One doesn’t need
to be an art critic, art historian or millionaire to buy contemporary African
art. But according to Lara Ray, gallerist at the Polkadot Gallery in Karen, what
you do need is to think about whether you’d be happy having that artwork
occupying a space in your house.
Whether the
piece is to hang on your wall (as a painting, photograph or print) or be installed
somewhere in your home (be it a sculpture, wind chime or stained glass window),
it needs to be something that elicits good vibrations when you see it.
“Buying a
work of art is a very personal thing,” says Lara who as her gallery’s curator
regularly selects art that she feels people will like. “It’s all about making
an emotional connection with the work. Then you can go research the artist
before you decide to buy their art,” she added.
Dana
Seidenberg concurs with Lara. She says she bought her Cityscape by the late
Omosh Kindeh (aka Eric Omondi) because she loved it from the moment she first
saw it on display in Westlands.
“I saw it again
in Omosh’s studio at Kuona Trust and again I felt it ‘spoke to me’,” Dana said.
Describing
herself as an environmentalist concerned with three key issues that Omosh captured
beautifully in his art, Dana said his Cityscape conveyed the concepts of “income
inequality, overpopulation and poor city planning.”
But James
Muriuki, who recently judged the Manjano art competition, said the emotional
connection between the artwork and the prospective buyer is just one of several
criteria that should be considered when buying African art.
“There’s
also the consideration of workmanship and quality of presentation,” said
Muriuki who’s also a professional photographer and a former curator at the now
defunct RaMoMa Gallery..
Heinrich
Rossler-Musch, the gallerist and owner of Red Hill Gallery shares many of the
same sentiments as Lara, James and Dana. He says first and foremost, someone
has to like, or even love, a work of art before they think of buying it.
“My decision
to buy a work of African art is usually one I’d describe as ‘emotionally ad hoc’,”
said the retired German bio-chemist and former pharmacist.
Like the
others, he admits buying art is often based on emotion. It’s got to “feed the
soul,” in the words of the Kenya-based English painter Sophie Walbeoffe.
Hellmuth
adds the quality of execution is a key factor in buying art. “Then there’s the
aesthetic value and the conceptual meaning of the art. Does it convey a
message, and if so, what kind?”
Becoming a
serious art collector in the 1990s, Hellmuth admits he initially bought African
art that he loved. “It was only later that I began to think about the investment
potential of the art, which I now see as something to consider more seriously.”
At the
recent Contemporary and Modern East African Art Auction, nearly half the
artworks auctioned off had been previously owned by someone who wanted to ‘cash
in’ on their artwork’s investment potential. In most cases, those silent sellers
who’d given up their art for auction were delighted with the results.
“It was a
win-win situation,” says one happy seller whose only regret is she possibly
should have held onto the painting a bit longer. “If I’d waited a while, its
market value might be more than what I got this time round,” she wonders.
Carol Lees has
been curating contemporary African art at One Off Gallery since the 1990s so
she knows quite a bit about how to buy the art.
“First, you
should go to as many places where the art is being shown as possible. See what
you’re attracted to, and then go on the internet and research the artist, where
he or she’s exhibited in the past; in what sort of projects have they been
involved; and what sort of prices their artworks sell for,” she summarizes.
Ultimately,
after all the research and familiarizing oneself with what’s available, it will
again come down to what artwork you’re attracted to.
“There’s no
right or wrong in buying art. It’s very subjective and it all depends on what
like,” Carol concludes.
No comments:
Post a Comment