Carved Wood Native American Figure from Edward Cosgrove of Chelsea, 1960s

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Carved with distinctively elongated proportions, this standing folk art figure portrays a Plains-style warrior mounted upon a flat rectangular timber … Read more Carved with distinctively elongated proportions, this standing folk art figure portrays a Plains-style warrior mounted upon a flat rectangular timber plinth. The subject is posed upright with hands held loosely at his sides, carrying a small side axe and a slung powder horn across his chest. The costuming is assembled from cut cloth, including an unhemmed terracotta waistcoat and an earthy tan apron cloth belted at the waist. Mixed materials give the figure considerable tactile variety. Hand-carved timber forms the head, hands, and plinth, while the limbs are coated in a textured, hardened paste to suggest rough hide leggings and sleeves. The facial features are crisply carved with prominent cheekbones and dark hand-painted eyes beneath a cloth headband, which holds a single upright feather. A vibrant collar of tiny painted wooden beads encircles the neck. Made during the 1960s, this sculpture is an unusual example of mixed-media figure making from post-war London. The corner of the wooden base retains the artist's handwritten black initials, 'EC'. About the Artist: Edward Cosgrove, known professionally as ""Cosgrove of Chelsea"", was an English artist active in mid-twentieth-century London and affiliated with the Chelsea Arts Society. His broader body of work includes atmospheric urban view paintings, traditional equestrian scenes, and architectural landscapes, characterized by solid draughtsmanship and a strong sense of character. The figure stands 38 cm in overall height, reaching to the tip of the feather, on a base measuring 15 cm in width. See less