Mother and Child Figure

late 1800s–early 1900s

Mother and Child Figure, late 1800s–early 1900s. Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo (most likely), Cabinda, or Republic of the Congo, probably Yombe-style maker. Wood and paint; overall: 64.7 cm (25 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund 1997.149 This Mother and Child Figure is attributed to the Yombe peoples, who inhabit a large territory now divided among the nations of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, and Angola. Its origin has been traced to the areas surrounding the village of a master carver in the western Democratic Republic of Congo, where similarly carved objects were collected in the early 20th century. Its naturalism suggests that it could have been the portrait of a real person, and thus an excellent testimonial to the immense talent of the artist who carved it. Once referred to as the “Burniaux maternity figure,” after the Belgian collector F. Burniaux, who owned it from about 1930 to 1980, the sculpture was acquired by the Cleveland Museum of Art in 1998.