Red Cedar Wood Bat By Zuni Artist Lewis Malie

This 5 1/2-inch red cedar bat by Lewis Malie has a strongly sculptural, almost totemic presence. Rather than reading as a small animal carving alone, it rises vertically from an integral base, with the bat’s face and body emerging from a dramatic interplay of pale sapwood and deep red-brown heartwood. The natural color contrast of the cedar becomes part of the composition, giving the piece a striking architectural quality and an unusually bold visual presence. Engraved signature on base.

Lewis Malie is a Zuni carver known for finely worked animal sculptures in antler and bone, including bats. In a field of several hundred working Zuni artists, bat carvings remain a notably specialized subject, and Malie is among the relatively few artists working with them. His work is valued for its clarity of line, balanced composition, and lively presence.