ABOVE RIGHT: Headrest. Tsonga, South Africa. Claude-Henri Pirat Collection. LEFT: Seated figure. Dogon, Mali. Claude-Henri Pirat Collection. FAR LEFT: Caryatid stool. Hemba, DR Congo. Early 20th century. Wood. H: 36.5 cm. Photo: Scott McCue. © Kellim H. Brown. LEFT: Bell, dibu. Kongo, DR Congo. Ex Jacques and Denise Schwob, Brussels. Photo: Philippe de Formanoir–Paso Doble © Roger Bourahimou. BOOKS Alain Lecomte is preparing a book on Congolese Bateke fetishes, which will be published this coming September. In the interest of making the work as comprehensive as possible, he is inviting anyone who might possess documentation or photographs to contribute to contact him by email at lecomte.afrique@wanadoo.fr or by mail at Galerie Alain Lecomte, 21 Rue Guénégaud, 75006 Paris. Claude Henri-Pirat, who has been a collector since the 1980s and has written extensively on Afrcian art (including in the pages of this magazine), is working on what promises to be an interesting book. Following a preface by Anne-Marie Bouttiaux and François Neyt, he will use his own field experiences in Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Mali, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and remote parts of Cameroon and Tanzania as a starting point to express his vision of African art and its evolution over the last twenty-five years. Sensitive but important subjects such as the notion of fakes, age and expertise, the development of auctions, and progress in French archaeology will be approached from a personal perspective that will include experience-based reflections on Africa and its material culture. The book will feature copious illustrations of works in Pirat’s collection as well as in situ photographs taken by him in the course of his travels. It is due to be published in late June under the title Du Fleuve Niger au Fleuve Congo. Une Aventure Africaine (From the Niger River to the Congo River. An African Adventure). LEFT: Young Samburu girl, Kenya. BELOW: Young Lobi initiate, Burkina Faso. Photos: Claude-Henri Pirat. ART in motion Africa is the title of the show that will be seen at Joëlle Fiess and Marc Félix’s Congo Gallery. Finally, Ángel Martín will feature a group of forty terracotta pieces from the Galma River region of Nigeria that were created nearly 2,000 years ago. A number of additional activities reflecting changes that have been initiated by the fair’s managing committee will further animate this year’s BRUNEAF. The most important among these is undoubtedly Masterpieces: New Guinea Art from the Musée Royal de l’Afrique Centrale, which will be on view at the Ancienne Nonciature until June 15 (see the in-depth article about this show in these pages). A series of lectures by eminent specialists is also on the docket. A complete list of events can be found on the fair’s website at www.bruneaf.com.
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