64
MUSEUM NEWS
Acquisitions
PARIS—From September 24, 2019, through
January 26, 2020, 20 ans. Les acquisitions du
musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac (20
Years: The Acquisitions of the Musée du Quai
Branly – Jacques Chirac) will be presented under
the direction of curator Yves Le Fur. Although
the museum did not actually open its doors to
the public until 2006, the work related to developing
its collection began in earnest in 1998 when
the Musée de l’Homme and the Musée des Arts d’Afrique
et d’Océanie merged. This was a colossal project,
which also raised many questions about the history
and heritage of these artworks, their proper place in
the French museum landscape, their development,
and the nature of their identity. With this anniversary
exhibition, the Musée du Quai Branly traces the fi rst
twenty years of its history and examines its choices,
policies, and future ambitions. The show is also an opportunity
to honor the donors who made these acquisitions
possible by supporting an institution dedicated
to the preservation, protection, and promotion of the
world’s patrimony. The museum currently holds more
than 75,000 objects, including graphic works and photographs.
Voice is given to museum curators and professionals,
and they offer another view of the museum.
After twenty years of acquisitions, the most recent
piece to enter the collection has done so almost as if
to illustrate the theme of the show, thanks to its purchase
by French government
preemption at an auction on
May 24. Ecce agnus dei—this
magnifi cent and extremely rare
featherwork is a syncretic blend
of Christian iconography and
Aztec techniques and symbolizes
and exemplifi es the cultural
fusion that has been the mainstay
of the museum’s activities
since it was founded.
TOP LEFT: Ceremonial
sculpture, uli. Madak,
New Ireland.
18th–early 19th century.
Wood, pigment, red ocher, charcoal,
kaolin, resin, operculum (Turbo
petholatus). H: 155 cm.
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac
inv. 70.1999.2.1.
© MQB–JC. Photo: Hughes Dubois.
TOP: Untitled Machu
Pichu. 1930–1940.
Monochrome print on barium paper.
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques
Chirac, inv. 70.2016.55.6.
© MQB–JC. Photo: Martin Jimenez
Chambi.
LEFT: Standing tiki.
Marquesas Islands.
19th century.
Wood. H: 117.5 cm.
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques
Chirac, inv. 70.2000.12.1.
© MQB–JC. Photo: Patrick Gries,
Bruno Descoings.
MIDDLE LEFT:
Anthropomorphic pendant.
Colombia. AD 1000–1500.
Gold (lost wax casting with faux
fi ligree). H: 13 cm.
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques
Chirac, inv. 70.2003.14.1.
© Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques
Chirac. Photo: Patrick Gries.
BELOW LEFT:
Radial diadem. Rikbaktsa;
Mato Grosso, Brazil. 1960–
1972.
Feathers, cotton, vegetal fi ber.
W: 58 cm.
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques
Chirac, inv. 70.2010.1.17.
ABOVE: Headrest, attributed © MQB–JC. Photo: Claude Germain.
to the Master of the Cascade
Coiffure. Luba; DR Congo.
19th century.
Wood, metal. W: 19 cm.
Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac,
inv. 70.1999.9.1.
© MQB–JC.
Photo: Hughes Dubois.