Author: [DIORAMA - SURINAME].
Title: [An indigenous community in Suriname].[19th century]. 28.5 x 38.5 x 11.5 cm. A diorama made with papier-mâché, wood, dried plant material, and oil paint. The wooden outside has been covered in black paper. The diorama can be viewed through a glass plate.
Description: Remarkable diorama depicting daily life in an indigenous community in the jungle of South America, most likely Suriname. Each of the figures is engaged in a different activity. While the men are hunting and fishing, the women are spinning cotton and baking cassava bread. The charming animals make the scene livelier and colourful. The artist must either have seen the community in person or thoroughly studied it, as the traditional crafts are fairly well represented.The work is primarily made of papier-mâché, which has been painted with oil paint, but also makes use of dried plant material for the trees in the back. It is highly reminiscent of the work of the Surinamese artist Gerrit Schouten (1779-1839), who is well-known for his dioramas of daily life in Suriname. The present work is not signed, but is most likely not by Schouten, as it is stylistically quite different from his work. It may have been inspired by him, however, as the depicted scene is very similar to a series of Schouten dioramas titled "Caraïbenkamp" (Carib camp). Dioramas like this are seen as an important source for the life of indigenous people in Suriname in the 19th century.The black paper used to cover the wooden outside is torn in some places, especially on the underside and around the edges of the glass plate. A horizontal crack along the length of the diorama in the painted background, without affecting the structural integrity of the work, the glass plate is slightly dusty on the inside, some of the leaves of the trees have fallen, but the diorama is otherwise in very good condition, with every part still attached to its original spot.l Cf. Doornen, L. van and Krüger, M., Diorama's uit de 18e en 19e eeuw; Medendorp, C., Kijkkasten uit Suriname, de diorama's van Gerrit Schouten.

Keywords: [E5FB9A6D8BD3] AMERICAS|[E5FB9A6D8BD3] AMERICAS -> [G8QF9SY9YF52] Drawings, Photographs, Prints & Watercolours|[E5FB9A6D8BD3] AMERICAS -> [E714FD7DC113] South America|[04F65CFF5112] ART, ARCHITECTURE & PHOTOGRAPHY|[04F65CFF5112] ART, ARCHITECTURE & PHOTOG