6th Mar, 2024 18:00
20th Century & Contemporary Art
5
George Lilanga (Tanzania 1934-2005)
Acha Hutani Naonibh Uniambie Kwezi (Stop talking to me tell me about it)
oil on canvas
Signature details: signed bottom right; inscribed with the title on the reverse
Sold for R46,900
Estimated at R40,000 - R60,000
oil on canvas
Signature details: signed bottom right; inscribed with the title on the reverse
(1)
100 x 100 cm; framed size: 105 x 105 x 3.5 cm
Provenance:
Private collection, Cape Town.
Stephan Welz and Company, Cape Town, 'Decorative & Fine Arts' 19 to 20 February 2013, lot 599.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
George Lilanga is celebrated as one of the most acclaimed modern Tanzanian artists, becoming a representative of the vividness of Swahili paintings.
His fantastical shetani creatures (spirits of East African mythology) and distinct caricatures of animals, village scenes and abstract shapes show aspects of the traditional spirit world whilst also conveying a social critique in a comical, subversive way.
COLLECTOR’S NOTE
- A prolific artist, the Hamburg Miwanga Collection produced a monograph of over 100 of George Lilanga’s vibrant artworks after his passing in 2005. That same year, SKIRA also published a book on the artist’s work which was edited by Enrico Mascelloni.
- In 2022, Lilanga’s work formed part of a major exhibition; Art, A Serious Game, at The Museum of African Contemporary Art Al Maaden (MACAAL) in Marrakech, Morocco.
- Important international solo exhibitions during his lifetime include Lilanga: From Here and Elsewhere at the François Mitterrand Cultural Center in Périgueux, France in 2003, at the Musée d'art Moderne et Contemporain (MAMCO) in Geneva, Switzerland in 2002 and George Lilanga: African Story at Franco Chancellor Contemporary Art Centre in Messina, Italy, in 1999.
- Notable group exhibitions are Why Africa? at Pinacoteca Agnelli in Turin, Italy in 2007; 100% Africa at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain in 2006; Arts of Africa, Grimaldi Forum in Monaco, France and African Art Now: Masterpieces from the Jean Pigozzi Collection at the Museum of Fine Art Houston, USA, both in 2005.
- Lilanga also featured in the major international touring exhibition Africa Remix. Contemporary Art of a Continent, curated by Simon Njami and Jean-Hubert Martin, first opened at the Museum Kunstpalast in Düsseldorf in 2004 and then shown at important institutions including the Hayward Gallery in London; Centre Pompidou in Paris and the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo amongst others.
COLLECTIONS:
The artist is represented in numerous local collections, notably, the Contemporary African Art Collection (CAAC) of Jean Pigozzi, Geneva and the Hamburg Mawingu Collection HMC, Germany.
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Auction: 20th Century & Contemporary Art, 6th Mar, 2024
HIGHLIGHTS
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