Jacaranda Tribal at San Francisco Tribal and Textile Arts Show

Jacaranda has just returned from the annual San Francisco Tribal and Textile Arts show. 

The fair, which began Thursday, February 11 and ended Sunday, February 13, is presented by Caskey Lees Antique and Fine Art Shows. The San Francisco show is one of the world's most important exhibitions and sales of tribal, ethnographic art, oriental rugs, textiles, jewelry and sculpture. 

The week brings more than 100 top international art dealers from around the world to sell art and artifacts from the Oceanic Islands, Polynesia, the Middle East, Central and South America and Indonesia. 

Jacaranda offered museum quality African art works, including pipes, headrests, and weaponry. The central piece to the booth was an exceptionally rare Initiation Figure from South Africa. The large, expressive figure is depicted standing, with his hands on his hips and a furrowed brow. Figurative works in such exquisite condition are unique for South Africa. 

Also on display were a collection of Zulu pipes with metal inlay from the collection of British pipe collector, Trevor Barton; a Palm Wine horn from the Kuba peoples of Congo, with exceptional carving and used for drinking palm wine, as well as a number of Ndebele beadworks and Shona snuff containers. 

See below for views of our booth! 

Visit Jacaranda at the San Francisco Tribal & Textile Show

The San Francisco Tribal & Textile Arts Show will take place on February 12-14th 2010 at the Festival Pavilion in Fort Mason Center.

Considered one of the finest events of its type in the world, the event celebrates global culture, including ethnographic sculptures, textiles and accessories. Featuring more than 100 renowned tribal art experts from Europe, North America, Australia, Asia and Africa, each showcasing their best examples of arts from tribal cultures across the globe.

Their will also be a special exhibit by celebrated photographer Mike Glad and curated by Mark A. Johnson will be on view. Other Worlds, is a collection of photographs that document the exotic and remote places that Glad encountered while trekking through Yemen, the wooden monasteries of Myanmar and villages of Pakistan.

Hours: Opening preview Thursday 11th 6pm-9pm, Friday and Saturday, February, 12th and 13th from 11am - 7pm. Sunday, February 14th 11am - 5pm.

2009 San Francisco Textile and Tribal Art Show

During February 13 -15, 2009, more than 100 of the finest international dealers in tribal art descended on San Francisco for the 2009 San Francisco Tribal and Textile Arts Show. The show, in its 23^rd incarnation, is at the forefront of the tribal art scene and is considered to be the best show of its kind in North America. At the show, you’re guaranteed to see many of the most prestigious and respected dealers from all corners of the world with a fantastic array of museum-quality sculptures, textiles and antiques.

Jacaranda Tribal exhibited for the first time and we showed some important pieces including a mid-19^th century Zulu vessel. It was gratifying to meet many collectors who were unfamiliar with the beauty and diversity of the material culture from southern Africa. The show was a success for us and we are looking forward to returning next year

African Art was only a portion of the show’s offerings. Thomas Murray, a San Francisco based dealer, showed some fine examples of Indonesian art. Michael Hamson showed art from Papua New Guinea while the Stendahl Gallery brought pre-Columbian pieces from Costa Rica. Bruce Frank Primitive Arts showed many fine Oceanic pieces and reportedly had a very strong show. There was also a fair number of Native American, Southeast Asian, Indian and Middle Eastern pieces. Paris dealer Yann Ferrandin sold a rare pair of North Nguni initiation figures while Conru presented two great North Nguni figurative sticks. The galleries were as varied as the art with dealers from San Francisco, L.A., New York, Paris, and Brussels, to name a few.

Most dealers at the fair, unsurprisingly, reported fewer sales than last year. Collectors were cautious and many held off buying until the last day. On the positive side, while Tribal Art has become an increasingly common part of the general collector’s interest, it remains under the radar. Prices didn’t skyrocket with the latest art market bubble and so we can’t expect them to fall at the same rate as contemporary or modern art prices have. It wasn’t a sold out show by any means, but this is one corner of the art market that we feel is more stable than not..

This show continues to maintain a consistently high standard. I’m always impressed with the range and variation of artworks shown here. If you haven’t been to the SF show before, it’s certainly worth a visit. Just remember: the show is large so make sure you give yourself a full day or two to really check out the art and meet some of the dealers.

Dori Rootenberg

www.JacarandaTribal.com

2008 San Francisco Tribal and Textile Arts Show

On Monday I returned to New York after a four day trip to San Francisco. The purpose of the trip was to attend the 2008 Tribal and Textile Arts Show.

The Gala Preview opening night of the show was well attended. Before the show, there was a certain amount of trepidation among the 108 dealers in attendance about the economy and the potential impact on the show. The fears generally turned out to be unfounded and most dealers reported doing respectable to good business.

As far as southeast African art, there was a fair amount of material to be seen. Patrick and Ondine Mestdagh had a number of good pieces including a large Swazi shield (pictured above) and a rhino horn club ex Bonhams (both sold). Tribal Gathering had a number of fine east African objects. Ben Hunter of Tribal Hunter had some Tsonga neckrests and Jean-Baptiste Bacquart of London had a fine old Shona/Tsonga neckrest. Clive Loveless (pictured top), as usual, had one of the most aesthetically pleasing booths with some very fine material from Rwanda and Uganda.


I also attended an event at the de Young Museum for dealers and lenders of Tribal art. John Friede gave a few remarks and then led an trip upstairs to discuss some of his pieces in the permanent collection. The museum is always a treat - lots of new pieces were on display including a great Lulua figure and a powerful and exceptionally rare Nukuoro figure loaned by Ed and Mina Smith.

All in all, it was a great trip and I look forward to returning next year.

Daniel
JacarandaTribal.com