Object Details
- El Anatsui, born 1944, Ghana (active in Nigeria)
- Label Text
- Shimmering dots, lines, and concentrated areas of color suggest the movement and phases of the moon over the landscape and its connection to the seasonal calendars that regulate agricultural labor and the timing of rituals and other activities. The work evokes astronomy’s grid-like plotting that fixes stars, moons, and planets within particular galaxies in deep space.
- Description
- Nine board sections. Surface covered with incised and blackened grid pattern. Two large blackened grid and slash areas. Incised slash lines and scattered squares painted red, white, blue, and green.
- Exhibition History
- El Anatsui: Triumphant Scale, Haus der Kunst, Munich, Germany, March 8, 2019–August 28,2019; Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, Doha, Qatar, October 1, 2019–February 2, 2020; Kunstmuseum Bern, Switzerland, March 13, 2020–June 21, 2020; Guggenheim Bilbao, Spain, July 10, 2020–November 1, 2020
- Visionary: Viewpoints on Africa's Arts, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., November 4, 2017-ongoing (deinstalled January 31, 2019)
- African Cosmos: Stellar Arts, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., June 20-December 9, 2012; Newark Museum, February 26-August 11, 2013; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, August 23-November 30, 2014; Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University, Atlanta, January 31-June 21, 2015 (exhibited at NMAfA and Carlos Museum)
- Poetics of Line: Seven Artists of the Nsukka Group, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., October 22, 1997-April 26, 1998
- Published References
- Kreamer, Christine Mullen. 2012. African Cosmos: Stellar Arts. Washington, D.C.: National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution; New York: Monacelli Press, p. 314, no. 17.14.
- Nicholls, Andrea. 1997. "The Poetics of the Line: Seven Artists of the Nsukka Group." Washington D.C.: Smithsonian Press, p. 11.
- Ottenberg, Simon. 1997. New Traditions from Nigeria: Seven Artists of the Nsukka Group. Washington D.C.: Smithsonian Press, p. 102, 168-169.
- Content Statement
- As part of our commitment to accessibility and transparency, the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art is placing its collection records online. Please note that some records are incomplete (missing image or content descriptions) and others reflect out-of-date language or systems of thought regarding how to engage with and discuss cultural heritage and the specifics of individual artworks. If you see content requiring immediate action, we will do our best to address it in a timely manner. Please email nmafacuratorial@si.edu if you have any questions.
- Image Requests
- High resolution digital images are not available for some objects. For publication quality photography and permissions, please contact the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives at https://africa.si.edu/research/eliot-elisofon-photographic-archives/
- Credit Line
- Purchased with funds provided by the Smithsonian Collections Acquisition Program
- 1993
- Object number
- 96-17-1
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Copyright
- © 1995 El Anatsui
- Type
- Sculpture
- Medium
- Wood, paint
- Dimensions
- H x W x D: 90 x 84.4 x 3 cm (35 7/16 x 33 1/4 x 1 3/16 in.)
- Geography
- Ghana
- Nigeria
- See more items in
- National Museum of African Art Collection
- National Museum of African Art
- Record ID
- nmafa_96-17-1
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ys72112ff3e-1f62-4551-ba1e-741c00c32242
