Measure of a Master

Woman and Drummer
Priest of Sango
1964; ironwood
Lent by Western Medical University

The sacred stone axe, emblem of Sango, rises from the head of this female devotee. Her hands rest on a bata drummer, whose music mimics staccato stormlike sounds during rituals. The priest of Sango, Yoruba god of thunder, holds traditional symbols—a rattle and axe. Lamidi decorated the base with the seal of Western Michigan University, which commissioned the piece.