SA Art Times Business Art Aug 2010
SA Art Times Business Art Aug 2010
SA Art Times Business Art Aug 2010
Great find: Stephan Welz and Vanessa Phillips from Strauss & Co
(Fine Art Auctioneers and Consultants) chat about the untitled paint-
ing depicting the Union Buildings by Pieter Wenning (about 1914-
1915). The painting belongs to a private collector and was valued at
between R1million and R1.3million. In the background is Terry Flynn
from the Ann Bryant Art Gallery. Picture: Alan Eason
DONALD GREIG
BRONZE FOUNDRY & GALLERY
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PAGE 02 ARTIST’S PROFILE BUSINESSART | AUGUST 2010
Dylan Lewis who is one of the most successful SA contemporary sculptors, chats to Steve Kretzmann in Kalk Bay
Art Leader:
If sport is the opiate of the masses then culture is their social currency.
And if there are any lessons to be learnt from football, it is that the team
which cannot adapt, falls; and that one must always keep an eye on the
ball. So what does this Fifa-esque homily have to do with the successful
operation of an art gallery? On a prima facie basis, not much, apart from
the fact that at the Everard Read Gallery in Cape Town the polite tones
so typical of the sanctified art spaces are being violated by the collective
trumpet of the vuvuzela brigade outside.
These unexpected punctuation marks in the otherwise staid syntax of the
art gallery provide the Cape Town ER with a refreshingly serendipitous
identity. And in the fifteen years that the Cape Town gallery has been
open for business, the art of dribbling and handling curved balls are
skills Charles Shields and David Tripp have obviously acquired.
Launched in September 1996, the gallery was established as a satel-
lite version of its Johannesburg counterpart — occupying a small shop
window at the V&A Waterfront.
“We were little more than a cave,” recalls Shields. “We had no pristine
white cube in which to work, no mailing list. And, quite frankly, our com-
petitors were cynical about our chances of success.”
Adds Tripp: “The art world in Cape Town was much more parochial and
conservative than it is now. But despite the odds, by 1999, when we
moved to our current premises, we had evolved from shop window mode
into a dynamic art destination with a separate identity and life of its own.”
Join Joshua Miles for a refreshing Woodblock Printmaking Class, Prince Albert
Join Joshua Miles for a two day colour reduction block woodcut workshop from
Sat 07 to Sunday 08 August at the famous 7 Arches Gallery in Prince Albert.
Contact Brent Phillips-White 0827492128, [email protected] or The
Prince Albert tourist office at 023 5411 366 for more information on prices and
what to bring, as well as the many beautiful places you can stay in this
exquisite part of the Klein Karoo.
PAGE 04 FREE STATE, GAUTENG AND MPUMALANGA GALLERY LISTINGS FOR AUGUST 2010 BUSINESSART | AUGUST 2010
Fried Contemporary
22 July-22 August, “Cities in transition” by Titus Matiyane.
430 Charles St, Brooklyn, Pretoria. T. 012 346 0158
[email protected] www.friedcontemporary.com
Trent Gallery
17 July-05 August, Group exhibition featuring Lien Botha, Ros-
souw van der Walt and Berco Wilsenach. Opening 17 July between Work to be seen on the New African Photography
9:00 and 12:30. Curated by Basie Botha. Gallery Momo until 7 August 2010
198 Long Street, Waterkloof, Pretoria. Colbert Mashile. Mma waka Montedi. 2010. Linocut
T. 012 460 5497. [email protected] www.trent-art.co.za Part of the 9 Linocuts show at Gallery AOP
Mpumalanga
White River
The Loop Art Foundry & Sculpture Gallery
Casterbridge Complex Corner R40 and Numbi Roads White River
T. 013 751 2435
www.tlafoundry.co.za
The Arts Association of Bellville Manfred Zylla. Opening Wednesday 11 August at 6pm.
Eastern Cape 14 July-04 August, “Voyages of Discovery Fibre Works IV” 63 Shortmarket Str., Cape Town T. 021 422 2762
Featuring Joy Savage and Ingrid de Haast. [email protected]
25 August - 15 September, The Vuleka 2010 Competion. www.erdmanncontemporary.co.za
East London 29 September- 21 October, a solo exhibition by Johan Coetzee,
and a Jewellery exhibition by Marlize Meyer, Jolene Kritzinger, Everard Read Gallery
Ann Bryant Gallery Isabel Pfaff, Liz Dunstan- Deacon, Nadja Bossmann Until 31 Jan 2011, “Untamed”, an installation by
The Main Gallery and Diana Ferreira. Dylan Lewis at Kirstenbosch Gardens.
21 July-03 August, “Santam Child Art exhibition.” This annual The Arts Association of Bellville, The Library centre, Carel van 02-17 September, “Sight”, an exhibition by Arabella Caccia &
competition is open to all schools, with a calendar produced at the Aswegan Street, Bellville. T. 021 918 2301 [email protected] Deborah da Silva. “Sight” is the product of a collaboration
end of the competition featuring the winning entries and a www.artb.co.za/gallery.htm between Arabella Caccia (a painter and a sculptor) and
travelling exhibition. Deborah da Silva (a photographer).
05 August-12 September, “Diesel & Dust” selected works by Obie Atlantic Art Gallery 3 Portswood Road, Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, Cape Town.
Oberholzer. Opening Thursday 05 August @ 6:30pm. Invitation A permanent display showcasing leading contemporary South T. 021 418 4527 [email protected]
includes a cocktail evening, a walkabout by Obie himself plus a African artists. www.everard-read-capetown.co.za
raffle of one of his books and a book signing on Thursday the 25 Wale Street, Cape Town. T. 021 423 5775
05 August. At R50 a ticket. Tickets available at the door. 34 Fine Art
The Coach House AVA 26 May-17 August, Gallery Closed.
