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Salem, Negro of Sudan

Salem, Negro of Sudan is a 1897 bronze and marble sculpture by the French sculptor Paul Loiseau-Rousseau, preserved in the Picardy Museum in Amiens. The bust reflects the late-19th-century fashion for anthropological representations, at a time when European powers were colonizing Africa. Loiseau-Rousseau had exhibited at the Salon since 1881 and received a scholarship in 1892 that allowed him to travel in Africa and create several works depicting Africans. Shown at the Salon, the bust was purchased by Baron de Rothschild and offered to the Picardy Museum. It also formed part of the wider colonial context of Amiens, where a 1906 international exhibition included a human zoo called the “Senegalese village.”

Salem, Negro of Sudan, a dark metal bust of a bearded man in a white hooded garment.
Salem, Negro of Sudan, shown as a dark metal bust with a hooded garment framing the face.
© · Public domain
Salem, Negro of Sudan sculpture showing a dark-toned male figure with a short beard, an upward gaze, and a flowing hooded garment.
Salem, Negro of Sudan, showing a hooded male figure with a strong upward gaze.
April 2022 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Salem, Negro of Sudan sculpture showing a man’s head and shoulders with a draped white hood.
Bust of Salem, Negro of Sudan, with a white hood framing the face and shoulders.
April 2022 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Salem, Negro of Sudan sculpture showing a dark metallic face, short beard, and white draped garment.
Salem, Negro of Sudan by Paul Loiseau-Rousseau, shown in a three-quarter view with a dark metallic face and white drapery.
July 2020 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Salem, Negro of Sudan bust displayed on a pedestal in a museum hall with other portrait busts in the background.
Salem, Negro of Sudan, a sculpted bust displayed in the Musée de Picardie.
August 2010 © · CC BY-SA 4.0

Identification

TitleSalem, nègre du Soudan
TypeBust
Translated titleSalem, negro of Sudan

Historical context

Local historical contextIn 1906, an international exhibition was held in Amiens, including a human zoo called "The Senegalese Village" inaugurated on 14 May 1906 and described as very successful
Date1897
ContextCreated in the context of the colonization of Africa by European powers at the end of the 19th century
Artist grantReceived a grant in 1892 to travel to Africa and create works representing Africans

Creator

ArtistPaul Loiseau-Rousseau
Artist nationalityFrench

Materials

MaterialsBronze and marble

Physical characteristics

SubjectSalem, a Black man from Sudan
Anatomical detailGreat anatomical precision
Material contrastWhite marble clothing contrasts with the dark bronze figure

Iconography and meaning

ThemeAnthropological representation

History and restoration

Exhibited at the SalonYes, from 1881; successful at the Salon of 1897

Discovery and provenance

Acquired byBaron de Rothschild
Given toMusée de Picardie, Amiens
Current locationMusée de Picardie, Amiens

Location and ownership

Preservation statusConserved at the Musée de Picardie

Significance

InterpretationHelped popularize the idea of colonization