Paris, 30 May 2011
Until 25 September, the Fondation Cartier will be displaying a selection of exceptional voodoo objects from the Anne and Jacques Kerchache Collection.
“Voodoo” commemorates the tenth anniversary of Jacques Kerchache’s death by exploring the traditional rites that so fascinated Kerchache. In the 1960’s, during his first trips to Benin, Kerchache started assembling ritual voodoo objects. His collection is now one of the major collections of African voodoo sculptures.
Organised in collaboration with Anne Kerchache, “Voodoo” includes more than a hundred bocio, or voodoo fetishes, as well as Jacques Kerchache’s notes, letters and photographs about his expeditions, his research and his tribal art exhibition projects for French museums. Extracts from film archives reveal more about the origin and context of these statuettes made from rope, bone, shells and terracotta.
A famous explorer and tribal art expert, Jacques Kerchache emphasized the aesthetic merit of these ritual objects as well as the originality of the artists who created them. “Voodoo” is the first major exhibition exclusively dedicated to these traditional sculptures from West Africa.