Art Deco African male bust; c. 1930.

Art Deco African man bust; c. 1930.
Carved wood.
Signed "J. Vargas".
Measurements: 47 cm (height).
This bust of an African man, made of wood and dated around 1930, is fully inscribed in the aesthetic context of Art Deco, an international movement that, between the 1920s and 1930s, redefined visual languages through the geometrization of shapes, the stylization of figures and the synthesis between traditional craftsmanship and modernity.
The work responds to the deep interest that the avant-garde and Art Deco movements showed in African, Oceanic and pre-Columbian arts, considered at the time as sources of formal renewal in the face of Western academicism.
Formally, the bust presents a volumetric simplification and a rhythmic treatment of the surfaces that refer to the deco aesthetic: well-defined planes, absence of superfluous details and a marked attention to the internal structure of the face. The polished finish of the wood enhances the play of light and shadow, giving the sculpture a solid and monumental sculptural presence, despite its contained scale.
From a historical perspective, this type of representation is especially relevant because it evidences both the aesthetic appropriation of African art by Europe and the cultural tensions of the colonial period. Although these works contributed to formally value African artistic traditions, they also reflect an idealized and reinterpreted view from Western parameters.