- Hommage aux chasseurs du Mandé -
Exhibition from September 7th to October 2nd 2021
On the occasion of the Parcours des Mondes and until October 2nd 2021, Charles-Wesley Hourdé presents Hommage aux chasseurs du Mandé.
This exhibition will bring together a major work by Abdoulaye Konaté, an international artist of Malian origin, with a selection of traditional Bambara sculptures from the ancient Mandé country.
En déployant sa fresque, alourdie des signes de la caste, sur le brun d’un calicot aussi rugueux que la camisole des chasseurs légendaires, l’artiste Abdoulaye Konaté rend hommage à un de leurs prestigieux ancêtres, celui-là même dont il tire son patronyme, Mamadi Kami Konaté, Nimrod des brousses et des savanes.
Bertrand Goy, Juillet 2021
(Extrait du catalogue à paraître)
The exhibition intends to pay tribute to the Mande people and to question its origin. It is structured around a historical work by Abdoulaye Konaté.
Part of a series of five pieces, one of which was awarded by the Grand Prix Léopold Sédar Senghor at the Dakar Biennale in 1996, Hommage aux chasseurs du Mandé (n°4) will be shown to the public for the very first time. This historical work draws its inspiration from the founding myths of the Mandé country, the centre of which is located in present-day Mali.
A selection of traditional Bambara sculptures from the ancient Mande region will be presented, including an important statue from the Segou region by the master of the "raptor profile". The statues from this workshop have been attracting the interest of collectors and institutions for over a century. Although the body of these rare sculptures has been well known and studied for a long time, the example unveiled in this exhibition is completely unknown.
The exhibition will be accompanied by a dedicated catalogue in which an essay by Bertrand Goy, and art historian specialising in West Africa, will be reproduced. This perspective will help visitors discover the roots of the Mandé, the founding role of the hunters' brotherhood and the traditions attached to them, while placing Abdoulaye Konaté's work in the history of Malian art.