Haitian Wooden Sculpture Island Woman

Haiti has a long tradition of recording commonplace events through the visual arts, such as this beautiful sculpture. Hand carved of a single piece of mahogany, stained brown to reflect the African ethnicity of this tall beautiful woman, it bears the original polychrome paint. Having visited the marketplace with her red shoulder bag now full and her water gourd balanced on her head, she depicts what the artist saw as a slice of everyday Haitian life. Barefoot, dressed in a knee length orange skirt, a green top and barefoot, she wears a black scarf that covers her hair. There are many carved accent details throughout that were left unpainted. Her face is nicely carved, her soulful eyes especially well done. She stands on a round carved base painted black.
In its impressive height this statue measures a tad over 23 inches. The base is about 4 inches by 3 1/2 inches and it stands steadily, although is easily tipped over if bumped (we recommend Museum Putty on the bottom to be safe.) The sculpture weighs about 4 pounds. It's in excellent condition, with no cracks, chips or repairs and all the original paint intact and unretouched. On the bottom of the base are painted initials in black, which we have chosen to photograph as reading "WI" (of course, turned the other way, they read "IM"), presumably the initials of the artist. It's a one of a kind Haitian artwork, imposing in its sheer size and beauty.

© PrimpingYourHome.com
PYH 4448