19 August-05 September, “The Peep Show” An exhibition of 26 July-20 August, works by Erika Elk, Nike Romano All Works available online at
works in miniature. Opening Thursday 19 August @ 6:30 p.m. and David Rossouw. www.vgallery.co.za / www.34fineart.com C. 082 354 1500
For this exhibition artists are invited to submit artworks that must 23 August-17 September: MINI ME, AVA’s ArtReach Fundraiser.
measure not more than A5 format (148mm x 210mm) or prefer- Opening @ 6pm on Monday 23 August, Focus Contemporary
ably smaller Closing date for entries is Tuesday 17 August 2010. Closes Friday 17 September @9pm. During August, Special winter menu of fine African art including
All works must be properly framed with eye screws attached ready Association for Visual Arts, 35 Church Street, Cape Town. works by Karin Miller, Christian Diedericks and Simon Annand.
to be hung. A maximum of ten entries are allowed per artist. Entry T.021 424 7436 [email protected] www.ava.co.za 11 September-15 October, “The Feather Room”
forms can be collected from the gallery at a cost of R10.00 per by Christiaan Diedericks.
painting for a non-member and R5.00 per entry for a member and Barnard Gallery 16 October-12 November, “Spot” by Helen Sear.
double the fee for works that are Not for Sale. 26 July- 15 September, “Beyond Boundaries” by 67 Long Street, Cape Town. T. 021 419 8888
9 St. Marks Rd, Southernwood, East London. T. 043 722 4044 Rachelle Bomberg. [email protected] www.focuscontemporary.co.za
[email protected] www.annbryant.co.za 55 Main Street, Newlands. [email protected]
The Framery Art Gallery
Blank Projects 05-28 August, Line work by Miche and photographic work
Port Elizabeth 29 July-01 September, “High Violet” by Mary Wafer & “Nomadic by Amin. Opening 05 August at 7pm.
Structures Digest” by Kerim Seiler. 02-30 September, Patrick Makuane exhibiting with
113-115 Sir Lowry Rd, Woodstock, Cape Town. T.072 1989 221 Timothy Zantsi.
Epsac Gallery [email protected] www.blankprojects.com 67g Regent Road, Sea Point. T. 021 4345022
16 – 27 August – “Down Memory Lane in Port Elizabeth”
a solo Exhibition by Villia Offerman. (Lower Gallery) Cape Gallery Galleria Gibello Cape Quarter
23 August – 17 September, “Love This Place – Buy it Take it” 22 August-02 October, “Borders” a Wildlife Exhibition. Until end of August, “Heaven and Earth” by Caroline Gibello
a mixed medium group exhibition. (Upper Gallery) 60 Church Street, Cape Town. T. 021 423 5309. Shop 31, Cape Quarter Square, 27 Somerset Road, Green Point.
30 August – 15 September, “EPSAC Annual – Group Exhibition” [email protected] www.capegallery.co.za T. 021 425 0439
Mixed Medium (Lower Gallery)
36 Bird Street, P.E. T. 041 585 3641 Carmel Art Gallery F
Dealers in Fine art, exclusive distributers of Contemporary and archival South African Art.
Montage Gallery Pieter van der Westhuizen etchings. 221 Long Str., Cape Town T. 021 422 5246
10-24 August, Works by Nonnie Roodt. Constantia Village Shopping Centre, Main Rd., Constantia [email protected] www.galleryf.co.za
59 Main Road, Walmer, Port Elizabeth. T. 041-5812893 T. 021 794 6262
[email protected] www.montagegallery.co.za Cape Quarter Square, 27 Somerset Road Green Point Goodman Gallery, Cape
T. 021 4213333 Until 03 August, The Gallery will be closed.
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum [email protected] www.carmelart.co.za 07-28 August, “Winter Show”
Permanent exhibition, “Art in Mind” 3rd Floor, Fairweather House, 176 Sir Lowry Rd., Woodstock,
Until 10 October, “Ubuhle bentsimbi: The beauty of beads” Casa Labia Cape Town T. 021 462 7573/4,
Until 09 August, “Gateway to Africa” 14 August-30 September, “White Painting” new works by www.goodmangallerycape.com
An exhibition of contemporary African art. Hermann Niebuhr. Opening 14 August @ 2:30pm.
1 Park Drive, Port Elizabeth. T. 041 506 2000 192 Main Rd, Muizenberg. T. 021 788 6067 iArt Gallery
www.artmuseum.co.za [email protected] www.casalabia.co.za 11June-16 July, “The Mechanics and Mysteries of Perception”,
a group exhibition.
Ron Belling Art Gallery Cedar Tree Gallery 71 Loop Street, Cape Town. T. 021 424 5150
03-29 August, “Eastern Cape Vignettes” a photographic Until 11 August, “World Cup Fever” one, which has work that will www.iart.co.za
exhibition by John Riordan. remind our visitors of the beautiful game and of our iArt Gallery Wembley
30 Park drive, Port Elizabeth. T. 041-586 3973 beautiful country. 04-28 August, “Sondeval” by Sandra Hanekom
[email protected] www.ronbelling.co.za 17 August-30 September, “The Palette and the Palate” A wine- 01-25 September, “Blight” by Marlise Keith.
centric exhibition, with works of vineyards, events inspired by Wembley Square, Gardens, Cape Town T. 021 424 5150
wine, perhaps works while under the influence of wine and works www.iart.co.za
Western Cape
using wine as a medium.
