Importante figure à crochets, groupe Yimam (Yimar), rivière Korowori, Moyen Sepik, Papouasie Nouvelle-Guinée

Collectée par le Dr. Philip Goldman au milieu des années 1960
Ancienne collection de la famille Goldman, Londres
Collection Marcia et John Friede, New York

Wear consistent with age and use within the culture : superficial losses to the patina, thin cracks, and areas of abrasion along the edges and at the bottom, as visible in the catalogue illustration. The forward projecting point of the headress (just above the forehead) is broken and missing. The first hook at the bottom (just above the small upside-down head) is broken and glued.
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Longtemps demeurées confidentielles, les figures à crochets Yipwon des Yimam ne furent révélées au public qu'en 1960, lors d'une exposition au Museum of Primitive Art (New York), accompagnée d'un texte d'Anthony Forge. Parmi les sculptures en bois de Nouvelle-Guinée, elles s'imposèrent dès lors comme les plus remarquables, tant par leur ancienneté (certaines révélant une datation comprise entre le XIV^e et le XVII^e siècle) que par leur degré d'abstraction, rarement égalé dans l'art du Sepik.

Cette grande figure Yipwon se distingue par la densité de sa composition et par la remarquable dynamique des formes, jouant sur le rythme serré des courbes tendues, aux pointes convergentes. Le corps hautement stylisé, sculpté pour être vu de profil et reposant sur une jambe unique, se déploie en une double série de crochets symétriquement disposés, figurant la cage thoracique déployée autour du cœur. Patine d'usage ancienne avec veinure apparente du bois dur.

Cette figure à crochets se différencie de l'iconographie traditionnelle Yipwon par l'absence de crête ou crochet sommital. cf. Haberland et Seyfarth (1974 : 40, n° 1 et 2) pour le seul exemple comparable.

A la qualité de la sculpture s'ajoute la rareté de sa dimension.  Tandis que les plus petits Yipwon servaient de charmes personnels de guerre et ceux de taille intermédiaire (entre 40 et 150 cm de haut) étaient parfois emportés au cours des expéditions guerrières, les grands Yipwon, beaucoup plus rares, étaient la propriété des clans. Ils étaient conservés soit dans la maison cérémonielle des hommes, pour être utilisés comme réceptacles à offrandes ou comme porte-crânes, soit dans les abris sous roche, lieux de commémoration.

Avec leur forme squelettique étonnamment moderne, les sculptures Yipwon ont séduit les artistes du XX^e siècle, et continuent d'exercer sur nous un profond pouvoir de fascination. Une grande figure à crochet de style comparable, conservée dans la collection Jolika à San Francisco (Friede, 2005 : 125, n° 266) et ayant appartenu à Roberto Matta, figura dans l'exposition Arts Primitifs dans les ateliers d'artistes (Musée de l'Homme, Paris, 1967). L'an dernier, la fondation Beyeler consacra une salle de son exposition La Magie des Images – L'Afrique, l'Océanie et l'art moderne, à la statuaire du fleuve Korowori, où plusieurs chefs-d'œuvre, dont deux figures à crochets Yipwon très apparentées, de la collection Beyeler (Beyeler, 2009 : pl. XI, n° 19 et 20), étaient présentées au regard d'œuvres sur papier d'Henri Matisse.

An important hook figure, Yiman (Yimar) group, Korowori river, Middle Sepik, Papua New Guinea

Having long remained unknown, the Yipwon hook carvings of the Yimam people were not revealed to the public until 1960 in an exhibition at the Museum of Primitive Art, New York, which was accompanied by a text written by Anthony Forge. They were soon recognized as the most remarkable of all wood carvings from Papua New Guinea, as much for their age (some having been dated between the 14th and 17th centuries), as for a degree of abstraction rarely matched in Sepik art.

The dense composition of this large Yipwon figure and its remarkably dynamic forms, playing upon the close rhythm of tight, intersecting curves, make it particularly striking. The highly stylized body, sculpted to be viewed in profile and standing on a single leg, rises in a series of symmetrically placed double hooks representing the thoracic cage around the heart. The figure has a time-worn patina with visibly veined hardwood.

The quality of the sculpture is enhanced by its exceptional size. Whilst the smaller Yipwon were used as personal war charms and those of medium size (between 40 and 150 cm tall) were sometimes taken along on battle expeditions, the larger, much rarer, Yipwon were the property of clans. The large scale Yipwon were kept either in the men's Spirit House, to be used as recipients for offerings and as skull racks, or in the rock shelters which were used as commemorative sites.

The Yipwon sculptures and their astonishingly modern skeleton form were highly appreciated by artists of the 20^th century and continue to exert a deep fascination upon us today. A large hook figure of comparable style in the Jolika collection in San Francisco (Friede, 2005: 125, n° 266), once belonged to Roberto Matta and was included in the exhibition Arts Primitifs dans les ateliers d'artistes (Musée de l'Homme, Paris, 1967). The bildgewaltig exhibition at the Beyeler Foundation devoted a room to statuary from the Korowori River, displaying several masterpieces, two of which were Yipwon hook figures from the Beyeler collection (Beyeler, 2009: pl. XI, no. 19 and 20) alongside works on paper by Henri Matisse.