• ” Waiting Woman ” inspired by the State murder of Ken Saro Wiwa and general condition of the Niger Delta © Victor Ekpuk
• ” Waiting Woman ” inspired by the State murder of Ken Saro Wiwa and general condition of the Niger Delta © Victor Ekpuk
What used to happen before now were prices that could not be verified or referenced in the international .
The success of Arthouse auction , I think spurred the establishing of other auction houses in Lagos like Terra-kulture , and others .
It interesting to see that international houses like Bonham and Southerby has also joined in auction foray not just in contemporary Nigerian art but contemporary art from Africa as whole . I believe the Nigeria market is still the most vibrant in terms of high quality and diversity of creativity .
Artists Like El Anatsui and Ben Enwuonwu have now attained celebrity status and their works continue to do very well both in Nigerian and international auctions . I believe that Ben Enwuonwu , a brilliant African modernist whose work at some point was relegated to back burners of history owes its resurgence to rigorous scholarly monograph and Nigerian auction houses . Another older generation artist , Yusuf Grillo is now trending in the Nigeria auction floors . I hope that the investors continue to find value in their investment and keep the market growing .
Do you think this trend in auctioning contemporary art has led to a new form of an avant garde movement in contemporary art ?
You know , personally , don ’ t know that I can really say if the monetary value has affected the avant garde movement , but I could say that those artists who are restless in their imagination and always want to experiment have always experimented , regardless of whether they
16 invests . ng - MARCH / APRIL 2017 are making financial success at it or not . Some other artists who are comfortable in sticking to a formula that is successful at the market place are doing that as well . I can imagine that financial success at the auction might lead to a certain mindset .
So what will you say attracts the auctioneer ? What is that thing that now says to the auctioneer this is what I have seen ?
The Nigerian art market as I have observed it is a little bit strange in the sense that the collecting preference and price value for the artworks do not necessarily follow art history or whether the artist has been validated by their works in museum collections and featured in important international venues . For instance , I once observed on a Lagos auction floor where work of a mid career contemporary artist was auctioned about 600 % beyond the artist price point in the primary market . This was just a one-off performance that in no way translated to higher value of the artist ’ s work outside of that arena . It was like a blood bath between these two egos driven collectors . In that same evening , an Artist proof etching of a renowned printmaker and one of Nigeria ’ s premier artists , Solomon Wangboje could not get a bidder at $ 2500 . Most collectors did not know about him . My opinion is that auction houses should endeavor to spare a few more lines in their brochures to introduce the artists whose works are on the blocks within historical perspectives . This way , collectors can learn and decide what would make important investments . It would also provide important cultural and historical references that continue to add value to Nigerian art .