Rodwell House, Rodwell Road, St James, Cape Town. Infin Art Gallery
T. 021 787 9880 [email protected] A gallery of work by local artists.
www.cedartreegallery.co.za Wolfe Street Chelsea Wynberg T. 021 761 2816 and
Buitengracht Str. Cape Town T. 021 423 2090 www.infinart.co.za
Cape Town David Porter Antiques
Buyers and sellers of South African art. Irma Stern Gallery
Alliance Française of Cape Town T. 021 6830580/083 452 5862 03-24 August, “Portraits” Works by Daniel Popper and
10-29 August, “Echoes” by Maurice Hermes Mbikayi. [email protected] Janet (Meintjes) Jankes.
155 Loop Street, Cape Town Cecil Rd, Rosebank, Cape Town. T. 021 685 5686
David Krut Art www.irmastern.co.za
/A Word Of Art DKA opens their outlet at Shop 116, Clock Tower Shopping
Currently running until 14 August, During the world cup A Word Centre, V&A Waterfront, Cape Town on 3 June. Iziko SA National Gallery
of Art and Adidas hosted “Three Stories” and in the Woodstock David Krut Publishing and Bookstore - proud to be the official Until 03 October, “1910-2010: From Pierneef to Gugulective” a
industrial centre Every week we introduced a new exhibition to distributor in South Africa of the FIFA 2010 Official Art Posters re-hang of the entire gallery is being curated to showcase the very
the art space. Edition series in association with the European publisher of the best of South African art.
The T- shirt show-14 designers created limited edition T shirts One posters – will be running a store at the V & A Waterfront for a six 30 May-15 August, “Umtshotsho” by Nicholas Hlobo.
night only-Unlikely collaboration canvas artworks The letter a in week period, from 3 June to 15 July 2010, to make these special 25 Queen Victoria Street, Cape Town 021 481 3934
the color blue -Graffiti art exhibition Papergirl-SA-In the style of posters accessible to locals and visitors alike.
American paper boys this concept is about gifting art to the public. Iziko SA National Gallery-Old Town House
see http://www.papergirl-sa.com/ Chapter two:”friends”: 5 paint- The Donald Greig Bronze Foundry and Gallery 10 June-12 July, “The lie of the land: Representations of the
ings and a video installation exhibited at focus off as part of Art Opens on 25th August 2010 at West Quay Road, V & A South African landscape”
Basel now returned to a word of art art space The Bin R250 Show- Waterfront, Cape Town. Donald Greig is a specialized wildlife 25 Queen Victoria street, Cape Town 021 481 3934
Over 400 artworks for sale at the affordable price of R250 sculptor and his sculptures ranging in size from life-size to pa- [email protected]
The “Three Stories” exhibition is now open Thursday to Saturday perweights will be on display at the gallery. The foundry will do a
10:30am to 4:30pm bronze pour on most days and the entire ‘Lost Wax Casting Joao Ferreira Gallery
66 Albert rd, Woodstock Industrial Centre. T. 021 448 7889 Process’ can be viewed by the public through special glass 02 August-04 September, “Works on Paper” by Beezy Bailey
[email protected] www.a-word-of-art.co.za windows. 70 Loop Street, Cape Town. T. 021 4235403
The Nautilus Building, No.14 West Quay Road, V&A Waterfront, [email protected] www.joaoferreiragallery.com
Ashbey’s Galleries Cape Town T. 021 418 4515
12 August: Art Auction @10am [email protected] www.donaldgreig.com Kalk Bay Modern
43-51 Church Street, Cape Town T. 021 423 8060 04-22 August, Celebrating Ceramics, Christo Giles, Katherine
[email protected] www.ashbeysgalleries.co.za Erdmann Contemporary /Photographers Gallery Glenday, Clemintina van der Walt, John Newdigate, Christina Bryer,
31 July-07 August, “Conceptual Matter.” Opening Wednesday Lisa Firer, John Bauer and Ardmore.
4 August @ 6pm. 1st Floor, Olympia Buildings, 136 Main Rd, Kalk Bay.
11-28 August, a solo exhibition of new paintings and drawings by T.021 788 6571 [email protected] www.kalkbaymodern.com
BUSINESSART | AUGUST 2010 EASTERN AND WESTERN CAPE GALLERY LISTINGS FOR AUGUST 2010 Page 07
Lindy van Niekerk Art Gallery These Four Walls Fine Art Glen Carlou Estate
During August, A solo exhibition by Zerk de Villiers. 05-14 August, “We/edition” a group exhibition of student work. On exhibition is The Hess Art Collection, including works by
31 Kommandeur Road, Welgemoed, Bellville. T. 021 913 7204/5 169 Lower Main Road, Observatory Deryck Healey, Ouattara Watts and Andy Goldsworthy.
www.artpro.co.za T. 021 447 7393 Cell. 079 302 8073 Simondium Rd, Klapmuts T. 021 875 5314
[email protected] www.thesefourwalls.co.za www.glencarlou.co.za
Martin Osner Fine Art Photography
A new Gallery Opens. Waterkant Gallery Sasol Art Museum
Currently on show, Panoramic Landscapes by Koos van der Lende, 04 June- 04 August, “Dreams & Goals, Twenty years of global 07 June-31 August, “Johannes Meintjes: A Tribute 1923 – 1980”
Photomontage by Sandy Mclea, Fine Art Collection by Kim Le football photography” by Alastair Berg. Ryneveldstraat 52 Ryneveld Street, Stellenbosch.
Roux, Clazaro/Space by Jan Thomas Gibson, Lens-Light-Landscape 29 July-08 September, “Bollywood!” Bollywood! captures the truly T. 021 808 3691/3/5
by Eugene van der Merwe also an extensive display of unique spirit of Bollywood past through its iconic and instantly
Martin Osners personal imagery. recognisable poster art. Bollywood! revisits the true film greats from SMAC Art Gallery
1 Harbour Road, HoutBay. T. 021 7906494 the 50s to the 70s through a series of original, vintage posters. 05 June-31 August, “Divisions” Aspects of
[email protected] www.martinosner.com/ 123 Waterkant Street, Cape Town. T. 021 421 1505 Southern African Art 1945-2010.
