[MSN] Collecting African Art: People need to buy in confidence, but still need to stay alert for unscrupulous dealers, who even find ways to work hand in hand with Museums as the Heidelberg story from this month shows once again.

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Collecting African Art: People need to buy in confidence, but still need to
stay alert for unscrupulous dealers, who even find ways to work hand in hand
with Museums as the Heidelberg story from this month shows once again.

Van: David Norden [mailto:david at african-antiques.com] 
Verzonden: woensdag 28 februari 2007 23:33
Aan: museum-security at museum-security.org
Onderwerp: {Spam?} [african-antiques.com] Newsletter March 2007

  African Antiques newsletter March 2007 
Dear museum-security at museum-security.org,

Spring is back and I have found some good news for you related to African
Art. More people are telling me everyday how much my research is invaluable
to them, and supports me, so I was able to do some traveling and discovered
some stunning new Museums and interesting news. 

Collecting African Art today is like a Samurai Sword cutting on both edges.
People need to buy in confidence, but still need to stay alert for
unscrupulous dealers, who even find ways to work hand in hand with Museums
as the Heidelberg story from this month shows once again.

The guarantee you buy a real African Antiquity from a seller in good
condition, with a correct description and provenance, has to be backed up
these days by the reputation of the seller. Since prices are getting up, you
as a customer expect to be sure about what is offered to you. But when a
Museum in Germany opens their exposition space to a dealer with a reputation
of selling only copies and fakes and this exposition is also published in a
beautifully bond book with very good photography, the collector is very
mislead. This happened for two consecutive years in Heidelberg, and it's a
shame, since this can strongly harm the confidence of the collectors, and is
a burden both for the honest dealers, but also for the Museums who lose
credit.

So I would say the director of this Museum should look for other work, such
as cultivating flower-bulbs, it is honest work and you also get dirty hands!
Bruneaf, Brussels: from June 6th to 17th 2007
The Bruneaf Fair in Brussels changed its rules and organization to attract
more customers. 

Major Parisian dealers like Bernard Dulon already confirmed participation.
Four experts have been named to check the quality of the pieces to be
published in the catalogue, but will also check the objects exhibited by the
participating galleries. Pieces will be vetted in a more independent way,
besides the two Bruneaf members Didier Claes and Marc Leo Felix two non
Bruneaf participating dealers/experts joined the team; Lucien van de Velde
from Antwerp-Belgium, and Henricus Simonis from Düsseldorf, Germany. 

But what will be done with the rejected pieces?? More news about the Bruneaf
and related events in the next edition.

There will be a not to be missed exhibition with one hundred eleven
masterpieces collected during their live time by Willy and Marthe Mestach,
during the Bruneaf events in Brussels.

Enjoy this month news,

David Norden
Want to support the newsletter? 

________________________________________
voelkerkunde museum heidelberg  Bad Museum of the month shows fakes and old
pieces mixed together 
The Heidelberg Museum in Germany has a new exhibition called "Kunst aus
Afrika". Last year they had also an exhibition about Gabun Art . It is
incredible to see that the Museum director Dr. Margareta Pavaloi is doing as
if here nose is bleeding, and that she doesn't know the pieces are recent
counterfeits of known African Art pieces. I called her last year about her
Gabon exhibition and she told me that she isn't the expert on African Art. I
told her she should take contact with the known experts in the field on
Gabonese art and even gave her a list of known experts.But this year she did
even worse: read more at
http://users.telenet.be/african-shop/voelkerkunde_museum_heidelberg.htm 
________________________________________
good museum of the month:
New Rietberg Museum opens
Glass pavilion: Entrance of the new museum
The new Emerald Rietberg Museum extension in Zurich Switzerland who opened
in February 2007 is splendid. With its high ceilings and three levels down
it give a daylight feeling. The use of glass, wood, and precious stones is
incredible. One level for the African Art, and two others for Asian, and
Oceanic. You will be able to see the Tschokwe they bought at he Vérite
auction in Paris.read
http://users.telenet.be/african-shop/new_rietberg_museum.htm  
________________________________________
 
I visited the new section of the Tropenmuseum Amsterdam, and was quite
impressed by the presentation. More fine African Art on view, mixed with
explanation on the daily life in Africa. Surprising and astonishing.
read http://users.telenet.be/african-shop/tropenmuseum_amsterdam.htm 
Treasures from the far-off shores of the Guinea Coast and other parts of
Africa have recently washed up at the Yale University Art Gallery.