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Horned Female Figure (tiyambo)

Artist Baga artist , possibly Abdoulaye Bangoura

Datecirca 1946

MediumWood with traces of pigment

Dimensions45 3/4 × 9 1/2 × 8 1/4 in. (116.2 × 24.1 × 21 cm)

ClassificationsSculpture

Credit LinePartial gift of Charles D. Miller III, and partial purchase with funds from the Art Trust Fund Endowment

Object number2020.13

On View

On view

Label TextTiyambo was originally invented in Katako (northern Baga country) around 1946 by Ambra, a young artist who had visions of a spirit emerging from the earthly and riverine depths of the ancestors (dabal). This was during a time when young sculptors of Katako and Koba (southern Baga country) were opposing elders in their artistic endeavors and creating new hybrid figures blending older mask forms, traditional stories, and/or Christian and Islamic imagery.

Indeed, Tiyambo’s backward-curving horns hint at its supernatural origin, while a projection at the back of the head indicates Islamic influence also seen on the related art form of Sibondel.
[A. Maples, "The People's Collection, Reimagined," 2024]ProvenanceCreated Katako, Guinea, 1946; acquired by Al-Hajji Sekou Kamara, Guinea, probably during the 1940s; sold in Liberia to Charles D. Miller III of Saint James, NY, 1970s; given/sold to NCMA, 2020 [1].

[1] Partial gift and partial purchase.
Exhibition HistoryRaleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "The People's Collection, Reimagined," October 7, 2022–present. Object Rights Statement

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