[email protected] www.waterkantgallery.com De Wet centre, Church Street, Stellenbosch.
Michael Stevenson Contemporary T. 021 887 3607 www.smacgallery.com
29 July-04 September, “Permanent Error” photographs by Pieter Wessel Snyman Creative
Hugo; “The Eclipse Will Not Be Visible to the Naked Eye” video, 09-21 August, solo exhibition of drawings and paintings by Cecilia Tokara
installation and prints by Dineo Seshee Bopape; “Noreturn” a film Ferreira. The exhibition is based on an intensive collaboration with 05 June-25 August, “Hats off! 25 Year of Linocuts from
by Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster as part of the Forex Series. Dutch poet Joop Bersee and consists of a body of visual projections The Caversham Press.”
Opening Thursday 29 July, 6-8pm of Bersee’s book of poetry Eyrie (2009) which was dedicated to Crest of Helshoogte pass on the R310 between Stellenbosch
Ground Floor, Buchanan Building, 160 Sir Lowry Rd, Cape Town. Francis Bacon. Online catalogue www.eyriecollab.blogspot.com and Franschoek. T. 021 808 5900
T. 021 462 1500 [email protected] 17 Bree Street, Cape Town. T. 021 418 0980. www.tokara.com
www.michaelstevenson.com [email protected]
R 260 for an annual subscription. Just click onto “Subscription” at www.arttimes.co.za and go from there. Special ends end August 2010
BUSINESSART | AUGUST 2010 ABSA 2010 AWARD WINNERS Page 09
Unlike the previous years, this year’s pool of submissions was undoubtedly about identity and how
they experience the country we are living in.
Much of the selected work seems to have subversive strategies, not in loud and shocking ways, but
rather in strangely guarded tones.
Ilka van Schalkwyk and Bongumenzi Ngobese have been named the respective first and second place
winners out of more than 100 finalists, which were chosen by a national selection panel led by Gwen
Miller. Merit Awards were awarded to Abri de Swardt, Philiswa Lila, Collen Maswanganyi and Hanje
Whitehead.
Winner of The Gerard Sekoto award - Bongumenzi Ngobese Pretoria-based Van Schalkwyk scooped the coveted top prize for her new media installation, Reading
colour. The judges described the piece as “a cerebral affair reflecting intellectual games of texts that
in themselves rebel against prescriptive institutions. Like the referenced songs and literary texts that
were defiant in their strategies, this visual text becomes subversive of the social body. The work is a
marvellous example of an open text with multi-layered meaning.”
Durbanite Ngobese was awarded the Gerard Sekoto Award for the most promising artist with an
income of less than R60 000 per annum, for his mixed media piece Kwa-Mamkhize. The panel said
Ngobese’s hidden parcels under the table signified secrecy, a lifestyle of makeshift storage systems of
a society in flux. “This is a social order of migrants, who have to take up their belongings and make
them fit into any vehicle or, metaphorically, any culture, to be able to move on. The work holds so
many possibilities of engagement in relation to our current society,” the panel said.
As part of her prize, Van Schalkwyk wins R110 000 in cash and a six-month sabbatical at the Cité
Internationale des Arts in Paris, courtesy of Absa. Ngobese wins a three-month sabbatical at the
Cité, French language classes and nationwide touring exhibitions sponsored by the French Embassy,
French Institute and the Alliance Française. Both prizes include airfare and free access to galleries and
museums in Paris.
All four merit award winners receive R25 000 and each of the top ten finalists, including Van Schalk-
wyk, Ngobese, the four runner-ups as well as Vincent Bezuidenhout, Sibusiso Duma, Maja Marx and
Lyle van Schalkwyk, receive a R2 000 bonus prize.
The Absa L’Atelier Art Awards is Africa’s pre-eminent annual art competition. It has earned itself
the reputation for being the most influential art competition on the continent, not only because of the
incredible opportunities afforded by the main prizes, but also because of the unrivalled exposure the
artists receive.
Merit winners - (Top) Philiswa Lila, Collen Maswanganyi, (Below) Abri de Swardt (Below right) Hanje Whitehead
PAGE 10 KZ- NATAL GALLERY LISTINGS, CALL FOR PROPOSALS BUSINESSART | AUGUST 2010
Peter Machen A Ruth Everard-Haden still life fetched R455 000 (est R400 000-
R600 000) and another Pierneef landscape R409 000 (est R400
000-R650 000), but casualties included yet more Pierneefs (est
The Life and Times in Durban Art Scene R650 000-R850 000 and R800 000-R1.2m), a Stern genre scene
(at R2.5m-R3.5m, the highest estimate of the sale), two Maggie
Laubser landscapes (est R650 000-R950 000 and R600 000- R800
I am standing, swaying, listening to the rhythmic, haunting lack of faith. Hennig’s piece felt more real and more moving than 000), a Maud Sumner religious scene (est R700 000-R900 000)
sound of a vast army of vuvuzelas having the time of their my actual world. and an Adolf Jentsch landscape (est R500 000-R800 000). The
lives. In the distance is a goalpost, and all around a sea of bod- session’s average sale price of R216 000 compared with a low
ies and faces are looking towards the pitch. Well, most of them Synesthesia and hyperbole aside, I have written before about the estimate of R286 000.
