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Fang head

Gabon

Late 19th century

Height: 32 cm

Wood, pigment & metal

This head is carefully carved. It presents a bulging forehead and a heart-shaped face terminating at the mouth by a smiling expression with a recessed chin. The eyes are symbolized by thin, diamond-shaped layers of metal. The nose is missing. It is possible to see it on different pictures because it was restored at the end of the 20th century just like the end of the headdress. A recent restoration give back its original looks when the head left Africa.

Provenance

Charles Ratton, Paris
Gaston Durville’s collection, Paris
Pierre Vérité, Paris
Dr. Jean Audouin’s collection, Paris
Merton D. Simpson, New York, #5624, 1989
Armand Arman’s collection, Vence
Eduardo Uhart’s collection, Santiago, 2007

Publication(s)

Les Arts Africains, Paris: Cercle Volney, 1955, n°231
Arman & l’art africain, Marseille: Musées de Marseille, 1996: p.86, cat. n°35
African Faces, African Figures. The Arman Collection, New York: The Museum of African Art, 1997, n°85
TEFAF, The European Fine Art Fair, Maastricht – The Netherlands, 1999: p.417
Arts d’Afrique Noire, Arnouville: Raoul Lehuard, 2000: p.66, n°116
Tribal Art Magazine, #44, Spring 2007: 157

Exhibition(s)

Marseille, Paris, Cologne, Arman & l’Art africain, 1996-1997
New York, USA: African Faces, African Figures; The Arman Collection, The
Museum for African Art, 9 October 1997-19 April 1998