Abstract Kotina Figure Representing an Ancestor

Origin: Dagari (Dagara) Tribe, Burkina Faso
Composition: wood, feathers, ritual accumulation

The Dagari, or Dagara, are a small subgroup of the Lobi, who live across southern Burkina Faso and northwestern Ghana, where they migrated around the turn of the 19th century. Like the Lobi, the Dagari do not carve masks, and the bulk of their artistic output is focused on the creation of stools and figures that represent ancestors.

The figure shown here is known as kotina, and would have been kept in a family shrine which served to honor the ancestors and protect Dagari families and the community. Like the Lobi, every Dagari family maintains a such a shrine, which is known as thil du, or thilduu. Kotina figures are respected as some of the most abstract and mysterious of all African carvings (Ref: Bosc, "Lobi Art and Culture," Roy, Land of the Flying Masks).

This piece is one of the few kotina figures that SUJARO has collected that shows significant signs of age and use. Its form may seem simple, but it has incredible subtleties that allude to the talent of the carver and the spiritual power of the piece. The bend in the legs sets it apart from most Dagari figures, which are typically symmetrical, and the remnants of a nose on the eroded and abstracted face add to its personality. Purchased directly from the tribe in western Burkina Faso in 2007.