Elder Hiding Behind Something mask (Karan Wemba)

Date19th-20th century

Label TextVibrant women at the height of their physical beauty are present in mask form to honor their female elders. When such a woman dies, the mask appears as a spiritual escort service. A sinewy young woman pays tribute to feminine balance. Her straight shoulders and elongated neck enable her to support a plank that is said to be "the way of the road of the dance with the dead."

Object number81.17.112

Provenance[Julius Carlebach Gallery, New York]; purchased from gallery by Katherine White (1929-1980), Seattle, Washington, 1962; bequeathed to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 1981

Exhibition HistoryCleveland, Ohio, Cleveland Museum of Art, African Tribal Images: The Katherine White Reswick Collection, July 10 - Sept. 1, 1968 (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, University of Pennsylvania Museum, Oct. 10 - Dec. 1, 1968). Text by William Fagg. Cat. no. 37 (as Mask with Female Figure). Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art, African Sculpture, organized by the International Exhibitions Foundation, Jan. 29 - Mar. 1, 1970 (Kansas City, Missouri, William Rockhill Neslon Gallery, Mar. 21 - Apr. 26, 1970; Brooklyn, New York, Brooklyn Museum, May 26 - June 21, 1970). Los Angeles, California, Frederick S. Wight Art Gallery, University of California, African Art in Motion: Icon and Act, Jan. 20 - Mar. 17, 1974 (Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art, May 5 - Sept. 22, 1974). Text by Robert Farris Thompson. No cat. no., pp. 106-7, reproduced pl. 146 (as "karan-weba" mask). Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Praise Poems: The Katherine White Collection, July 29 - Sept. 29, 1984 (Washington, D.C., National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Oct. 31, 1984 - Feb. 25, 1985; Raleigh, North Carolina Museum of Art, Apr. 6 - May 19, 1985; Fort Worth, Texas, Kimbell Art Museum, Sept. 7 - Nov. 25, 1985; Kansas City, Missouri, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Mar. 8 - Apr. 20, 1986). Text by Pamela McClusky. Cat. no. 34, pp. 76-77, reproduced (as Mask with female figure (karan-wemba)).Published ReferencesRoy, Christopher D. "Mossi." Milan: 5 Continents Editions, 2015; reproduced pl. 21, p. 116.

Credit LineGift of Katherine White and the Boeing Company

Dimensions54 x 6 5/16 x 6 5/16 in. (137.2 x 16 x 16 cm)

MediumWood, pigment