American, possibly New Orleans, late 19th/early 20th Century
American, possibly New Orleans, late 19th/early 20th Century
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PROPERTY FROM THE MARVILL COLLECTION
American, possibly New Orleans, late 19th/early 20th Century

Dancing Root Figure

Details
American, possibly New Orleans, late 19th/early 20th Century
Dancing Root Figure
paint, nails and putty on root wood
26 in. high, 25 in. wide, 5 in. deep
Provenance
Private Collection, New York
Ricco/Maresca Gallery, New York

Lot Essay

Dancing Root Figure is a magnificent carving discovered in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Likely created in the late 1800s, its whereabouts for a century remain a mystery.

The sculpture's carefully rendered face is animated and energized with exaggerated teeth and a straight nose. His twisted torso oscillates while his arms revel in the air. He swirls and twirls, inviting the viewer's eye around his form. The smallest of details are included: his fingernails and toenails are articulated, his beige and gold teeth are straight and prominently rendered in contrast to his salmon-colored lips. His skin is textured.

Root carvings have a long and rich history around the world, from Asia to Africa to the Americas, and serve as totemic objects as well as decorative ones. Many sculptors in the American South, such as African American artists Bessie Harvey (1929-1994) and Ralph Griffin (1925-1992), created forms from roots that allowed spirits and "deep feeling" to emerge (William Arnett, ed., Souls Grown Deep, vol. 1 (Atlanta, 2000), p. 140). Similarly, Root Figure's movement and posture is directly dictated by the original shape of the wood, and the carver allowed the spirit of the wood to lead the sculpture. Root Figure was likely carved by an African American artist working from a similar tradition to Harvey and Griffin, though the present lot displays technical ability and mastery far beyond that achieved by the aforementioned artists.

The preservation of the Root Figure's surface and the care taken in his carving suggest the sculpture was prized and important. Additionally, the figure is unable to stand without a base or pedestal, which elevates the object to one worthy of special display or suggests he was supposed to be carried or held. Perhaps he was an object of New Orleans Voodoo culture, or a Power figure? Given the extremely scarce documentation on Voodoo practice in New Orleans, one cannot concretely attribute this figure to the tradition, but his animistic quality and swirling aesthetic makes it conceivable that he held a special place in ceremony or ritual.

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