Images(3)

Horse and Rider

Label TextRiding a horse is a noble act in West Africa, signaling the arrival of a warrior or leader. This Dogon rider is likely a founding father who hurtled down to earth on a rainbow, but crashed on impact. His broken limbs turned into working joints as he set out in search of land to cultivate.

Object number81.17.46

ProvenanceCollection of Georges Rodriquez (location unknown); sold to Katherine White (1929-1980), Seattle, Washington, 1967; bequeathed to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 1981

Photo CreditPhoto: Paul Macapia

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. 7 (as Figure of a Horseman). 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. 76-77, reproduced pl. 104 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. 7, pp. 22-23, reproduced. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Art from Africa: Long Steps Never Broke a Back, Feb. 7 - May 19, 2002 (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Oct. 2, 2004 - Jan. 2, 2005; Hartford, Connecticut, Wadsworth Atheneum, Feb. 12 - June 19, 2005; Cincinnati, Ohio, Cincinnati Art Museum, Oct. 8, 2005 - Jan. 1, 2006; Nashville, Tennessee, Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Jan. 27 - Apr. 30, 2006 [as African Art, African Voices: Long Steps Never Broke a Back]). Text by Pamela McClusky. No cat. no., pp. 41-42, reproduced pl. 17.

Credit LineGift of Katherine White and the Boeing Company

Dimensions14 3/8 x 3 7/8 x 12 1/4 in. (36.5 x 9.8 x 31.1 cm)

MediumWood