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Female standing figure

Photo: Elizabeth Mann

Female standing figure

20th century

Jealousy is resolved in Baule culture by the acquisition of a “person of wood” who enables the owner to communicate with troublesome spirits. This tall figure embodies the physical qualities prized by the Baule: impassive faces, long necks, contained postures, and precisely detailed scarification and hair styles.
This figure was likely commissioned by a woman who was in distress, concerned about the disruptions caused by what is called a “spirit spouse”. All Baule adults have a mate of the opposite sex living in the otherworld who can be demanding and causing problems in a marriage, with children, or with finances. Wooden spirit spouses become companions that one spends at least one night a week with and cares for. The smooth glossy skin on this sculpture is a sign that this spouse has been fondly polished. Always standing with a strong vertical axis, the spirit spouse’s legs are flexed and full, in a manner admired by the Baule as the sign of a person in their prime.

Wood, cloth
Height: 16 1/2in. (41.9cm)
Gift of Dr. Oliver E. and Pamela F. Cobb
2012.29.3
Provenance: Maurice Ratton Antiquarie, Paris, 1967; [Madame LeLoup gallery, New York City]; purchased from gallery by present owner, 1988
Photo: Elizabeth Mann
location
Not currently on view

Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.

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