The Ibeji sculptures, also known as ere ibeji, are today considered invaluable treasures of African art, reflecting the creative and symbolic power of Yoruba cultures. These statues, carved with remarkable skill, embody the very essence of the aesthetics and ancestral craftsmanship that have endured through the centuries. In this work, Xavier Richer and Hélène Joubert have carefully selected 80 examples of rare beauty and exceptional quality, with some pieces having passed through generations of collections. These masterpieces, rarely accessible to the general public, come from private collections that have seldom been revealed and are reproduced here with meticulous precision in every detail. This beautiful publication serves as an enlightening resource on the Ibeji for any discerning collector. 208 pages - Texts in French and English.

About :

Xavier Richer & Hélène Joubert

Xavier Richer

At the age of 16, Xavier Richer embarked on a cargo ship bound for West Africa, hoping to forge a career in the merchant navy. However, it was seasickness that steered him away from this path. Back in Paris, he discovered a passion for primitive arts, frequently visiting galleries in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés neighborhood. His meeting with Jacques Kerchache, a key figure in the appreciation of African art in France, proved decisive. Kerchache handed Richer a rare and valuable map of Dahomey, indicating the locations of his own discoveries. It was this map that led Richer to undertake a two-month expedition on the Ouémé River aboard a canoe. During this journey, he came into contact with villagers and acquired several art objects, including his first pair of ibeji statuettes, which can be admired on page 10 of this work. This episode marked the beginning of his collection of African art, dominated by pieces from Nigeria and Côte d'Ivoire. A recognized photographer since the 1980s, Xavier Richer has documented his travels across Africa, the Middle East, and Paris, publishing his work in major magazines as well as in over 37 books, including about ten dedicated to Morocco, published by Flammarion, Hachette, and other prestigious houses.

Hélène Joubert

A graduate of the École du Louvre, the University of Paris I, the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations, and the National School of Heritage, Hélène Joubert is a prominent figure in the field of African arts, particularly in Yoruba art from Nigeria. Since 2005, she has served as the chief curator and head of the Africa heritage unit at the Musée du quai Branly, where she has organized major exhibitions in France and internationally. Notable exhibitions include "Ubuntu, Arts and Cultures of South Africa" (National Museum of Arts of Africa and Oceania, 2002), "Visions of Africa" (National History Museum of Taipei, 2003-2004), and "Central Nigeria Unmasked: Arts of the Benue River Valley" (Fowler Museum, Los Angeles, 2011 – Musée du quai Branly, 2012). As a prolific author, she has published numerous articles and essays exploring various aspects of Nigerian art and African cultural traditions. Her works include "Messages Noués, Paroles Cousues: The Art of Adire from Nigeria" (Musée du quai Branly, 2008) and "Knowing Yesterday to Explain Today: Divination Art among the Yoruba" (Musée d’Aquitaine, 2011). Joubert has also contributed to documentaries on Yoruba art, such as Les ibeji yoruba in 2007, and Osun Osogbo, the Forest and Sacred Art of the Yoruba in 2008, further enriching the understanding of these ancestral traditions.