are – some are distracted by other things. And at once end of general openmindedness of the Durban Art Gallery as an institu-
the pitch, a wildebeest appears to be grazing in the presence of tion. Although I don’t mind a bit of high-brow formality every The final session, which could be described as comprising major
two lions. now and then (although I usually damage the atmosphere by trip- minor work, saw 36 of 85 lots (42.4%) sold for R4.77m, 40.7% of
ping or spilling my drink), I love the way that the DAG, located in the low estimate of R11.73m. The average R132 600 realised was
I’m in the Durban Art Gallery. The vuvuzelas are a three dimen- a building that is so palatial, baroque and deeply colonial, opens the closest of any session to the low estimate of R138 000.
sional audio recording, courtesy of sound artist and musician itself to the streets and interfaces with Durban’s reality to such an
Dean Henning. The pitch is Gallery 3, which has been marked in extent. Highlight of this session was R921 000 for Tretchikoff’s Balinese
white vinyl with the layout of a soccer pitch, and the goals posts Girl (est R900 000-R1.3m), followed by an excellent R432 000
are pretty much goal posts, although, there is no net. The sea of Of course, not all galleries are stuffy white cubes in which behav- for Battiss’s Reflections (est R120 000-R160 000), R409 000 for
faces have emerged from the DAG’s remarkably diverse perma- iour of a non-archival kind is permitted. The KZNSA didn’t seem both another Battiss (est R400 000-R600 000) and Lucas Sithole’s
nent collection, and the occasion is an intersection of the launch to mind when Steven Cohen shat a painted enema all over their sculpture Mother & Child (est R400 000-R600 000) and R398 000
of the multimedia exhibition Time_Frame – of which Henning’s beautifully screeded floor (the stain stated for months, an artwork for yet another Battiss (Camilla with Giraffe, est R400 000-R600
piece forms a part – and Art of the Ball, the exhibition which is of residuality) or when master choreographer Jay Pather filled half 000).
currently occupying the room was such vigour. The animals are the gallery with red sand for a performance from Siwela Sonke.
stuffed, and the wildebeest is not nervous. But the Durban Art Gallery is a municipal building (that is also a However, the top estimate Battiss (African Traders, est R600 000-
national monument) which very often features work that challeng- R900 000) was passed, as were an Edoardo Villa bronze (est R500
Henning’s piece was remarkable. While I rather like sound pieces es local and national policy. I imagine that much of the gallery’s 000-R700 000), and two Alexis Prellers (Ritual Bull, est R1m-
on the whole (although I don’t know if I’d ever buy one as a openminded doubt stems from a reaction to the constraints of the R1.5m) and Constellation, est R500 000-R700 000).
non-investor), I often find that they feel more like clever little apartheid administration within the double confines of the last
interventions rather than proper works, relying on charm and a outpost of colonial Natal. And I probably also think much of this
broad smile. The vuvuzela piece felt like a substantial work of art because of the presence of the hugely successful Red Eye event
in the classical fine art sense. It occupied my body not just with its which has impacted not just on people’s relationship to the gallery,
soundwaves but with its beauty which was conceptual, experien- but to the city itself. SA ART TIMES
tial and – yes – visual.
Jenny Stretton, who curated the very wonderful Art of the Ball, CATCH OUR DAILY SA ART NEWS ON
‘Visual’ might seem like a bit of a stretch, but the way in which has been acting director at the DAG for the last three and a half
the artist reconstructed and reinterpreted an actual reality – ficti- years (in addition to her job as curator of collections), since former
tious or not – and moved it to another location, my body felt like it director Carol Brown, who was similarly inclusive, moved on to WWW.ARTTIMES.CO.ZA
was seeing something. The piece contained so much that if I start a more freelance existence. She is stepping down from the post
to deconstruct it, it feels like it contained the world itself, and not for the moment, while council goes about the task of filling the
just the world during soccer madness. As I write this, in a room in permanent position. I hope Stretton applies. And I hope she gets BECAUSE AMAZING ART AND ART NEWS
a house on the end of Durban’s ridge at dusk, I am surrounded by the job. I love the way that the gallery continues to opens itself up HAPPENS ALL DAY AND EVERY DAY
the sound of the azaan coming from three different mosques. It is to the city under her direction and functions as a truly inclusive
deeply beautiful and nearly always moves me a little, despite my social space. I’d hate for any of that to change.
A Vigil of Departure –
LOUIS KHEHLA MAQHUBELA
a retrospective 1960 - 2010
Standard Bank Gallery 4 August to 18 September 2010
Monday to Friday: 8am – 4.30pm Saturday: 9am –1pm
Tel: 011 631 1889 www.standardbankarts.co.za
Louis Maqhubela, Composition, 1972, Oil on paper, 51,7cm x 58,7cm. Collection: Johannesburg Art Gallery SBSA 49201
PAGE 12 ART INVESTMENT NEWS BUSINESSART | AUGUST 2010
Published in The Art Newspaper. By Sarah Douglas to figure out people’s motivations and what their view is of work-
ing with dealers versus auction houses.
In the report you did in 2008 for the European Fine Art Fair (TE-
FAF), you discussed the Internet database Artprice’s finding that Has the type of art that people are buying changed?
China had become the world’s third-largest art market, in terms
of sales at auction, surpassing France. Your most recent report, There are many trends at work that are moving people to older
released in March, states that China has continued to grow while things. People are looking at history a bit more. Dealers are
other areas have slowed. Why does China interest you so much? finding younger people buying antique furniture, whereas before
they’d never seen people under 60 coming in. That’s the wonderful
China slapped France in the face when it moved into third place thing about the art market. You can sit there plugging in numbers,
worldwide. The government is really behind the art trade. It’s planning the economic forecast, but it is also very fashion- and
going to be a very important industry for them. But it’s driven by a trend-driven.
tiny portion of the population; only a handful of wealthy Chinese
are buying art. What have you learned from talking with dealers?
