Tribal Art Sale at Bonhams

Bonhams will hold a sale of tribal art and artifacts in San Francisco on May 5 featuring a large and varied assortment of works from Africa, Oceania, and the Americas. Impressive wood carvings from New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and D.R. Congo comprise just a few of the highlights on offer.  

View the online catalogue.

Standing male figure  -  Admiralty Islands, Papua New Guinea

Canoe prow  -  Maori, New Zealand

Male figure  -  Hemba, D.R. Congo

 Images courtesy of Bonhams

Native American Art at Bonhams

Bonhams will present a large sale of fine Native American art and artifacts in San Francisco on June 2.  Among the vast catalogue of lots will be offered magnificent Navajo weavings and gorgeous Southwest pottery and silverwork.

View the online catalogue.

Polychrome jar  -  Hopi

Chief's blanket  -  Navajo 

Sarape  -  Navajo

Polychrome plate  -  San Ildefonso

Moki blanket  -  Navajo or Zuni

Images courtesy of Bonhams

Art of the South Seas at Bonhams

Bonhams will hold its annual Art of the South Seas auction on February 9 in San Francisco. The sale will present over 180 works from all parts of Oceania: Australia, Indonesia, Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. Highlights will include carvings from the Cook Islands and Austral Islands, Papua New Guinea masks, Maori nephrite objects, royal items from Hawaii, and more.

View the online catalogue.

Images courtesy of Bonhams

Native American Art Sale at Bonhams

Bonhams will present a sale of fine Native American art and artifacts in San Francisco on December 9. The lots will include a range of works from traditional cultures across North America, one of the major highlights of which is an exquisite Okvik ivory head (pictured below).

View the online catalogue.

Ivory head  -  Okvik culture, Alaska  -  200 BCE–100 CE

Image courtesy of Bonhams

Tribal Art Sale at Bonhams

Bonhams will present an autumn sale of fine African, Oceanic and pre-Columbian art on November 14. The show's major highlight - among the range of other exquisite offerings - is a magnificent Baga shoulder mask representing a beautiful mother from Guinea, estimated between $400,000–600,000.

View the online catalogue

Image courtesy of Bonhams

Madison Ancient and Tribal Art 2013

Madison Ancient and Tribal Art will be held this month at New York City's Arader Gallery from November 13–16. MATA is an alliance of International dealers specializing in the art of traditional cultures, among them such highly regarded names as Marc Assayag, Kellim Brown, Bruce Frank, Jacaranda, Charles Moreau, James Stephenson, Tamabaran Gallery and Pace Primitive. The Fall MATA exhibit will run concurrently with the exhibition and sale of the Allan Stone collection of African, Oceanic and Indonesian art at Sotheby's, and the auction of fine tribal art at Bonhams. 

Jacaranda Tribal will present a range of antique tribal works from cultures across the globe, from gorgeous Hawaiian fish hooks to Congolese power figures.

For more information, please visit the official MATA website.

Events at NYC Tribal Art Week 2012

In addition to high profile sales of tribal art at Sotheby's, Christie's, and Bonhams, NYC Tribal Art Week is planned to feature a number of other exciting events. 

Foremost among these will be The AOA Tribal Art Fair, May 10–13.  Housed at the Fletcher-Sinclair Mansion and also encompassing a range of other participating New York galleries, this event will include a number of distinguished tribal art dealers, such as Pace Primitive, Tambaran Gallery, Nasser & Co., and more.

Fletcher-Sinclair Mansion
2 E 79th St. (corner of 5th Ave)
212-570-0655
11 am–7 pm


Sharing the spotlight will be Madison Ancient & Tribal Art, an alliance of international dealers presenting at The Arader Gallery on Manhattan's Upper East Side on May 9–13.  Participating galleries will include Bruce Frank Primitive Art, James Stephenson African Art, Conru African & Oceanic Art, and more, numbering ten dealers in all.

The Arader Gallery
1016 Madison Avenue (between 78^th & 79^th)
Wed: 11 am–9 pm  Thurs–Sat: 11 am–7:30 pm  Sun: 11 am–5 pm


Running from May 9–14 will be another group show to anticipate: Tribal Togetherness, organized by Zemanek-Münster of Würzburg.  This event brings together five international dealers––Howard Nowes, Dave DeRoche, Sebastian Fernandez, David Zemanek and Jo De Buck––under one roof at Howard Nowes' Art of Eternity Gallery.  

