*Seat support, Tshokwe, Angola H. 28 cm Provenance: Paul... Lot 105

*Seat support, Tshokwe, Angola H. 28 cm Provenance: Paul Colin Collection (1892-1985), Paris Christine Valluet, Paris Collection Baron Freddy Rolin (1919-2001), Brussels, his sale at Chrisitie's, Amsterdam on February 2, 2002, Lot 306. Private collection, Switzerland The Tchokwe people developed a very refined court art. Superb geometric or figurative decorations adorn pipes, snuff boxes, musical instruments, scepters, and ceremonial spears. The chairs and stools, which were only reserved and made for the chiefs and important notables, had a singular and prestigious place in society. On this example, whose seat support has disappeared, several elements allow us to understand the Tchokwe aesthetic canons. In particular, the features, scarifications and expressiveness of the face. Systematically in this art, the figure of the woman occupies a pre-eminent place, which can be seen here by the presence of a caryatid which constitutes the central element of the seat. Seated, legs folded forward, elbows resting on the knees. A posture with a soft and delicate movement of imploration, of meditation, rendered by her closed eyes, by the undulation of her curved limbs, and the gesture of her hands delicately placed on her neck, holding her head firmly, as if symbolically holding and retaining the weight of the seat, the weight of its owner. Her look and gestures contain and concentrate the force towards the top of the skull. Her particularly sophisticated hairstyle, made up entirely of lozenges in relief, amplifies the elongated volume towards the back of her head. The shoulders, whose back and sides are sublimated by incised square patterns. Very nice contrast of curves and counter-curves appreciated on the profile of the female figure, between the arms and the face, the forehead in particular. Lot in temporary importation and subject to a fee of 5.5% to be paid by the buyer in addition to the selling expenses and the hammer price.