"Four Eyed Flying Elephant" by the late Shona Art Legend Fanizani Akuda

Description

"Four Eyed Flying Elephant" by the late Shona Art Legend Fanizani Akuda. 11 inches(27.5cm) x 9.75 inches(24.5cm) x 7 inches(17.5cm). Brown Serpentine. "Flying Elephants" is a design I have seen at Fanizani's house numerous times and bought a few of, but this one is truly on another unique level of Fanizani zaniness! While his trademark "whistlers" and "smiling heads" are fairly common, "flying elephants" are much rarer, and I have never seen another 4 eyed version.
I always loved meeting the old man with his jolly gnomelike demeanor. His English was sketchy, but that wouldn't inhibit a very welcoming and friendly interaction. Fanizani placed a lot of value on his customers being happy. One phrase he liked to use was him not wanting to "scratch people's heart" when price negotiations were underway.
This particular piece is one of the special sculptures(even by Fanizani standards) that I decided to hang on to after we closed our Shona gallery in Key West following the 2008 financial crises. I had bought it in around 2001 at the man's house in Chitungwiza. The time has come to start reducing my possessions and so here it is for sale. The late Fanizani was one of the Shona movement pioneers and became one of its most recognizable and sought after stylists, ranking up there with Chiwawa, Mukomberanwz, Rukodzi, Mteki and others.
I will ship/insure this piece world wide at no additional cost