Art of Eternity Gallery
303 E 81st St.
917-733-4165 or 212-472-5171
11 am–6 pm

Visit Jacaranda Tribal during New York Tribal Art Week, May 9–13

Native American Art Auction - Bonhams - May 14, 2012

Bonhams will present a sale of Native American art and antiquities on May 14 in New York. Showcasing the collection of Nancy Sue and Judson C. Ball, the lots will comprise an impressive host of fine Hopi kachina dolls, groups of Apache baskets and Navajo weavings, and more.

Visit the official website. 

Kachina representing Sotuqnang-u, the God of the Sky  -  Hopi, Arizona, US

Kachina representing A-Ha Kachina mana  -  Hopi, Arizona, US

Painted drum head  -  Robert Davidson, Haida, Alaska, US

Child's blanket  -  Navajo, Arizona, US

Olla  - Apache, Central US

Information and images courtesy of Bonhams

Tribal Art Auction - Bonhams - May 12, 2012

Bonhams will present a sale of fine tribal art and artifacts on May 12 in New York. The nearly four hundred lots on offer will comprise a wide range of works from traditional societies in Africa, Polynesia, Mexico, and elsewhere, including an array of southern African works from the estate of Norman Hurst.

Visit the official website.

Pendant, hei tiki  -  Maori, New Zealand

Fish hook  -  Gambier Islands

Vessel with figure  -  Jama Coaque, Ecuador

Rhythm pounder couple  -  Senufo, Côte d'Ivoire

Stone head  -  Aztec, Mexico

Bird figure  -  Valdivia, Ecuador

Information and images courtesy of Bonhams

Native American Art at Bonhams & Butterfields June 7th in San Francisco

Highlights for June include the large and fine collection of early silver, turquoise, coral and shell jewelry from the Breitbart Collection, which includes Navajo, Hopi, Pueblo and Zuni bracelets, necklaces and a first-phase Navajo concha belt with eight oval silver conchas, expected to bring $18/28,000.

Click here for the complete catalogue listing.

Bonhams in New York City During Tribal Week

A major highlight of NYC Tribal Week is the Bonhams auction on Thursday May 13th, 2010 at 1pm.. The preview of the auction as already began, but there is still time: on Tuesday, May 11th and Wednesday May 12th from 10am to 5pm the lots can be examined. There is even an extended viewing period after the auction on Thursday, May 13th from 10am-1pm.

Bonham's Fine African, Oceanic and Pre-Columbian Art sales feature unique and traditional works from sub-Saharan Africa, Polynesia, Melanesia, Micronesia, Indonesia and Australia that were created in the early 20th Century or earlier, and works from Central and South America that were created prior to European Contact in the 16th Century. Made by the artists for religious, ceremonial or secular use within their culture, objects in the sale include figurative sculpture, masks, reliquaries, shrines, architectural ornaments, clubs, shields, vessels, stools, neck rests, instruments, body adornment and many daily utilitarian objects.

Recognizing the strong interest in African, Oceanic and Pre-Columbian Art on both the East and the West Coasts, Bonham's auctions are held twice annually in New York and San Francisco. Our New York sales feature a diverse selection of premier items while the San Francisco sales showcase more affordable works of art. A fully illustrated catalogue accompanies each auction and is distributed worldwide to collectors, dealers and institutions. A public preview precedes each auction where guests are invited to view artwork first-hand and encouraged to ask questions.



A highlight from the sale (pictured above) is an important Bamana Ntomo Mask from Mail with an estimated value of $50,000 to $70,000.

For the full catalogue of lots on sale, click here.

Why African Art is Having a Renaissance

(CNN) -- African art has long been about more than just tribal masks and traditional carvings, and now contemporary African artists are being recognized globally.

The Johannesburg Art Fair recently showcased the works of 400 African contemporary artists, attracting more than 10,000 visitors. Organizer Ross Douglas told CNN there had been an explosion of interest in African art in recent years.

"Africa has always had a strong tribal art and a strong craft component, and that will always stay, he said.

"But that doesn't mean there can't be a contemporary market existing alongside that, and if you look in South Africa at the contemporary market in the last four or five years, it's absolutely exploded.

"If you look at the number of young black artists doing well, making a living, it's extraordinary. Five years ago it just didn't exist."

But the attention being bestowed on contemporary African art is a relatively new phenomenon. Auction house Bonhams says its New York sale last month was the first commercial auction dedicated solely to contemporary African art in the United States, and it says the UK's first auction only took place last year.

While auction house Phillips de Pury's Africa art sale and exhibition will take place on May 15 in New York. The sale will include works of contemporary art, photographs, design and editions which reflect the spirit of the continent.

