The Frum Collection at Sotheby's

The superb collection of Oceanic art from Polynesia and Melanesia formed by the late Murray Frum and his family is the most significant group to come to market in the last thirty years, with a variety of objects from Indonesia to Polynesia at all ranges of the market. To be held only two days after Parcours des Mondes on September 16, the sale will be highlighted an extremely rare group of pre-contact Polynesian works.

View the online catalogue.

Figure, pou whakairo  -  Maori, New Zealand

Head of a staff god  -  Rarotonga, Cook Islands

Malanggan figure  -  New Ireland

Images and information courtesy of Sotheby's

Regards Croisés: Jean-Michel Atlan / Arts d’Afrique et d’Océanie

Sotheby's Paris will present a selling exhibition of paintings by Jean-Michel Atlan on April 9–17 . Offering an expansive look at some of the artist's most iconic works, the exhibition will be complemented by highlights from the upcoming African & Oceanic Art auctions in New York and Paris on 16 May and 18 June. These figures will pay tribute to one of the most atypical artists from the post-war generation.

View the online catalogue.

Image courtesy of Sotheby's

Tribal Art at Sotheby's

The next sale of tribal art at Sotheby’s willbhonor the great collectors and dealers of the first half of the twentieth century, a seminal period in the history of the appreciation of tribal art in the West, as many of the offerings on December 11 will include so many objects that passed through their hands. The highlight of the auction will undoubtedly be a Fang reliquary figure from Gabon that belonged to Georges de Miré. Another Gabonese reliquary guardian figure, this one of Kota origin and with a prestigious provenance, will also be offered. Previews of the sale will be held on December 6–10.

View the online catalogue.

Reliquary figure  -  Fang, Gabon

Chief's adze  -  Maori, New Zealand

Figure  -  Ifugao, Philippines

Ivory sceptres  -  Kongo, D.R. Congo

Images courtesy of Sotheby's

The Allan Stone Collection at Sotheby's

On November 15, 2013, Sotheby’s will present The Collection of Allan Stone: African, Oceanic, and Indonesian Art—Volume One, the first of two sales of the tribal art collection of the legendary New York art dealer. A second sale of equal size will be held in November 2014. Sotheby’s believes that this is the most significant African and Oceanic art collection to be offered in New York since the Helena Rubinstein auction in 1966. Many of the works to be offered have been included in publications and museum exhibitions. A small selection from the collection was the subject of the 2011 exhibition Power Incarnate: Allan Stone’s Collection of Sculpture from the Congo at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Connecticut. Among the highlights of the collection is an exceptional group of Songye power figures and Kongo nail figures from the Democratic Republic of the Congo—two of the most iconic genres of African art.

View the online catalogue.

Power figure  -  Kongo/Yombe, D. R. Congo

Warrior mask  -  Kuba, D.R. Congo

Kifwebe mask  -  Songye, D. R. Congo

Power figure  -  Songye, D. R. Congo

Power figure  -  Songye, D. R. Congo

Power figure  -  Songye, D. R. Congo

Images courtesy of Sotheby's

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.

African, Oceanic and Pre-Columbian Art at Sotheby's

Sotheby's presented an exquisite sale of tribal art from Africa, Oceania, and the pre-Columbian Americas today in New York. A selection of the sale's highlights, noted below, includes an Eket Ogbom headdress, Olmec seated figure, Lega ivory figurine, Mambila female ancestor figure, and more. For full sale details, visit the Sotheby's website.

Ogbom headdress  -  Eket, Nigeria  -  

Statue of a heroine  -  Astrolabe Bay, Papua New Guinea 

Reliquary figure  -  Kota, Gabon

Seated figure  -  Olmec, Mexico

Ivory figurine  -  Lega, DR Congo

Ceramic figure  -  Chupicuaro, Mexico

Female ancestor figure  -  Mambila, Cameroon

Images courtesy of Sotheby's

African and Oceanic Art at Sotheby's - June 12, 2012

Sotheby's will put an exquisite group of African and Oceanic art and artifacts before the bidders in Paris on June 12. Highlights of the sale will include a stunning black Bete mask, a Fang reliquary figure, a cephalomorphic Igala head crest, a Yoruba Oshe Shango maternity figure, and a range of other sculptural masterworks from West and Central Africa, New Ireland, and elsewhere.

View the online catalogue.

Mask  -  Bete, Côte d'Ivoire

Reliquary figure  -  Fang, Gabon

Head crest  -  Igala, Nigeria

Oshe Shango maternity figure  -  Yoruba, Nigeria

Ivory cup with figurines  -  Sapi-Portuguese, Sierra Leone

Mask  -  Gere, Côte d'Ivoire

Power figure  -  Kongo, D.R. Congo

Female figure  -  Tiv, Nigeria

Malanggan mask  -  New Ireland

Canoe prow ornament  -  Solomon Islands

Information and images courtesy of Sotheby's

Strong Results at Sotheby's and Christie's

The results of the spring tribal art auctions at the New York salesrooms of Sotheby's and Christie's were sound testimony to the continuing vitality of the ethnographic art market.

The Christie's sale on May 10, which featured objects from the collection of the late Ernst Beyeler, saw the sale of a fine Santa Cruz Islands platter for $314,500; an impressive Bidjogo mask from Guinea Bissau for $266, 500; and an Australian Aboriginal shield, estimated at a mere $3,000–5,000, for $116, 500.

The large sale at Sotheby's on May 11 saw even more impressive hammer prices.  Three objects––a fantastic Bamana zigzag figure, a serene Buyu male figure, and an imposing Luluwa mask once in the collection of Dr. Werner Muensterberger––each sold for approximately $2.5 million.  An excellent Kota reliquary figure commanded just over $1 million, while a Bamana seated female figure and a Dogon female figure ended at $782,500 and $542,500, respectively.  Two major surprises came in the form of an Azande bone figure that exceeded its estimate almost tenfold at $512,500 and an unusual Lega mask, once owned by Henri Matisse, that began at an estimated $5,000–7,000 and eventually garnered a closing price of $362,500.

Platter in the form of a fish  -  Santa Cruz Islands, Solomon Islands

Mask  -  Bidjogo, Guinea Bissau

Shield  -  Australian Aboriginal

Zigzag figure  -  Bamana, Mali

Male figure  -  Buyu, D. R. Congo

Helmet mask  -  Luluwa, D. R. Congo

Reliquary figure  -  Kota, Gabon

Seated female figure  -  Bamana, Mali

Female figure  -  Dogon, Mali

Bone figure  -  Azande, D. R. Congo

Mask (with possible additions by Henri Matisse)  -  Lega, D. R. Congo

Information and images courtesy of Sotheby's and Christie's

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

Tribal Art at Sotheby's - May 11, 2012

Sotheby's will present a two-part sale of fine tribal art and artifacts on May 11, 2012.  The African art collection of the late Dr. Werner Muensterberger will comprise a significant portion of the auction, showcased alongside a host of other exquisite lots from the Lerner, Shoher, and Vogel Collections. 

Visit the official Sotheby's website.

Helmet mask  -  Luluwa, D.R. Congo

Stone head  -  Sapi (Proto-Temne), Sierra Leone

Male torso  -  Mbembe, Cross River Region, Nigeria

Reliquary figure  -  Kota, Gabon

Ancestor figure  -  Buyu, D.R. Congo

Portrait mask  -  Baule, Côte d'Ivoire  -  Totokro Master

Zigzag figure  -  Bamana, Mali

Information and images courtesy of Sotheby's