Althouse: Mysterious object.

April 7, 2018

Mysterious object.

Your art history test of the day.

55 comments:

Dust Bunny Queen said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/7/18, 7:17 AM
Dust Bunny Queen said...: Stylistically, it looks like something from a North West Coast Native American Indian culture. Klamath, British Columbia or Southern Alaska.

Totem-ish perhaps to help get a better aim on those deer.

OR....just a modern artist stealing the ideas of the Natives....cultural appropriation :-D We need a banana for scale.; 4/7/18, 7:19 AM
The Godfather said...: Assault art.; 4/7/18, 7:23 AM
MadisonMan said...: Nice folk art. I can't tell if that one part is holding it on a wall, or if it's part of the piece.; 4/7/18, 7:26 AM
Rusty said...: Some cargo cult rendition of what they think a white mans boomstick does.; 4/7/18, 7:29 AM
Rob said...: The only gun left after common-sense gun control promoted by Everytown USA.; 4/7/18, 7:30 AM
Ralph L said...: Weather vane?; 4/7/18, 7:33 AM
Big Mike said...: Balance looks wrong for a weather vane. I’m inclined to agree with folk art, but authentic folk art had a practical use. I’m thinking something related to a fireplace.; 4/7/18, 7:45 AM
the 4chan Guy who reads Althouse said...: Makes me think of the symbol Prince used as his 'name' for awhile.

The Artist Formerly Known As Prince

From that Vox thought-piece:

"But in some ways, this presaged the current struggle of those who don't adhere to the gender binary to get the press to refer to them by a preferred pronoun.

For the most part, media outlets have evolved rapidly, for instance, on calling trans people by their preferred names. But if someone who isn't comfortable identifying as male or female asks to be referred to even by the common pronoun "they" (to say nothing of alternative pronouns like "xir"), most media outlets continue to struggle with respecting that individual's wishes.

It's not an exact, one-to-one correlation, but Prince's mere existence proved a major part of the shifting cultural conversation around sexual and gender norms. That he might have foreshadowed this particular conversation, in his own way, 23 years ago, would only be appropriate."

He took it all too far but boy could he play guitar.

The Germans have a word for this.; 4/7/18, 7:47 AM
Big Mike said...: Two questions for you, Althouse. How long is it, and is it made of wood, wrought iron, or something else?; 4/7/18, 7:48 AM
Ralph L said...: Bambi and his mother; 4/7/18, 7:51 AM
Tommy Duncan said...: The wood duck on the muzzle end of the gun is not going to enjoy his art experience.

I think I made a prototype of this piece in 3rd grade art class and got my usual "D" for effort.; 4/7/18, 7:52 AM
Ralph L said...: Looks small and wooden when enlarged. I first thought that was a bird, but the mouth is on the right.; 4/7/18, 7:53 AM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Looks a bit like something Judy McKie might make, stylized animals incorporated into everyday things. I doubt it is her since she mainly makes furniture, but a similar idea.; 4/7/18, 7:53 AM
Fernandinande said...: You don't need a weathervane
To know which way the wind blows.

It blows for thee.; 4/7/18, 7:57 AM
NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...: Crossbow.; 4/7/18, 7:59 AM
Tommy Duncan said...: Blogger John Lynch said...

"Crossbow."

Bingo! It is a crossbow shooting a small coyote at a wood duck flying over the prototype wall on the Mexican border.; 4/7/18, 8:08 AM
AllenS said...: Something you do not take to a gun fight.; 4/7/18, 8:09 AM
Ann Althouse said...: "Two questions for you, Althouse. How long is it, and is it made of wood, wrought iron, or something else?"

It's made of wood, iron, and some of a part of an animal I won't name, because it would help you too much.

Also, whatever is attaching it to the wall is not visible in the photograph.; 4/7/18, 8:11 AM
the 4chan Guy who reads Althouse said...: "Two questions for you, Althouse. How long is it, and is it made of wood, wrought iron, or something else?"

I think the second question is fair, but the first question could be considered insensitive to Meade.