In 2009, according to your study, auction houses were more af- Many of them are leaving shop fronts and working privately. And
fected by the recession than dealers. Why? they are realizing that if they are going to compete with the mar-
keting power of the auction houses, they are going to need to work
People didn’t want to be seen spending a lot of money or selling together more, instead of being fragmented.
off their stuff. That’s a basic explanation, but I think it’s one of the
factors that worked in favor of dealers. The serious collectors are What does the future hold?
still there, waiting for the best pieces to become available. The
speculators have been shaken out. I’m very interested in looking at the modern and contemporary
sector to see how it survived the storm. And [I’m] looking at
Was the contraction in the art market more dramatic than you resale rights in Europe. There are real worries in Europe. New
expected? markets like China emerging is very good for the market overall
but difficult for countries, like the U.K. and France, that have been
Overall there was a 35 percent drop in aggregate sales, but some hampered by regulations and taxes. They have to compete not only
markets had 60 percent drops. Although huge, those are statisti- against the U.S., which has fewer regulations, but also against
cal drops. It’s only because the market went so high in 2007 and countries, like China, that don’t have resale royalties.
2008. If you go back to the 1990s, we are still at a very high point
historically. That’s what people miss. Because when you see big What have been the lessons of this recession?
numbers being thrown out, like a 60 percent drop, you think, “My
God, the whole thing’s being wiped out.” A slump in the market is I firmly believe that art is a long-term investment. That’s why some
Photo by Kip Carroll
about fewer good works coming onto the market or fewer buyers. of the art funds have gone under. The liquidity is too low to run
It’s not about the prices of good things falling. a fund with a huge cost base. The most serious collectors, those
hold value and work for them. Art is a long-term, slightly safe- who don’t worry so much about returns, are continuing to do well.
Why would people turn to art during this recession in particular? haven investment. We’ve left behind a kind of bubbly behavior where people buy
something just because they can sell it at a higher price. What
People are afraid of the banks, and it’s been a recession with low You are looking more at collectors now. everyone wants now is slow, steady upward progress. The boom
interest rates. In previous recessions, all the ultrawealthy left their years turned off long-term collectors, who don’t buy in that kind of
money sitting in the banks because there were high interest rates. The buy side of the market is very interesting. I’m doing a more market. They sat and waited for things to calm down a bit. I think
In this recession, they’ve realized they have to get investments that formal survey of collectors, in both the U.S. and Europe. You have it’s returning to a better place
BUSINESSART | AUGUST 2010 SWELCO NEXT SALE AUGUST 2010, JOHANNESBURG Page 13
Lot 314, François Krige. Peach blossoms in vineyard, signed, oil on canvas, 61 by 75cm. R 350 000 - 450 000
Preview of Stephan Welz & Co’s 17 & 18 August Johannesburg Sale line up
Stephan Welz and Company will be holding their Johannesburg (R 100 000 – 150 000). An item that might draw a lot of attention,
winter auction at their Rosebank salesroom on 17th and 18th is Lot 300, an interesting Walter Battiss tapestry, titled ‘Umpun-
August. With recent successes in the art market from our Cape dulu birds’ (R 200 000 – 300 000). Another remarkable work is
Town office’s June auction, accomplishing both South African and the diptych carved and incised wood panels by Cecil Skotnes
World Records, we anticipate the two day, four session sale, will -these two freestanding panels can be seen in Lot 367, ‘Abstract
follow suit. composition’ (R 300 000 – 500 000) followed by another bold
At 14h00 on Tuesday 17 August, the first session of the sale com- carved and incised wood panel in Lot 368, ‘Icon XII’ (R 180 000
mences with Books, Maps, Africana Pictures, Prints and Memo- – 240 000). Two works of equal vibrancy and colour are Lot 375,
rabilia and then moves onto the Painting section of approximately ‘Unemployed’ (R 180 000 – 240 000) and Lot 376, ‘Get out!!! ‘
110 lots. The session begins with a selection of international (R 150 000 – 200 000), both by George Pemba.
pieces featuring artists such as Frank Brangwyn, Henry Moore and
John Piper, to name a few. In the South African section a wide The evening session comes to an end with works by contemporary
selection of artists are represented, including Erich Mayer, Dor- artists like Fred Page, Marlene Dumas, William Kentridge and
othy Kay, Maggie Laubser, W H Coetzer, May Hillhouse, Anthony Kim Berman. Included in this section is a work donated by Wil-
Strickland, Ted Hoefsloot, Walter Battiss, Herman van Nazareth liam Kentridge - Lot 399, ‘Dancing nose’ (R 30 000 – 50 000)- to
and Mike Parsons. Two works of particular interest in this session The South African Ballet Theatre. All proceeds received from the
are a hand-coloured etching by W H Coetzer, ‘Collecting fire sale of this lot will help ensure the continuation of the SABT.
