{"product_id":"wonderfully-folky-american-carved-painted-native-american-woman-whirligig","title":"WONDERFULLY FOLKY AMERICAN CARVED \u0026 PAINTED NATIVE AMERICAN WOMAN WHIRLIGIG","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOriginal-Style Polychrome Decoration \u0026amp; Revolving Paddle Arms\u2028American, Late 19th Century, circa 1880–1900\u2028Approx. 17” H\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA wonderfully eccentric and enormously appealing piece of early American kinetic folk art, this hand-carved and painted whirligig depicts a Native American woman dressed in a long ochre-colored gown and fitted with a marvelous pair of oversized revolving arms—part costume, part windmill, and entirely folk art.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe figure has tremendous personality. Her boldly carved head is framed by a heavy mass of black-painted hair, while a long projecting nose, deeply recessed eyes, broad cheeks touched with red, pronounced chin, and wonderfully articulated red mouth and teeth give her an unforgettable expression. Rather than attempting academic realism, the unknown carver exaggerated nearly every feature, creating a face possessing the directness and individuality so prized in American folk sculpture.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHer costume is particularly fascinating. The long cream-to-ochre gown follows an exaggerated hourglass form, narrowing dramatically at the waist before widening through the skirt. Across the chest is an abstract arrangement of black and red geometric ornament suggestive of the breast ornaments and decorated clothing associated with Plains dress.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eEven more striking is the decoration of the skirt. A large red hand is prominently painted across the upper portion, while below appears a wonderfully primitive black pictographic figure, shown in animated stride with one arm reaching toward a long staff-, weapon-, or lance-like device overhead. Together these motifs strongly evoke the pictographic vocabulary found in nineteenth-century Plains material culture, although no specific tribal attribution is suggested.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAnd then there are those arms.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eEach is carved with an enormous cream-painted sleeve terminating in a small reddish-brown hand. Their exaggerated proportions weren’t simply the product of an imaginative carver—they make the figure work. The broad sleeves act as wind-catching paddles, and the two arms are joined through the shoulders so that they revolve a complete 360 degrees in unison.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Folkism Antiques LLC","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67591532281965,"sku":null,"price":2200.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0658\/1957\/4381\/files\/3D268310-ADDA-45D4-BBE5-DA8344560402.jpg?v=1790603688","url":"https:\/\/folkismantiques.com\/products\/wonderfully-folky-american-carved-painted-native-american-woman-whirligig","provider":"Folkism Antiques LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}