Object Details
- Kamala Ishaq, b. 1939, Sudan
- Description
- A single, framed rectangular piece of masonite oriented vertically on which is painted an off-center composition in which faces and plants are arranged in cartouches to look if they are part of a yellowing strip of film, glowing against a deep brown background. The background is monochromatic; only the representation of the film strip in hues of yellow with touches of green and beige interrupts the picture plane. The upper edge of the yellowed strip features an undulating horizontal line of small vertical rectangles in the dark tones of the background to give the appearance of perforations along the edge of a film strip. Beneath this are cartouches arranged so that the eight along the upper, lower and proper right exterior edges are to scale. A larger cartouche, featuring the face of a being with long hair, fills the interior space along the proper left. For the smaller, exterior cartouches, there are three forming a top register; the left most of these also serves as the top of four stacked in a vertical row along the proper right edge; the bottom of these also doubles as the left-most of three cartouches to form the bottom register. The two cartouches in the middle of the vertical row are positioned one above the other alongside the large, central cartouche. The top row of three cartouches are situated between the “perforations” and the second register which consists of two small vertically-oriented cartouches along proper right length of the large interior cartouche. Within the top register, from proper right to left, the first cartouche features a leafy plant like a banana or palm, in which four leafy fronds curve up from a central stalk. The central and proper left-most cartouches feature faces distorted as though they are reflections seen reflected on the surface of an ice-cube. The two vertically-oriented small cartouches of the middle register feature another plant on the top and a distorted, possibly smiling face at the bottom. A face with long hair painted as though with the artist’s fingers and an elongated nose dominates the large central cartouche. The lowest register also contains three cartouches: to the proper right, two faces float up in the cartouche, to the left of these are two more cartouches featuring a plant each.
- Provenance
- Acquired from Nada Eissa on behalf of her aunt, Kamala Ishaq, in direct consultation with the artist.
- Content Statement
- As part of our commitment to accessibility and transparency, the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art is placing its collection records online. Please note that some records are incomplete (missing image or content descriptions) and others reflect out-of-date language or systems of thought regarding how to engage with and discuss cultural heritage and the specifics of individual artworks. If you see content requiring immediate action, we will do our best to address it in a timely manner. Please email nmafacuratorial@si.edu if you have any questions.
- Image Requests
- High resolution digital images are not available for some objects. For publication quality photography and permissions, please contact the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives at https://africa.si.edu/research/eliot-elisofon-photographic-archives/
- Credit Line
- Gift of the artist and her family, gift of Cary Frieze, and museum purchase with funds from the Women’s Initiative
- ca. 1969-1972
- Object number
- 2021-9-1
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Type
- Painting
- Medium
- Oil on masonite
- Dimensions
- H x W: 121 × 92.5 cm (47 5/8 × 36 7/16 in.)
- Geography
- Sudan
- See more items in
- National Museum of African Art Collection
- National Museum of African Art
- Topic
- tree
- female
- Record ID
- nmafa_2021-9-1
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ys7c8524e1c-1d9b-4540-9d65-5afbc00bcf01
