ART in motion 30 by André Breton at the sale of Maurice de Vlaminck’s collection at the Hotel Drouot in May of 1937, was exhibited the same year at the opening of Galerie Gradiva, founded by Breton. A few months later, the work was one of three that the Surrealist champion sent to the Manès gallery in Prague, where it was acquired by Adolf Hoffmeister. For American Indian art, a raven rattle, probably Tlingit from the Pacifi c Northwest Coast, will likely draw the admiration of even the most demanding collectors. While auctions sell exceptional works, they can also transmit the emotions and sensibilities of individual collectors. Two universes, as personal and subtle as they are different, will be featured as subcollections in this sale. The fi rst is that of Liliane and Michel Durand- Dessert, from whose collection ten weathered works will be included. The fragmentary nature of these well represents their views of African art and refl ects their keen interest in Arte Povera. The second group has been labeled “Kongo Thought and Gesture.” It is comprised of twenty-four sculptures, some well known to the collecting community, selected from the collection of Daniel and Carmen Klein. The wealth of this corpus of works is expressed by the variety of gestures they display, as well as by their nuanced and subtle forms. This group alone constitutes a fi ne and representative homage to the creativity of this Central African region. SOTHEBY’S Paris—Sotheby’s will hold the last of the Paris summer sales on June 24, with an auction featuring a selection of objects consigned by “various collectors.” In keeping with the trend of its most recent sales, a relatively limited number of lots will be offered. Eighty objects were slated to be offered for sale at the time this issue went to press. All are of high quality and include several iconic artworks as well as others that are new to the market, many of which are likely to be of interest to collectors. The most remarkable African masterpiece in the sale is the famous “Vérité double mask,” fi rst seen in an article by F. H. Lem that appeared in the December 1950 issue of Tropique, Revue des Troupes Coloniales (#327), in which it received a full-page illustration accompanied by a description that explicitly mentioned its belonging to Pierre Vérité. Also from that collection is a Baule nda mask from Côte d’Ivoire, which is one of a group of three, the two others being at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Barbier-Mueller Museum in Geneva. A marvel of fi nesse and subtlety of line, the double mask reveals the importance of the notion of duality in Baule thought, as Alain Michel eloquently points out in his description in the auction catalog. The auction also includes other important objects, including the Attie mask from the Goldet Collection, the Guro mask by the Master of Bouafl é from the van Strien Family Collection, and the commemorative fi gure of Fon Tchatchouang (Batoufam Kingdom, Cameroon) from the René and Odette Delenne Collection. The highlight of the Oceanic objects that will be offered will be the famous New Ireland fi gure known as the “Gradiva Uli.” This imposing sculpture, acquired RIGHT: Figure, uli. Mandak region, New Ireland. To be offered by Sotheby’s, Paris, 24 June 2015. Est: 700,000–1,000,000 euros. BELOW: Mask. Attie, Côte d’Ivoire. To be offered by Sotheby’s, Paris, 24 June 2015. Est: 300,000–500,000 euros. RIGHT: Mask, nda. Baule, Côte d’Ivoire. To be offered by Sotheby’s, Paris, 24 June 2015. Est: 2,000,000–3,000,000 euros. All images relating to this sale: © Damien Perronnet/ ArtDigitalStudio/Sotheby’s. BELOW: Standing fi gure. Gangala style, Bembe, DR Congo. To be offered by Sotheby’s, Paris, 24 June 2015. Est: 100,000–150,000 euros. BELOW: Rattle. Tlingit, Alaska. To be offered by Sotheby’s, Paris, 24 June 2015. Est: 70,000–90,000 euros.
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