Original Acrylic Painting of Akuaba Fertility Dolls, "Akuaba Doll I"

A bold color palette and slightly obscured figures create an intriguing composition in this original acrylic painting from Ghana's Fiifi Nyame. The artist renders eight akuaba, the wooden fertility dolls commonly used in West Africa. Some of the best known akuaba are those of the Ashanti peoples, which have large disc-shaped heads. Such dolls would traditionally be carried by women hoping to conceive a child, or hoping to ensure the attractiveness of a child already conceived.