Next February 14 in Cape Town, more than 10,000km from Paris, a sale held in partnership with fellow auction house Aspire will take place. Whilst this kind of partnership is common, "the originality of our approach is in the distance between our two entities - that's what makes the partnership strong," explained Christophe Person, Director of the contemporary African art department at PIASA.
"The South African market is one of the most dynamic on the continent, but until now collectors have been more focused on local artists, and less so on artists from other African countries. What's special about PIASA is that it offers a pan-African vision of contemporary creation."
Pioneering artists will be on offer for the occasion, and alongside South African artists like William Kentridge will be sales of artworks by artists already shown at PIASA: Chéri Samba, Chéri Chérin, Amani Bodo, Marc Padeu, Aboudia, Evans Mbugua, Ablade Glover, Salah Elmur, Zemba Luzamba, Michael Musyoka, Cristiano Mangovo...
The sector in which this alliance has been formed has its significance; as is the case for Street Art, contemporary African art auctions feature more works from the primary market than the majority of other contemporary sales. "Auctions are now providing a channel of visibility, chosen by its participants," noted Christophe Person.