The Germans have a word for this.; 4/7/18, 8:20 AM
NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...: Well, it's in Indianapolis, at Newfields, and I bet it's from Asia.; 4/7/18, 8:23 AM
madAsHell said...: It's a barrel shroud for DiFi's assault rifle.; 4/7/18, 8:27 AM
NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...: Hmm or maybe Africa.; 4/7/18, 8:27 AM
Ralph L said...: A nail scraper for elephants. Ivory eyes.; 4/7/18, 8:28 AM
Big Mike said...: New guess: it's a Native American weapon, essentially a tomahawk. The thin blade is made of iron or steel, the highly decorated handle is designed to resemble a white man's gun. Probably more used ceremonially than in actual combat. Slight chance that it is African, however my impression of African warriors is that they preferred the spear (including the Zulu short-handled assegai) while Native Americans (I'm on more certain ground here) preferred close in fighting using clubs, knives, and tomahawks.; 4/7/18, 8:28 AM
Snark said...: My almost 80 year old aunt acquired her first Smartphone yesterday and sent me a picture of the pin to pop the SIM tray, labelling it “Mysterious object”. Old aunts are cute!; 4/7/18, 8:28 AM
NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...: http://collection.imamuseum.org/artwork/33159/

Man's prestige ax in the form of animals.

The giant blue snail picture was my clue.; 4/7/18, 8:32 AM
rehajm said...: It's an adz? The vertical piece look like a blade or maul.; 4/7/18, 8:33 AM
NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/7/18, 8:33 AM
Bunk said...: Obvious to me is that this sculpture depicts a duck hunt. All the elements except the pond or lake are included.; 4/7/18, 8:34 AM
NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/7/18, 8:38 AM
Ann Althouse said...: The size (if I remember correctly) is probably the same as the firearm it seems to depict at one end.; 4/7/18, 8:39 AM
NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...: Man's prestige ax in the form of gun and animals.

Giant blue snail led the way.

Man, blogger tags are hard this morning.; 4/7/18, 8:40 AM
Ann Althouse said...: Lynch clinched it.; 4/7/18, 8:40 AM
Ralph L said...: It looks much smaller in the photo. Must be the crudeness of the carving.; 4/7/18, 8:43 AM
Fernandinande said...: John Lynch said...
Man's prestige ax in the form of gun and animals.

Ibanez Prestige AX 1220 Black Distressed Leather; 4/7/18, 8:59 AM
NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...: Hahahahaah. Nice.; 4/7/18, 9:00 AM
mockturtle said...: I don't know but I wouldn't shoot it.; 4/7/18, 9:07 AM
Dust Bunny Queen said...: LOL....well, I was pretty far off in my guess of the style..... Like over half a world far off.; 4/7/18, 9:14 AM
chickelit said...: Who’s yer curator of art at IMA? Is he/she culturally appropriate?; 4/7/18, 9:30 AM
tcrosse said...: Who’s yer curator of art at IMA? Is he/she culturally appropriate?

Does his/her surname contain a hyphen ?; 4/7/18, 9:45 AM
Etienne said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/7/18, 9:56 AM
Etienne said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/7/18, 9:57 AM
F said...: I would say with fairly strong certainty that it is a ceremonial object used in dance, probably in Cameroun, but certainly in Africa. I have seen many similar objects and collected a fair number in the 20 years I spent in Africa. It is imaginary, but represents both a gun and a war axe, and would be brandished during costumed dance. The combination of both a firearm and an axe shows great strength and invincibility.; 4/7/18, 10:13 AM
David Begley said...: Lynch cheated!

When Althouse was proctoring law school exams you can bet that students had zero access to the internet.; 4/7/18, 10:27 AM
traditionalguy said...: Wait, wait. CNN says it is what Trump used on Stormy Daniels after he tied her up. And she will have pictures for sale when they are finished.; 4/7/18, 10:44 AM
Michael The Magnificent said...: I know what this is. This is an espresso machine. No, no wait. It’s a snow cone maker. Is it a water heater?; 4/7/18, 10:54 AM
Danno said...: It might trigger David Hogg or his ilk.; 4/7/18, 10:55 AM
David53 said...: Beer bottle opener.; 4/7/18, 11:21 AM
Wince said...: What the "'founding fathers had in mind" when they ratified the Second Amendment?

While drinking absinthe.; 4/7/18, 11:35 AM
The Godfather said...: The wrong answers are often more interesting than the correct answer.

Which may explain how you get more Trump.; 4/7/18, 12:09 PM
Bilwick said...: There is no good reason for one of those things to be in civilian hands.; 4/7/18, 2:42 PM
Big Mike said...: Well, at least I recognized that the danged thing is a form of ceremonial axe. Wrong continent but right idea. B- ???; 4/7/18, 5:59 PM
bagoh20 said...: An IUD.; 4/7/18, 9:48 PM
Equipment Maintenance said...: Something Prince made.; 4/8/18, 6:40 AM