La tortue (Turtle)

Object Details

Djilatendo, 1890 - ca. 1957-1959, born Democratic Republic of the Congo

Label Text

In the late 1920s, a Belgian colonial official provided paper, colored pencils, brushes and watercolors to several local men. Convinced that they were self-taught and expressing spontaneous manifestations of an African sensibility, the works were exhibited in Europe from 1929-1931. However, far from the romanticized, purely African society that the colonial imagined, the works exhibited evidence of the hybridity of the African colonial experience, with such "non-African" items as umbrellas and bicycles, or as seen here, turtles on a lavender background.

One of the most prolific artists in this group was Tshyela Ntendu, known to his patrons as Djilatendo. This work, "La tortue," or "Turtle," demonstrates his playful, colorful style, which charmed foreign collectors and fascinated European artists involved with the movement known as Surrealism. The lack of documentation available for Djilatendo, or other prolific artists of his time, is a reminder of how little has been written about the painters, sculptors, illustrators and photographers who worked in African cities in the first few decades of the twentieth century.

Description

Watercolor painting on paper featuring one brown reptile or turtle and three smaller, scaly turtles.

Content Statement

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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

Museum purchase

ca. 1930

Object number

92-15-3

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Type

Painting

Medium

Watercolor on paper

Dimensions

H x W: 32.7 x 50.4 cm (12 7/8 x 19 13/16 in.)

Geography

Democratic Republic of the Congo

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National Museum of African Art Collection

National Museum of African Art

Topic

turtle

Writing

Record ID

nmafa_92-15-3

Metadata Usage (text)

Usage conditions apply

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ys7577c5ab4-efb0-4ad0-bab0-5347380af0bf