you are paying for them. When you are starting
out, get the opinions of experienced people
about the pieces you’ve bought. It will become
clear which dealers are selling you good pieces
at the right prices. Asking for the opinions
of others is one thing, but I’m not suggesting
you depend on somebody to tell
you what to buy. We all need to
depend on each other, but the
feeling of what you should buy has to come
from within you.
J. D.: You usually travel to Chad once a year.
In what ways are you still involved in your
country of origin?
C. C.: I have a large family in Chad: thirtyeight
164
siblings and more than three hundred
cousins, nieces, and nephews. And everyone
is in Chad; I’m the only one in my family
who has left my village. But the blessing of
having a large family comes with a lot of
responsibilities. I like to go back and see my
family and I’m also very involved in building
the community over there. I started a school
in 1993 and it’s really doing well. For the fi rst
time a graduate from the school recently went
on to become a lawyer.
It’s very challenging because I don’t have the
resources to both help my village as much as I’d
like to and to buy art, which is my passion. It’s
a delicate dance. I like to do both things with
the idea that someday my collection can be
used for larger causes in Chad.
I mentioned that I received an education in
a Jesuit school. That meant that I was taken
hundreds of miles from my parents to live in and
attend the school. I don’t think this is the right
thing for a child in the twenty-fi rst century to
have to experience. The students should have
good schools in their own communities. So I go
back every year and do what I can to help the
schools in my country. The villages still have no
running water, no electricity, and lots of malaria.
In the past I’ve provided resources to help
address these issues, but now I’m just focused
on education in Chad, though I do still get calls
when someone in my village is sick or needs help.
As I said, one day I’d like to have my
collection in a museum in Chad. There is
nothing like this there now. We don’t even
teach art in the schools. When I go there, I
discuss with my friends how we can realize this.
We’re still working on it.
great collector without living with and getting
to know fakes. You shouldn’t be discouraged
when you realize you’ve bought a fake. It’s part
of the learning curve. Eventually you’ll get it
right and will begin building a fi ne collection.
This is what happened to me.
You have to develop relationships with
people in the tribal art community. But don’t
develop a relationship with just one dealer.
You should open your eyes and your mind
and listen to other people. Having a close
relationship with a reputable dealer that you
trust can be the key. But you should research
the pieces that you are buying and the prices
FIG. 10 (below):
Male antelope dance crest,
chi wara.
Bamana, Mali.
Wood, fi ber, resin.
Ex Dimondstein Tribal Arts, Los
Angeles.
Photo: Marco Leonardo.
TRIBAL PEOPLE
FIG. 11 (right):
Hide mask.
Lega, DR Congo. 19th or
early 20th century.
African elephant (Loxodonta
africana) hide, domestic chicken
(Gallus gallus) feathers. H: 25.4 cm.
Collected in situ by Nicolas de Kun
between 1948–1960.
Ex Julius and Josefa Carlebach, New
York (1963); Zafrira and Itzhak
Shoher; Sotheby’s, New York, 2012.
Photo courtesy of Sotheby’s.