TEFAF 2018: pleasing sales for Tribal Art

Maastricht, 23 March 2018

From 10 to 18 March 2018, the 31st edition of TEFAF Maastricht, the international fair for fine art and antiquities, kept its promises for tribal art.

The fair, presenting 275 exhibitors this year, is one of the year’s biggest art events, and covers over 7,000 years of art history.

TEFAF Tribal – the latest section to be launched by the event’s organisers – was a great success, both among the public, and commercially, namely thanks to the presence of prestigious brands like Anthony Meyer (Paris) and Donald Ellis (New York).

Among the pleasing sales notched up, we can single out the wooden bowl in the form of a bird (c.1800), which went for 285,000 euros (Donald Ellis Gallery), or the fragment from a monumental bronze statue which found a new owner at 250,000 euros (Merrin Gallery).

“This new edition of TEFAF lived up to my expectations in a very positive way,” comments dealer Anthony Meyer. “I met enthusiastic new clients and touched base with a few old buyers. It seems to me that TEFAF’s tribal section has reached maturity today with a group of 8 dealers offering works from all over the world.”

Meanwhile, Bernard Dulon (Galerie Dulon) reports being “particularly satisfied with this edition”. He goes on to say: “We had excellent exchanges with new collectors and our results improved in comparison with those in 2017. Our leading objects this year, including a neck-rest and a Lega ivory head (formerly in the Charles Ratton collection), have joined private collections.”

Ivory Lega Head (Ex Charles Ratton collection)