wood’, at an estimate of R 4 000 – 6 000 and Mike Parsons ‘At the
water’s edge’, with an estimate of R 6 000 – 9 000. The session
ends with a selection of good quality works by African artists: Exhibition:
Lot 296, Gregoire Johannes Boonzaier. Still life with apples, signed and Durant Sihlali, Louis Maqhubela and John Muafangejo, to name
dated 1929, oil on board, 29 by 34cm. R 60 000 - 90 000 but a few. Friday 13 August 10h00 – 17h00
Saturday 14 August 10h00 – 14h00
The evening session of approximately 150 pieces, commenc- Sunday 15 August 10h00 – 17h00
ing at 18h30, is a full-bodied selection of quality pieces by the (Jewellery, Watches & Silver viewing will close half hour prior)
likes of Frederick I’Ons, Cathcart Methven, Frans Oerder, Erich
Mayer, Pranas Domsaitis, Maud Sumner, Irma Stern, J H Pierneef,
Freida Lock, John Koenakeefe-Mohl, Gregoire Boonzaier, Alexis Auction:
Preller, Walter Battiss, Francois Krige, Bettie Cilliers-Barnard,
Sidney Goldblatt, Christo Coetzee, Dino Paravano, Pieter van der Tuesday 17 August 2010
Westhuizen, Conrad Theys, Hennie Niemann (Snr & Jnr), Cecil
Skotnes and George Pemba. Session 1 | 14h00 | Lots 1 – 250 | Books & Maps | Paintings
Session 2 | 18h30 | Lots 251 – 500 | Paintings & Sculptures
A prime example of an I’Ons oil work is lot 255, ‘Cattle and herd-
ers on a river bank’ (R 50 000 – 80 000); his work is hard to come Wednesday 18 August 2010
by and not often seen at auction. Frans Oerder is represented by
two stunning still life’s, Lot 264, ‘Waterlilies in a jar’ (R 200 000 Session 3 | 10h00 | Lots 501 – 790 | A Piano | Furniture | Clocks |
– 300 000) and Lot 265, ‘Still - life of chrysanthemums and a kon- Carpets & Rugs | Ceramics | Silver
foor’ (R 300 000 – 500 000). Two somewhat later works by Mag- Session 4 | 14h00 | Lots 791 – 933 | Watches | Jewellery
Lot 275, Jacob Hendrik Pierneef . Landscape with river, signed and dated 45, gie Laubser can be seen in Lot 269, ‘Landscape with harvester’
oil on canvas laid down on board, 44,5 by 59cm. R 1 200 000 - 1 600 000 and Lot 270, ‘Figures and houses in a landscape’ (also known as
‘Duck pond’), both with an estimate of R 400 000 – 600 000. A All auction sessions and pre-auction viewings will take place at:-
Lot 300, Walter Whall Battiss. work full of tranquillity is the secluded landscape by J H Pierneef,
Umpundulu birds (Detail) Lot 275, ‘Landscape with river’(R 1 200 000 – 1 600 000). Two Stephan Welz & Company
tapestry, 195 by 242cm top quality Francois Krige oils in this section deserves mention, 13 Biermann Avenue (cnr Oxford Road)
executed by Marguerite Stephens. Lot 313, ‘A view of the city bowl’ (R 200 000 – 250 000) and Lot Rosebank, Johannesburg
R 200 000 - 300 000 314, ‘Peach blossoms in vinyard’ (R 350 000 – 450 000), the latter
possibly a view from the artist’s studio. For enquiries: 011 880 3125 [email protected]
The cover lot, Lot 296, is a vibrant work from Gregoire Boonza- For further information,
ier’s younger days, ‘Still -life with apples’ (R 60 000 – 90 000) online catalogue and absentee bid forms,
followed by a work by Alexis Preller, Lot 299, ‘Study of a shell’ please visit www.swelco.co.za
PAGE 14 INTERNATIONAL ART NEWS BUSINESSART | AUGUST 2010
No one would deny that arts participation brings benefits. But they
are even harder to prove to the number crunchers at the Treas-
John Maynard Keynes: The cultured economist, and his wife, ury. It is difficult to demonstrate a value-chain between art and
the ballerina Lydia Lopokova social enhancement, and difficult to measure the social enhance-
ment itself. Ministers for culture became embarrassed by this,
and in 2008 commissioned Brian McMaster’s report, Supporting
Published in The Art Newspaper. By Robert Hewison Excellence in the Arts: From Measurement to Judgement, which
was intended to signal a move away from targets. Unfortunately
It is 70 years since a British government last had to take the arts “excellence” is a concept without content. It may be judged in
seriously. In December 1939, in a world darkened by war, winter relative terms, but it does not lend itself to the Treasury’s idea of
and blackout, a small group of civil servants and educators met measurement.
to discuss the crisis in the arts. Great museums and galleries were
empty, their contents packed off to safety from bombing. The To convince the public, and not just the government, an argument
theatres were shut, orchestras about to disband. The committee
agreed that it was essential “to show publicly and unmistakably
has to be made that shows that the arts are worth funding, in and
for themselves. That calls for a more sophisticated form of cultural Vatican prepares to open
room devoted to Matisse
that the Government cares about the cultural life of the country. economics than is currently recognised at the Treasury. There is
This country is supposed to be fighting for civilisation.” a market for culture, but culture does not depend on the market
for its existence. The experiences the arts offer—pleasure, terror,
In 1940, with an initial budget of £50,000 (about £2 million in insight, knowledge, release—are individual and hard to quantify, Museum to show large-scale drawings for works in the Chapel of
today’s values) the Council for the Encouragement of Music and and these intrinsic aspects come before any attempt to translate the Rosary in Vence, on public display for the first time
the Arts, mother to today’s Arts Council, was born. The Daily them into economic terms.
Express thundered: “What madness is this? There is no such thing Published in The Art Newspaper
as culture in wartime.” To use the language of the 18th-century economist Adam Smith, By Francesca Romana Morelli and Gareth Harris
the value of the arts “in use” precedes their value “in exchange”.
