Gris-Gris Box, 1972
- Medium
- Mixed media assemblage
- Dimensions
- 29 × 8 1/2 × 2 3/4 in. (73.66 × 21.59 × 6.99 cm)
- Accession Number
- 2014.51
- Credit
The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
Purchase with funds provided by the Acquisition and Collection Committee
Saar assembles found objects to make altars and shrines, imparting visual messages that harken to African American history and culture. Gris-Gris Box, whose title references a voodoo amulet, signifies the conjuring practice of gray magic, which aims to rid the world of evils. Inspired by the spiritual
practices of people of the African Diaspora, Saar here used artifacts from Louisiana, Haiti, and other places in the Caribbean. The base of Gris-Gris Box is composed of a sewing-machine thread compartment, beneath which hangs wool yarn like hair or branches; snake skins and dried chameleon embellish its bottom door. Inside the open compartment, a voodoo doll, adorned with shells, feathers, and other charms, is crowned by an orb-like camera flashbulb.