Carved figure

Title
Carved figure
Year/Period
1945–1955
Region
Bali, Indonesia
Object Type
Dimension
Object size: 29.0 x 18.0 x 9.5 cm
Accession No.
2018-01062
Credit Line
Gift of Cornelia Sentina Bliek. Presented to the ACM by the City of Delft, Netherlands

Carved in lasi wood from the Sulawesi and Maluku islands, this androgynous dancer performs what could be kebyar duduk, wearing a long tightly-wrapped kamben (sarong) and holding a fan. This dance was created by the Balinese dance innovator I Ketut Marya (I Mario) in 1925. Like its subject, the sculpture's style is from that period, with the elongated spidery limbs distinctive of carvers like I Tegelan, who were inspired in the 1930s by the surrealistic paintings of visiting artists like Walter Spies.