No one pretends we are back in 1940. Our museums are jammed Once something is deemed desirable, the market can indeed Rome. The Vatican Museums in Rome are set to open a room
with visitors from all over the world. The West End has had its establish its commercial price. But although the market can trade devoted to the works of Matisse later this year. The move is de-
best year ever. London has too many orchestras. In 1940 there in the products of culture, it cannot express the value of culture as signed to further boost the profile of its modern and contemporary
were civic museums and concert halls outside London, but now a process, or what it does. religious art department. Large-scale preparatory sketches by the
Britain enjoys a cultural infrastructure second to none, thanks to a French artist, relating to items adorning the Chapel of the Rosary
National Lottery whose receipts have risen since the recession. A cultural economics that captures the value of the arts has to in Vence on the Cote d’Azur, will go on public display for the first
understand value in use, and that involves broader ways of under- time. The works were donated to the Vatican by the artist’s son
Yet the arts feel under siege. The Department for Culture, Media standing ourselves and our world, for instance, anthropology and Pierre in 1980.
and Sport (DCMS) has to cut £88 million from this year’s spend- environmentalism. The value in use of the arts is that they help a From 1948 to 1951, Matisse created Stations of the Cross, wall
ing. Deeper cuts are expected after the comprehensive spending society make sense of itself. They generate the symbols and rituals decorations, furniture, stained-glass windows, even the vestments
review in the autumn. No wonder the Arts Council England (ACE) that create a common identity—that is why art and religion are so and altarcloths, for the Dominican chapel in Vence. Three large-
is desperate for help in making its case. After decades of public closely linked. Like religion, the arts give access to the spiritual. scale drawings, all more than five metres high and drawn to scale,
and private initiatives, reports, conference and consultations, we Art is a link to previous generations, and anchors us to history. form the basis for the Tree of Life stained glass behind the altar
are still looking for a “rational” argument for funding the arts. Culture is a social language that we would be dumb without. and the Virgin and Child depiction created on ceramic panels in
the chapel’s presbytery. The works are currently in conservation,
Perfect storm These anthropological arguments show why the government, as as glue used to attach backing panels pre-1980 has seeped through
guarantor of the public realm, should take responsibility for ensur- to the surface of the drawings.
One rational reason for not decimating cultural funding is that ing that everyone has access to this language, and that it is both
we are heading into a perfect storm. The strength of the British preserved and developed. For, as the environmentalists argue, it Five silk chasubles (the outer vestments worn by clergy during
cultural economy is its well-balanced mix of private and public is necessary to intervene when a resource is at risk. The precau- Mass) in a variety of colours, and a belltower bronze cross, all
money. In 2008/09 the average earnings profile of an organisation tionary principle tells us we have a duty to future generations made by Matisse, will also go on view at the Vatican in a display
regularly funded by the ACE was 47% box office, 31% from the to ensure that our cultural assets are passed on to them. We also costing E350,000. A stone Madonna sculpture by Lucio Fontana
arts council, 12% from local authority sources and other public have a selfish interest in sustaining the richness and diversity of (1956), which is too heavy to move, will remain in the same room.
funding, and 9% from trusts, foundations, donors and business those assets. Creativity occurs through the interaction of different
sponsorship. National museums and galleries on average manage forms—life forms, or art forms. Micol Forti, director of the Vatican Museums’ modern and con-
on one-third government money, one-third earned income and temporary art department, says that lighting the Matisse objects
one-third fundraising and sponsorship. When the market fails has been an issue: “The 16th-century room where the sketches
will be on show has no windows. This could not be more different
This balanced economy gives organisations security to plan, but Culture creates social capital, expressed as trust generated by a from the Chapel of the Rosary, which is flooded with dazzling
they have to be responsive to their public. And now things are shared understanding of the symbols that the arts generate, and a sunlight. I eventually opted for lighting that will combine with the
beginning to wobble. Recession reduces disposable incomes, the commitment to the values they represent. It sustains the legiti- style and colour of the works to evoke a solar explosion.”
assets of trusts and foundations shrink, business sponsorship dwin- macy of social institutions by ensuring that they are accepted, not Forti also revealed the challenges behind showing modern and
dles, local authorities have to cut back, and the Treasury demands imposed. Societies with an equitable distribution of cultural assets contemporary art at the Vatican: “I’m trying to show the new
savings from the DCMS. Rationally, the resource with the longest will be more cohesive, and more creative. Wellbeing, which is the ‘face’ of the department that was launched in 1973. The collection
purse—the government—should not withdraw support when oth- true end of economic activity, depends on the quality of life that has since been enriched with other gifts and acquisitions that make
ers begin to fail. culture sustains. The word “culture”, after all, means “growth”. it strong in works of the 1960s. Chagall, Gauguin, Leger, Ernst,
Nolde and Bacon are among the artists represented. Unfortunately,
But this is a short-term argument. There needs to be a case that Social capital—like economic capital—requires both regulation we are not always able to acquire art so I decided to make the
stands up in good times or bad. Since the 1980s we have become and investment. That the educated and well-off have greater ac- conservation and development of our artistic heritage a priority.”
used to hearing about the economic importance of the arts: they cess to the arts is not an argument for abandoning intervention to
create employment, stimulate expenditure, attract tourists. Con- secure a more equitable distribution of cultural experience. Ration- She hopes to establish a new research centre that will strengthen
sultants have become adept at showing that a cultural facility has ally, the government should be putting more funding into the the “relationship with contemporary art”. The Vatican is also
a “multiplier effect”: the money spent on it spreads its sweetness arts because of the social capital they generate. There is a sound building an archive of works donated by artists of the 19th and
and light far out into the local economy. In the 1990s the “creative economic argument that when the market fails to provide certain 20th centuries, made up of pieces by Cesare Fracassini and the
industries” were invented, a benign penumbra of business activi- kinds of goods thought useful, then it is necessary to intervene— Futurist artist Bruno Corra.
ties such as advertising that use cultural means to achieve com- health and education are the usual examples. The economics of
mercial ends. The DCMS claims that the field of its responsibili- the arts are particularly prone to market failure, for it is not easy The Vatican plans to launch a pavilion at the Venice Biennale in
ties (including sport) accounts for 10% of gross domestic product. to make the advances in productivity that technology facilitates 2011, while its first contemporary art commission under Pope
in manufacturing. A symphony played on a synthesiser is not an Benedict XVI was awarded to Claudio Parmiggiani in 2007.
BUSINESSART | AUGUST 2010 INTERNATIONAL ART NEWS Page 15