31st Oct, 2016 20:00
Historic, Modern & Contemporary Art
20
Irma Stern, South African 1894–1966
Congolese woman
gouache on paper
Artwork date: 1946
Signature details: signed and dated
Sold for R1,932,560
Estimated at R1,200,000 - R1,800,000
Condition Report
Paper time stained, good.
Please note, we are not qualified conservators and these reports give our opinion as to the general condition of the works. We advise that bidders view the lots in person to satisfy themselves with the condition of prospective purchases.
gouache on paper
Artwork date: 1946
Signature details: signed and dated
(1)
63.5 x 50.5 cm
Notes:
Irma Stern undertook ambitious journeys through the Congo in 1942 and in 1946, providing her with “enough material and stimulus for a flood of creative work that marked her maturity and the high point of her career” (Dubow 1974:18). Spending many months there gave her sufficient time to set up studio and get to know the locals as she describes in her book Congo:
A finely slit bamboo shutter rolls up and reveals the dazzlingly ornamented walls of my studio. The little verandah is filled with inquisitive people – women with soft brown bodies bringing me oranges and ‘coeur de boeuf’ – a green fruit covered with thorns (Stern 1943:5).
In Congolese Woman, Stern captures the encounter with such rapid and assured brushstrokes that we feel, in an almost tactile way, the very sensual delight she took in this beautiful woman arrayed in her exquisite attire, her head magnificently framed in a soft scarf and simple necklace that echoes the neckline of her boldly patterned dress.
Her costume reflects both social history and politics – her dress is made from pagne, a cut length of colourful wax print cotton fabric, originally copied from Indonesian designs and techniques and manufactured in Holland for trade back to Africa.
Large textile companies such as Vlisco established factories in the Congo to keep up with demand. Characterised by bright colours and batik-inspired designs, costly wax print became popular in the 20th century as the daily wear of married women of relative wealth and status. Women fashioned the fabrics into long skirts, typically worn with a corresponding headscarf and the pagne, or wrapper, could be either formal or informal, ranging from simply draped fabric to a fully tailored outfit.
The luminous beauty of this woman was captured during Irma’s happiest and most productive period when, free of the restrictive Cape colonial society, she could follow her heart to Central Africa. There, unaccompanied and focussed on her work, she embodied a degree of modernism and liberation far ahead of her time.
Congolese Woman is one of a significant body of works depicting Congolese figures and faces, of which many can be viewed in the permanent collections of museums such as Iziko South African National Gallery and the University of Cape Town’s Irma Stern Museum.
Emma Bedford
Sources
Dubow, N. (1974). Irma Stern. Cape Town: C Struik Publishers.
Stern, I. (1943) Congo. Pretoria: Van Schaik.
Grateful acknowledgement is made to Carol Kaufmann for information included in this essay.
You can place an absentee bid through our website - please sign in to your account on our website to proceed.
In the My Account tab you can also enter telephone bids, or email bids@aspireart.net to log telephone/absentee bids.
Join us on the day of the auction to follow and bid in real-time.
The auction will be live-streamed with an audio-visual feed.
Auction: Historic, Modern & Contemporary Art, 31st Oct, 2016
The line-up for our inaugural sale included an extraordinary selection of art. Works ranged from JH Pierneef’s breathtaking Karoo near Hofmeyer, painted in 1930, to Dan Halter’s 2006, ultraviolet light, Pefection.
Sculptures varied from Edoardo Villa’s acknowledgment of French artist, Aristide Maillol to Wim Botha’s heads that draw on classical and contemporary sources and Ed Young’s cheeky nude self-portrait. Also included were impressive photographs by award-winners, David Goldblatt and Pieter Hugo.
The auction set an impressive standard, with an outstanding sell-through rate of over 75% across 121 lots. The top lot of the sale was Alexis Preller’s exceptional Profile Figures (Mirrored Image), selling for over R7-million. Record sales were achieved for Villa, Goldblatt, and Hugo, amongst others.
Viewing
Friday 28 October 2016 | 10 am – 5 pm
Saturday 28 October 2016 | 10 am – 5 pm
Sunday 28 October 2016 | 10 am – 4 pm
HIGHLIGHTS
Currency conversions are based on the exchange rate at the auction's start time and date. Bidders should verify the current exchange rate on the day of the sale. All invoices and payments must be made in South African Rands.
IMPORTANT NOTICE:
Logistics
While we endeavour to assist our Clients as much as possible, we require artwork(s) to be delivered and/or collected from our premises by the Client. In instances where a Client is unable to deliver or collect artwork(s), Aspire staff is available to assist in this process by outsourcing the services to one of our preferred Service Providers. The cost for this will be for the Client’s account, with an additional Handling Fee of 15% charged on top of the Service Provider’s invoice.
Aspire Art provides inter-company transfer services for its Clients between Johannesburg and Cape Town branches. These are based on the size of the artwork(s), and charged as follows:
Small (≤60x90x10 cm): R480
Medium (≤90x120x15 cm): R960
Large (≤120x150x20 cm): R1,440
Over-size: Special quote
Should artwork(s) be collected or delivered to/from Clients by Aspire Art directly, the following charges will apply:
Collection/delivery ≤20km: R400
Collection/delivery 20km>R800≤50km
Collection/delivery >50km: Special quote
Packaging
A flat fee of R100 will be added to the invoice for packaging of unframed works on paper.
International Collectors Shipping Package
For collectors based outside South Africa who purchase regularly from Aspire Art’s auctions in South Africa, it does not make sense to ship artworks individually or per auction and pay shipping every time you buy another work. Consequently, we have developed a special collectors’ shipping package to assist in reducing shipping costs and the constant demands of logistics arrangements.
For buyers from outside South Africa, we will keep the artworks you have purchased in storage during the year and then ship all the works you have acquired during the year together, so the shipping costs are reduced. At the end of the annual period, we will source various quotes to get you the best price, and ship all your artworks to your desired address at once.
Aspire Art will arrange suitable storage during, and cost-effective shipping at the end, of the annual period.
Collections
Collections are by appointment, with 24-hours’ notice
Clients are requested to contact the relevant office and inform Aspire Art of which artwork(s) they would like to collect, and allow a 24-hour window for Aspire Art’s logistics department to retrieve the artwork(s) and prepare them for collection.
Handling Fee
Aspire Art charges a 15% Handling Fee on all Logistics, Framing, Restoration and Conservation arranged by Aspire.