JOHANNESBURG—It has been an unusually turbulent year for South Africans generally, a fact mirrored in the shifting landscape of the art market, where established players are bowing out, allowing new names to rise to the fore.
Moshekwa Langa's "Ramothibedi" (2007) can be seen in "Flow" at the Studio Museum Harlem through June 29.
New Kid on the Block
Following months of speculation and inconclusive utterances by parties involved in the deal, it has been announced that the country's leading gallery, Johannesburg’s Goodman Gallery has been sold, with Linda Givon relinquishing her financial interest in the space she founded four decades ago to Liza Essers, an independent dealer who started out as a management consultant.
Neither Givon nor Essers was willing to disclose the final transaction amount, which remains the subject of intense speculation and public interest. The deal was made public in an email circulated on June 5, and the gallery’s artists were invited to an intimate celebration at its Johannesburg premises on June 12.
The sale was finalized during a busy period for the gallery, whose artists include William Kentridge, photographer Mikhael Subotzky, and mixed-media artist Moshekwa Langa. Kentridge, accompanied by Essers, is currently in Australia, where he is participating in the Sydney Biennale, while Langa’s work is currently on view at Harlem’s Studio Museum, where it forms part of an ambitious pan-African showcase titled “Flow.” Subotzky, still in his mid-20s and one of the Goodman’s youngest artists, is preparing for his appearance this fall in MoMA’s annual "New Photography" display.
In an interview with ARTINFO, Subotzky expressed his satisfaction with deal, also commenting favorably on Essers’s youthful drive. Still in her mid-30s, Essers has achieved much since returning from studying art in Florence in 2003 to pursue a career as an independent art adviser and dealer. In addition to becoming increasingly visible in the art world, she also claimed co-executive producer credits on the film Tsotsi (2005), which became the first African film to win an Academy Award, in the category Best Foreign Language Picture, in 2006.
Echoing Subotzky’s enthusiastic reception of Essers, Givon, whose decision to sell was sparked by a health incident in 2007, stated: “Liza reminds me of myself at that age, and I feel very confident about handing over to her.”
Another Vacancy for Top Post
Health reasons have also emerged as the reason Clive Kellner, director of the Johannesburg Art Gallery (JAG), a leading public museum which last year hosted the only stop in Africa of the touring group exhibition “Africa Remix,” has opted to step down.
ARTINFO has confirmed that Kellner, who came to prominence as a curator and critic in the mid-1990s and took over JAG in 2004, will not renew his contract when it lapses at the end of this year, though Kellner was not available for comment on the matter.
Kellner’s decision to move on will not come as a surprise to many. “Kellner has worked miracles at JAG, but each miracle has been hard won, which is not the way it should be, and is not sustainable,” dealer Michael Stevenson presciently stated in the latest issue of Art South Africa magazine (which I edit).
Despite holdings that include important Impressionist masterpieces and significant works by such artists as Francis Bacon and Marcel Duchamp, the museum is beleaguered by a lack of funds.
“We have no budget,” Kellner told ARTINFO last month. “I have R54,000 ($6,750) a year for exhibitions, and R4,000 ($500) for advertising. What can you do with that kind of money?”
Amplifying the problem is an adverse South African tax regime that does not encourage wealthy patrons or trustees to step in and take up the slack, not to mention the museum’s unfavorable location alongside a busy and notoriously crime-ridden transport hub.
It has been suggested that Kellner will likely occupy some of his new free time by advising the art collector Gordon Schachat, whose collection includes significant holdings of work by Robin Rhode. Kellner was seen chaperoning the reclusive collector through the Joburg Art Fair earlier this year, in March.
SYDNEY—A 1954 painting by Pablo Picasso sold for A$6.9 million (U.S. $6.1 million) on Wednesday at an auction in Sydney, breaking Australia's previous record of A$3.48 milion, paid last year for a work by Brett Whitely, reports Reuters.
The sitter of the brightly-colored abstract portrait Sylvette painting is Sylvette David, who was Picasso's muse in the early 50s. She began sitting for him at age 17, and is featured in more than 40 pieces. Her tall frame and long, blond ponytail fascinated the late Spanish cubist painter. David later became a successful artist, painting under the name Lydia Corbett.
Rodney Menzies, chairman of Menzies Art Brands, bought the Picasso two years ago for $4,608,000. It received strong interest from collectors in Asia and Europe.
"Sydney is the New York of the art market in the southern hemisphere," said Marie Geissler, spokeswoman for Deutscher-Menzies Galleries. She added that the sale proved Australian galleries could sell works internationally.
Australia has been experiencing a boom in art sales, owing to the recent wealth of collectors involved in the country's China-driven mining boom.
