Voodoo, Vodou Ceremony - Bawon Samdi -Father of the Spirits, 1971

This large, breathtaking oil on canvas is one of the finest examples of the artist's work. Casimir is an overlooked and undervalued postwar master.
The painting showcases a highly complex interaction of flat patterns, a symphony of shapes, and color juxtapositions in a masterfully designed composition. Laurent Casimir is one of the few artists with an instantly recognizable style, creating his own pictorial language. Few artists in the canon of Art History can say that.
The scene documents the Voodoo ceremony of Bawon.
"The Vodou priest, Houngan, shakes his rattle, Asson, over an offering to Baron Samedi who is symbolized by the skull and bones on the center pole, Polo Mitan. Baron will descend the Poto Mitan and possess one or more of the celebrants'" Gallery Quote.

Provenance: Nader Art Gallery, Port -au- Prince, Haiti,
Galerie Macondo.
Framed size 25.5'' x 33.5'',
Select Museum Collections: Figge, Davenport, IA (1976 Accession Walter Neiswanger MD; 2017 Accession, Linda and Randolph Lewis; 2018 Accession, Marsha Rothman; 2021 Accessions, William Hopkins); Milwaukee Art Museum (1991 Accession, Richard and Erna Flagg; 1999 Accession, Mark Lieberman).
Oil on Canvas - 24 × 32 in
Laurent Casimir, Haitian, 1928–1990
US$16,000 Plus shipping