This pair of monolithic sculptures representing a standing man and a woman was rendered in bronze/brass, and is a classic example of Dogon sculpture. It is simplified and deliberately attenuated, with long arms. The neck is elongated and columnar, supporting a small, compact head with a conical coiffure or headwear. The jawline is sharp, the face slightly upturned and sharp along the midline. The eyes are small, under incised arched brows which lend a slightly lugubrious expression to the face. The metal is nicely patinated, lending further emphasis to the linear construction. The function of the piece is uncertain; it may have been involved in a divination process, in the hands of the hogon (shaman), or as a talismanic object in the hands of a high-ranking member of Dogon society. Metal objects were especially expensive and luxurious, and this would therefore have been an important item when it was made.
The Dogon people of the Bandiagara escarpment, Mali, have been described as the most studied and least understood tribal group in Africa. Their history, technology, cultural wealth, art and even oral legends are among the most involved in Africa, not least because the polity is in fact essentially artificial, comprising various sub-units that were grouped together on the basis of propinquity under the colonial administration. The Dogon live on the Bandiagara escarpment, Mali, a 150-mile-long eminence that supports a population of between 250,000 and 450,000. They have been described as the most studied and least understood tribal group in Africa. They moved to this area in the 15th century, escaping the Mande kingdom and slavery at the hands of Islamic groups, and displaced a number of tribes (including the Tellem and Niongom) that were living on the escarpment at the time. They are agriculturists (millet, barley, onions and various animals), patrilineal, polygamous and have a society arranged around specialist trades. They are excessively prolific in terms of artistic production, not least because they have mastered all the main materials that are used in traditional African art; figures in stone, iron, bronze/copper and of course wood are all known, in addition to cave/rock painting and adaptation of more modern materials. Furthermore, their social structures are extremely complex (and variable – see below) and are socially signalled through numerous material signalling systems. Their profound resistance to Islam – which once sought to enslave them – is striking in light of their comparative proximity, and can be seen in their defiantly figurative artworks which are of course banned under Islamic law.

For centuries miniature bronze sculptures have been made by blacksmiths for use by individuals as protective charms and commemorative devices. Though they take different forms influenced by various peoples who journeyed through the Dogon region, at some point a distinctive style emerged, beautifully expressed in this extraordinary figure. Squared shoulders, tapered extremities and stylized facial features are typical of Dogon sculpture in wood or bronze. Today, this pair of sculptures appears absolutely modern; extraordinarily expressive, and powerful.