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Container for Water or Beer

A work made of terracotta and enamel paint.

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  • A work made of terracotta and enamel paint.

Date:

Mid–/late 20th century

Artist:

Shona
Zimbabwe or Mozambique
Eastern and Southern Africa

About this artwork

Although cooking vessels are usually left unembellished, Shona storage containers are often burnished to a high sheen, and potters sometimes rub them with graphite powder to achieve a metallic luster. Then they ornament the pots around the shoulder with bold geometric patterns, most frequently simple crosshatched bands or large triangles in alternating black and ocher. By the early 1960s, some potters had also begun to use enamel or oil-based paint on their wares in place of more traditional pigments. The glossy red and black paints that embellish this Shona water container, for example, evoke the traditional graphite and ocher palette. The straightforward pattern of alternating red and black zigzags and triangles is beautifully proportioned to the size of the pot and is outlined with a wide, confidently drawn groove. The thin red ring painted around the pot’s inner lip is a subtle finishing touch.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Arts of Africa

Culture

Shona

Title

Container for Water or Beer

Place

Zimbabwe (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Made 1950–1999

Medium

Terracotta and enamel paint

Dimensions

36.8 × 42.6 cm (14 1/2 × 16 3/4 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Keith Achepohl

Reference Number

2005.262

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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