We managed to have a brief chat with the Jamaican painter Barbara Matthews von Enger at the opening of the exhibition "Kongo: Power and Majesty", at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, which features 134 works in ivory, textile and Wood. Barbara von Enger told us - "I am overjoyed to see such rare African works of art taking the centre stage here at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Power and Majesty indeed": The exhibition runs from 18th September - 3rd January 2016. Online tickets and info HERE
I love this. Before tourism struck Africa, places like Kenya and Tanzania, craftsmen would make extraordinary carvings. They were the real stuff of imagination. Twisted contorted works of magic. Then suddenly they stopped making these and made carvings of animals - they too are beautiful because they are made for tourists - they lost the soul. But people have to eat and have children to feed.
ReplyDeleteI have one such original carving at home. He has a strange tale - I shall blog about him soon. Just for Barbara Matthews von Enger.
Would totally love to see this if I were in New York!
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