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Thursday, February 17, 2011

CONTEMPORARY WORKS OF 60 AFRICAN ARTISTS FROM 15 COUNRIES ACROSS THE CONTINENT ON SALE AT BONHAMS

The third ‘Africa Now’ auction, a fascinating sample of the best African Modern and Contemporary Art, goes on sale at Bonhams, the international fine art auction house, in London on March 16th.

The sale which moves by turn between London and New York, takes place in Britain this March, and promises to be the strongest sale of its kind yet.

Giles Peppiatt, Head of African Art at Bonhams, says:  “Some 115 works from artists across the continent – Benin, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria, Republic of the Congo, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe – will once more attract buyers from around the world. Bonhams has a presence in 27 countries on five continents and provides a major conduit to world-wide buyers interested in Modern and Contemporary African art.”

Prices range from £1,000 for artists such as Ibou Diouf from Senegal and Henry Munyaradzi from Zimbabwe, to £50,000 for an El Anatsui, the Ghanaian, who is Africa’s most significant modern sculptor. He was chosen to represent the continent at the 1990 Venice Biennale. The traditional kente cloth of Ghana provides a theme that runs through much of his work.

An intriguing work by Malangatana Valente Ngwenya, of Mozambique (1936-2011) titled inferno and estimated to sell for £7,000 to £10,000, comes out of his experiences of the violence he witnessed when he was imprisoned  during the colonial period  1959 to 1964 for two years after having been accused of being involved with the revolutionary movement FRELIMO (the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique). Post independence he served as a FRELIMO deputy for four years and later as a member of the Maputo Municipal Assembly.

A work by Ben Enwonwu (1917 -1994) from Nigeria, offers an insight into African dance. Estimated at £25,000 to £35,000 the work addresses the significance of dance throughout the continent.

Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world's oldest and largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. The present company was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son and Neale UK. In August 2002, the company acquired Butterfields, the principal firm of auctioneers on the West Coast of America. Today, Bonhams offers more sales than any of its rivals, through two major salerooms in London: New Bond Street, and Knightsbridge, and a further four throughout the UK. Sales are also held in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and Boston in the USA; and Switzerland, France, Monaco, Hong Kong, Australia and Dubai. Bonhams has a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives in 25 countries offering sales advice and valuation services in 57 specialist areas. By the end of 2009, Bonhams had become UK market leaders in ten key specialist collecting areas. For a full listing of upcoming sales, plus details of Bonhams specialist departments, go towww.bonhams.com

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