Kifwebe Mask
CultureSongye
Date1925-1950
MediumWood and pigments
DimensionsOverall: 12 1/2 × 8 × 7 inches (31.75 × 20.32 × 17.78 cm)
Credit LineGift of Shirley and Barnett C. Helzberg Jr.
Object number2013.42.16
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionAbstract angular cubist mask known as a Kifwebe mask, with a triangular nose, elongated cheeks, square mouth, slit eyesProvenancePrivate collection, Belgium [1];
With Danny De Waele, Ghent, Belgium, by 1997 [2];
With Marc Leo Félix, Brussels, Belgium, stock no. FX 97072, by March 21-May 28, 1997 [3];
Purchased from Félix by Shirley and Barnett C. Helzberg, Jr., Mission Hills, KS, May 28, 1997-2013;
Their gift to The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 2013.
NOTES:
[1] According to Marc Leo Félix, in documentation provided at the time of the object’s purchase, NAMA curatorial files. The identity of this collection is currently unknown.
[2] According to the entry for this object in the African Heritage Documentation and Research Centre database, www.ahdrc.eu, object no. 0041192.
[3] Félix’s stock number is written on the inside of the mask.
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