Giles Peppiatt, director of African art at Bonhams, said these kinds of sales were still too rare. "In some ways it's remarkable -- here we are in 2010 and this is the first auction of its type in New York," he told CNN. "It's never been done before. Actually I was very surprised by that,"

But he says he's not surprised by the growing interest in African art. Bonhams says the auction has generated considerable buzz. Prince Yemisi Shyllon, who has an extensive collection of Nigerian art, was one of those in attendance.

Shyllon told CNN, "I don't promote Nigerian art in terms of the value. I promote in terms of the benefits and the joy it can confer to the world."

But monetary value is unavoidable at an art auction. About half of the 140 pieces at the Bonhams auction sold, with prices ranging from $1,000 to $92,000. The value of African art could increase as international interest develops and the buying pool expands.

"At the moment the majority of the collectors are people who have an interest or contact with Africa," said Peppiatt. "We aren't yet seeing these people buying these works without that connection.

"Look at the other markets -- no one buys a van Gogh because he's Dutch or because the buyer's Dutch. It doesn't matter where the artist was born or what nationality he was. But I think with the African art it still does matter. It hasn't yet broken into the international market."
Ghana's beads back in vogue

While the rest of the world is catching up with African art, the artists themselves continue to push artistic boundaries.

South African Lawrence Lemaoana was one of the artists exhibiting at last month's Johannesburg Art Fair. His work is all about challenging the traditional.

"I look at the ideas of stereotypes, and the idea of men sewing and the idea of how that's a feminine activity ... [and ask] how do we subvert that into something that's really not feminine? So I am sewing and I am making artwork that's quite edgy," Lemaoana told CNN.

"Artists are not limited to painting and traditional ways of making art. There are other possibilities of speaking a language and finding new and innovative ways of communicating."

$73,000 Enwonwu Leads US African Art Sale

The first commercial auction of African contemporary art ever held in the US took place in New York on March 10.

The highlight piece of this Bonham’s auction was Africa Dances, Eve Noir, 1972, by Ben Enwonwu.

With a lower estimate of $60,000, the watercolor and pastel on board eventually brought a comfortable $73,200.

Enwonwu was a pioneer of the modern art movement in Western Africa, and the sale should gain his work increased prominence in the US - and global - art markets.

Bonham's Lot No: 4105Y

A Maori whalebone club, wahaika, Rotorua area, North Island, New Zealand with haliotis shell inlaid eyes. Length 15.5 inches.

Estimate: $2,000 - 3,000

Bonham's Lot No: 4049

A Santa Cruz Island currency roll, tevau, Solomon Islands. Height 15inches, width 33inches.

Estimate: $4,000 - 6,000

Bonham's Lot No: 4259

A Pende deformation mask, mbangu, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Height 14 inches.

Estimate: $3,000 - 5,000

For a discussion of this type of mask, see Stother, Z.S., "Pende (Visions of Africa)", 1998, pp. 139-53: "Mbangu, the bewitched is one of the most widespread of the masks among the Central Pende. Several interpretations have been recorded about this mask; that his half black half white face addresses a human response to the infirmed thereby reaffirming strength and compassion."

Bonham's Lot No: 4073

A Hawaiian koa wood canoe constructed of koa wood except for outrigger; signed with engraved "P" on the hull.length. 25 feet, 3 inches.

Estimate: $20,000 - 30,000

Footnote: Originally made in Kona in the early 20th century, this canoe was one of seven or eight canoes purchased by the Queen's Surf restaurant on Waikiki Beach in the 1960's. Prior to installing the canoe, the Queen's Surf management had the canoes repaired by George Perry, hence the "P" on the manu.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This life-size canoe is located off site. The successful bidder will need to arrange shipping of the lot from its current location. For further information, please contact the department.

Bonham’s Lot No: 4005

A Dayak Kenyah/Kayan shield, klau or kliau, Borneo with painted decorations on both sides and inset human hair on the front. Height 49 inches. Old British Colonial Collection.

Estimate: $5,000 - 7,000

Bonham's Fine African and Oceanic Art Auction

Art collectors get ready!

On Friday, February 12, 2010 Bonham's African and Oceanic Art Auction will take place in San Francisco. The 280 lots feature unique and traditional works from sub-Saharan Africa, Polynesia, Melanesia, Micronesia, Indonesia and Australia that were created in the early 20th Century or earlier. Made by the artists for religious, ceremonial or secular use within their culture, objects in the sale include figurative sculpture, masks, reliquaries, shrines, architectural ornaments, clubs, shields, vessels, stools, neck rests, instruments, body adornment and many daily utilitarian objects.

On the Tuesday before the auction, the lots will open to the public for those interested in a preview where guests are invited to view artwork first-hand and encouraged to ask questions. But until then, Jacaranda Tribal will highlight some of the top lots that will be up for sale with pictures. So stay tuned!