Luluwa
Female Figure (Bwanga bwa Bwimpe)
Lulua, 1920-1939
Physical Qualities
Wood, 12 5/8 x 2 15/16 x 2 3/4 in. (32 x 7.5 x 7 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of Alan Wurtzburger
Object Number
1954.145.83
In Luluwa society, sculptures like this female figure were created to protect women and children. Her muscular limbs, erect posture, and determined face appear profoundly contemporary, recalling the strength and poise of women we know today. Whitten admired Luluwa figures not only for their formal, geometric qualities, but also for the range of functions they perform. It was this sense of agency—this capacity to effect change in the world—that Whitten would increasingly seek to draw out of his own materials and sculptures.
"Meditations on African Art: PATTERN," March 12-August 17, 2008, BMA, Karen Milbourne.
"Odyssey: Jack Whitten Sculpture 1963-2017," Apr 22, 2018-July 29, 2018, BMA, Kevin Tervala (Head Curator Katy Siegel).
"Odyssey: Jack Whitten Sculpture 1963-2017," Apr 22, 2018-July 29, 2018, BMA, Kevin Tervala (Head Curator Katy Siegel).
Siegel, Katy. "Odyssey: Jack Whitten Sculpture, 1963-2017." New York: Gregory R. Miller & Co., 2018, p. 66, ill.
Shiff, Richard. "Jack Whitten: Cosmic Soul." New York: Hauser & Wirth, 2022. ill, p. 132.
