Standing Female Deity Figure Analysis

While walking through the Ball State art exhibit, the African section sparked my interest. Just inside of the African exhibit, there was a look book with all of the pieces on display. As I flipped through this book, filled pages covered with beautiful pieces of art large and small representing an entire culture and its progression, one piece stood out from the others. The most prominent piece in this particular section featured in the book was the Standing Female Deity Figure. Because of my curiosity for African culture and its history, I have performed extensive research on this particular topic for a number of other projects in the past. I believe this previous research will be instrumental in the interpretation of the Standing Female Deity Figure as it allows me to have a general background knowledge of the culture from which the figure was created.
When I first approached the figure, I was rather confused and unsure of what the piece as a whole was supposed to represent. After spending a few minutes with the figure as well as reading the descriptive plaque that accompanied it, I began to better understand the figure. When comparing the …show more content…
I think the piece as a whole was formed to illustrate the idea woman, with her long neck, small face and long, skinny legs. In addition to what is physically depicted, there is also a bit of symbolism included into the figure. As I mentioned earlier, the hands were facing upward on the sculpture. This placement of the hands represents the figure offering itself, or in this case herself, ready to receive sacrificial offerings. In addition, the open hands also represent the the figure’s honesty as well as the sanctification of their faces and bodies. All of these elements contribute to the figure’s overall elevated