THE SEATED I, THE SEATED IV
The two monumental bronzes welcome the public into the museum while reimagining its threshold. Their shapes reference the body adornments of high-ranking women in East African societies—beaded bodices, circular necklaces, lip plates—merged with echoes of caryatids, a sculptural form that spans from ancient Greece to West and Central Africa. Here, the reference is not functional but symbolic: these women do not support architecture. In the artist’s vision, they appear liberated from their load-bearer, from their assigned tasks to perform. With upright postures and hybrid, alien-like features, they appear as guardians of another kind of order. In a space long defined by statuary, they establish a new mythology: one of alertness, solitude, and speculative strength. Mutu’s intent is to create a feminist intervention by rendering the figures majestic and independent. Belonging to no single time nor place, these sculptures are resilient and self-possessed. They challenge the institution with new perspectives, inviting the public to envision new ways of interpreting the classical repertoire.