy Galleries to Morton D. May documents the purchase of this object, listed as "#1242 Zoomorphic cult effigy figure of a bird with human head (probably the representation of a dead hunter), Wood, rattan on wicker frame. *from a cave inland from Tangermas River, New Guinea, Upper Karawari region / 42" high / 69 ½" wide / - has stand" [May Archives, Saint Louis Art Museum].
[2] A letter dated August 14, 1975 from Morton D. May to Mary-Edgar Patton, acting director of the Saint Louis Art Museum, includes the offer of this object as part of a larger donation [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Acquisitions Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, November 6, 1975.
D'Arcy Galleries, New York, NY, USA
1968 - 1975
Morton D. May (1914-1983), St. Louis, MO, purchased from D'Arcy Galleries [1]
1975-
Saint Louis Art Museum, given by Morton D. May [2]
Notes:
[1] An invoice dated January 8, 1968 from D'Arcy Galleries to Morton D. May documents the purchase of this object, listed as "#1242 Zoomorphic cult effigy figure of a bird with human head (probably the representation of a dead hunter), Wood, rattan on wicker frame. *from a cave inland from Tangermas River, New Guinea, Upper Karawari region / 42" high / 69 ½" wide / - has stand" [May Archives, Saint Louis Art Museum].
[2] A letter dated August 14, 1975 from Morton D. May to Mary-Edgar Patton, acting director of the Saint Louis Art Museum, includes the offer of this object as part of a larger donation [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Acquisitions Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, November 6, 1975.