FOR SALE - THE SOUTH AFRICAN SALE
Arab in Black
by South Africa's leading artist, Irma Stern, is to be sold at Bonhams sale of
South African Art in London on 9 September 2015. Estimated to sell for
£700,000 to £1m (R20m)
“This powerful image from Stern's highly regarded Zanzibar period, is
not only one of the artist's finest works, it also has a fascinating past ¬-
from its important role in the political history of South Africa to its recent
fate as a notice board in a modest London apartment”
In the early 1960s, Arab in Black was put up for auction to raise money for the defense of Nelson Mandela and his co-defendants in South Africa's Treason Trial (1956 – 1961). In 1961, the case against the accused was judged not to have been made and the accused were discharged. Three years later Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu and six others were eventually given a life sentence for treason at the Rivonia Trial of 1964.
Irma Stern
Irma Stern (1894, Schweitzer-Renecke, Transvaal – 23 August 1966, Cape Town,
South Africa)
was a major South African artist who achieved national and international
recognition in her lifetime.
Irma was born in Schweitzer-Renecke,
a small town in the Transvaal, of German-Jewish parents.
Her father was interned in a
concentration camp by the British during the South African War because of his
pro-Boer leanings. Irma and her younger
brother, Rudi, were thus taken to Cape Town by their mother. After the war, the
family returned to Germany and constant travel. This travel influenced Irma's
work.
Irma Stern travelled extensively in
Europe and explored Southern Africa, Zanzibar
and the Congo region. These trips provided a wide range
of subject matter for her paintings and gave her opportunities to acquire and
assemble an eclectic collection of artifacts for her home.
Almost one hundred solo exhibitions
were held during her lifetime both in South Africa and Europe: including
Germany, France, Italy and England. Although accepted in Europe, her work was
unappreciated at first in South Africa where critics derided her early
exhibitions in the 1920s with reviews titled "Art of Miss Irma Stern -
Ugliness as a cult".
Eighty years later on 8 May 2000,
one of her works sold at Sotheby’s South Africa in Johannesburg for an all-time
record of R1.7 million. This record was soon broken, however, in March 2007
Stern's work was sold for R6.6 million. Thereafter Stern's Gladioli was sold
for an all-time high of R13.3 million in October 2010, but was then followed by the
sale of Bahora Girl for R26.7 million later that month - both were also records
for sales of South African art at the time. A new South African record was set
in March 2011, when a Stern painting sold for R34 million at Bonham's, London.
The best South African artworks continue to reach world record prices in
London where the world comes to buy, bidders are however selective. Bonhams has seen prices for Tretchikoff rise
over the past ten years. In the March 2012 Bonhams sold 'Fighting Zebras' for
£58,850.00, more than three times its pre-sale estimate of £15,000-20,000.
With sales exceeding $18 million in
2011 Bonhams is the global market leader in South African Art. They hold the world records for all the major
South African artists with the highlight being the $5 million sale of Irma
Stern's "Arab Priest".
R20m Irma Stern Painting Used
As Pin Board On Auction
Imre Lamprecht, head of the art department at Stephan Welz & Co,
said the fact that it had such great provenance would add to its value. “Collectors will fork out a lot for this
piece,” Lamprecht stated “I know a few who wouldn’t mind having it in their
collection.”
The painting was originally owned by art collector, Betty Suzman, whose
father, Max Sonnenberg MP, founded Woolworths.
Betty was the sister-in-law of anti-apartheid activist Helen Suzman and
her daughter is actor and director Janet Suzman.
In a statement, Bonhams said the painting came to Britain in the 1970s
when the buyer immigrated to the UK and was subsequently bequeathed to the current
owner. Bonhams auction house’s head of
South African Art, Hannah O’Leary, discovered the work by chance:
“I was on a routine valuation when I spotted this masterpiece hanging in
the kitchen covered in letters, postcards and bills. It was an exciting find even before I learnt
of its political significance.”
101 New
Bond Street, London
Tel: +44 20 7447 7447
Tel: +44 20 7447 7447
Contact
Hannah O’Leary: Specialist, Bonhams
Work 101 New Bond Street, London, United Kingdom W1S 1SR Tel: +44 207 468 8213 hannah.oleary@bonhams.com
Bonhams,
founded in 1793, is one of the world's largest auctioneers of fine art and
antiques. Bonhams has a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives
in 25 countries offering sales advice and valuation services in 60 specialist
areas. For a full listing of upcoming sales, plus details of Bonhams specialist
departments go to www.bonhams.com
