4th Mar, 2021 19:00
Modern & Contemporary Art
74
Gerard Sekoto (South Africa 1913-1993)
Sophiatown
watercolour and pencil on paper
Signature details: signed bottom left
Literature: Lindop, B. (1988). Gerard Sekoto. Johannesburg: Dictum Publishing, illustrated in colour on p.85.
Sold for R273,810
Estimated at R150,000 - R250,000
watercolour and pencil on paper
Signature details: signed bottom left
Literature: Lindop, B. (1988). Gerard Sekoto. Johannesburg: Dictum Publishing, illustrated in colour on p.85.
(1)
23.5 x 34 cm; Framed size: 60 x 71 x 2 cm
The Silberberg Collection, Johannesburg.
Notes:
The Silberberg collection of paintings of Johannesburg was first exhibited in 1956 to mark the 70th anniversary of the City of Gold. This unique collection of rare early paintings and Africana was developed by Johannesburg art and antique dealer, Dr H. K. Silberberg, and gifted to his son, Roger, to mark his birth in that city. As a youngster, the 11-year-old schoolboy was clearly delighted when Councillor H. Miller, ex-Mayor of Johannesburg, agreed to open the exhibition. Highlights from the collection include a rare early watercolour of Sophiatown by Gerard Sekoto, two oil paintings by Pieter Wenning, William Timlin’s exquisite vision of the old Colosseum Theatre by night and a rare early painting by German-born, Hanns Ludwig Katz who, after an early stint in the atelier of Henri Matisse, emigrated to South Africa in 1936. These are amongst many paintings, drawings and etchings that bring the city of Johannesburg, and the surrounding mineral-rich hills of the Witwatersrand, vividly to life, providing insights into its history and development as the megalopolis of commerce and culture that it is today. This rare, early watercolour provides unique insights into Gerard Sekoto’s vision of Sophiatown. By 1938 Sekoto had left rural Botshabelo and settled in thriving Sophiatown, the legendary black cultural hub of Johannesburg, made famous in literature and music by the likes of Miriam Makeba, the so-called African songbird. By the 1950s, Sophiatown was no more—homes had been torn down and communities dispersed. It is this place and this time that Sekoto brings to life in his early paintings of Sophiatown. With bright gem-like colours, the artist captures the spirit of the place evoking the lives lived there. Barbara Lindop, renowned author of several Sekoto books and friend of the artist, describes the ‘humanity of his pre-exile paintings: his lack of sentimentality, his commitment to truth, a poignant realism and an acute awareness of the heroism revealed in ordinary human life’.1
Emma Bedford
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: Modern & Contemporary Art, 4th Mar, 2021
Aspire Art Auctions’ Cape Town sale proved that the market for African and international art continues to thrive despite the pandemic.
The top lot by value was Irma Stern’s Dahlias and fruit, one of the most outstanding paintings from her late period, which achieved an impressive R5,234,800. Marlene Dumas scored a sensational hit when her early painting, Score, sold for R3,414,000, and stellar results were also achieved for celebrated artists; William Kentridge, George Pemba, Gerard Sekoto and Peter Clarke, amongst others, with world records at auction set for contemporary artists Turiya Magadlela and Gerhard Marx.
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.