260 - Nupe, Nigeria

Nupe, Nigeria 19th–20th century Oil lamp with equestrian figure Wrought iron H 69 cm Provenance: private collection, Paris Antique iron patina and surface oxidation. Oil cup missing. Wrought-iron oil lamp composed of assembled rods, some twisted, forming a structure of great graphic elegance. The quadrangular base rests on four legs. Rising from the center is a long twisted rod that supports the upper part of the composition. Beneath the bird was originally a cup designed to hold the oil and the flame, which is now missing. The equestrian figure, reduced to a few lines of iron, is one of the main figurative elements of the piece. Its minimalist construction suggests movement, while the long vertical rod draws the eye upward to the bird at the top. A very similar Nupe example is published in George Chemeche, *The Horse Rider in African Art*, p. 298, in the form of an equestrian figure made of iron. This important documentary comparison confirms the significance of this rare typology. Through its economy of means, its balance, and its almost abstract construction, this lamp possesses a striking modernity. A few iron rods are enough to bring to life a horse, a bird, and an entire architecture of light. Faced with this ethereal construction, it is hard not to think of the explorations of modern sculpture—notably Giacometti’s *Chariot*—where iron and bronze also become the essential lines of a frozen movement.