Post #601021 by Bruddah Bear on Fri, Aug 5, 2011 12:25 AM

On 2011-08-04 21:16, galaxywomun wrote:
Here's a message I received from a comparative studies expert---

I would only be guessing but they look like Polynesian tiki gods to me. One reason I'm thinking this is their noses. Noses tend to be signs of virility (hence more phallic and protruding) but among the Polynesian tiki gods they are usually depicted flat (even if elongated).

what do you guys think??

I think that guy has no freaking idea what he's talking about. Absent any Tiki design elements other than having carved faces (and just having a carved face doesn't make something Tiki), there is nothing Tiki Style design-wise about the rest of the table to suggest the faces are tiki gods. I don't think he's seen very much Tiki Art, primitive or modern. He said he was just guessing after all.

Anyway. The face on the leg looks like it has equine ears like a horse or donkey (what's up with that?), it also has a headdress or something (horses mane?) that reminds me of an Egyptian or Phoenician braided wig (no, I'm not suggesting it's either Egyptian or Phoenician in design).

Based on the styling of the rest of the table, I'd say Chuck is on the right track in it being Latin American influenced and fits well in the Latin American Primitive Art category.

Bear