Cow figure
Buying animals in Burkina Faso
While on a trip to West Africa in February 1969, Katherine White recorded a sequence of encounters with real and "folk" animals in street performances and in the marketplace:
"In the midst of the flurry came a man with a heavy burlap bag out of which he pulled a massive boa constrictor, maybe twelve feet long, with which he danced, winding the snake around his neck like a scarf. Another man came with a terrified tiny little deer, dik-dik size, which he tethered to his ankle. Obviously, they intended to feed the snakes then and there. They were shooed away-perhaps it was going to take too long. I was relieved-I sided with the deer.
"There were stalls of fine Arabic leather work, and some wood carvers had decorated boxes and toys. I saw and bought a very crude delightful motorcycle and rider. Terribly funny and only 300 francs-about $1.20. Next were marvelous animals, horses, a bull, camels, a rabbit, great folk art. I finally got the bull and had to keep shouting 'Combien?' loudly so someone with both French and Peul could help me reach an agreement with the vendor. They had charming airplanes too, which looked like sedan chairs, or Victorian express wagons. I could have gotten one of each.
"When I got the bull, I found I could make a path by saying 'moo, moo' and everyone, chuckling, made way for me. Many of the Peul clicked their tongues as if I were doing something naughty. I had quite a gang follow me to the car, even after it was locked inside they stood there, looking at the bull through the windows."
Wood, pigment, and hair
30 1/2 x 7 15/16 x 26 1/2 in. (77.5 x 20.1 x 67.3 cm)
Gift of Katherine White and the Boeing Company
81.17.121
Provenance: Acquired at an agricultural fair in Djibo, Burkina Faso, by Katherine White (1929-1980), Seattle, Washington, 1969; bequeathed to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 1981
