Since 2016, the Artcurial house has been organizing its end-of-year sales on December 30 in Marrakech. “We are delighted to find in this wonderful place that is La Mamounia, our Moroccan and international collectors”, enthusiastic Olivier Berman, Artcurial Maroc director during the preparation of this event. This was counting without the Covid-19 pandemic and the curfew from 8 p.m. instituted just before the holidays, on December 23. Many tourists and clients of the famous palace, La Mamounia, have preferred to cancel their stay, especially since cafes and restaurants are closed. “The conditions are really exceptional, the curfew has limited the arrival of visitors, Moroccans and foreigners, and Marrakech, usually so abundant during this festive period, was much quieter. La Mamounia has not refueled. And the sales took place behind closed doors, ”explains Christophe Person, director of the contemporary African art department at Artcurial.
This year, the auction entitled “A Moroccan Winter” was divided into three parts, one dedicated to Majorelle and his contemporaries, the other to modern and contemporary Moroccan and international art and the last to contemporary African art. Many masterpieces were presented in the image of a Koranic school by Étienne Dinet, an iconic sculpture Flames by Mohamed Melehi, as well as great discoveries from the emerging contemporary African scene.
The results
“This sale was a great success totaling 34 million dirhams (3.17 million euros) including costs”, welcomes Artcurial. The conditions being much less favorable than last year, and taking into account the number of lots offered, much less important, this sale remains a great success. In 2019, it amounted to 41 million dirhams (3.8 million euros).
On the first two parts of the sale, the bids climbed well and often remained in the high part of the estimate range, as for Koranic School Étienne Dinet who went to 6.44 million dirhams (590,000 euros), but also for the works of Mohamed Melehi, leader of contemporary Moroccan art, recently disappeared, carried away by the Covid-19. Six of Jacques Majorelle’s seven canvases have found buyers, auctioned at the top of their estimate ranges. A portrait of a young woman by Moroccan photographer Hassan Hajjaj Malicious Look was sold for 80,500 dirhams (7,453 euros). On these first two chapters, the sale amounted to 28.1 million dirhams (2.6 million euros).
Contemporary African art, a prominent specialty
The contemporary African art part, which presented 75 lots, accumulated a turnover of 6.6 million dirhams (602,000 euros). “We had a lot less visitors during the 4 days of exhibition at La Mamounia and all the orders were placed by phone and Internet. Despite everything, the sale went well and we recorded good results, ”says Christophe Person. “The result of the sale doubled our low estimates and several lots were the subject of a bidding battle between collectors online and on phones from Morocco, Europe and Africa”, notes- he does.
Among the works that were the subject of very good auctions, Tropical Gardens, by Ugandan painter Joseph Ntensibe, went for 71,000 euros, more than twice its average estimate. For several years now, his dreamlike paintings, which immerse us in a tropical Garden of Eden, have been very popular with international collectors. A painting by another Ugandan artist, Arim Andrew, Back Again – 2020, auctioned at 30,000 euros, has tripled its estimate. The subject calls out. Two young women, smiling and carefree, one crossing a barbed wire fence in a bucolic and colorful setting, with a strong warning message: “Keep out”. A work by Kenyan Dickens Otieno, a metal tapestry made from a weaving of soda cans, soared to 45,000 euros, quadrupling its estimate. Finally, an acrylic on canvas by Cameroonian Abdias Ngateu far exceeded its high estimate of 5,500 euros, sold for 13,300 euros. Very colorful, the painting depicts a bush taxi, crumbling under the weight of luggage and figures with animal heads. In the photography category, it’s an iconic shot of a couple dancing in the night of Bamako, by Malick Sidibé, a large film format, Christmas night, signed and dated, which was acquired at 24,000 euros.
Synergies
Artcurial intends to highlight this theme of contemporary African art in the years to come. With this in mind, she recruited Christophe Person who has already, within the Piasa house, created and developed the African contemporary art department for nearly 5 years. “In Morocco, by relying on Orientalism, we are trying to create synergies with other specialties. Thus, the auction on contemporary African art was able to benefit from this synergy. Some people have signed up for two or three of the sales on offer and contemporary African art has thus been able to benefit from more traditional sales, ”explains Christophe Person. Of this sale, 61% of buyers came from Africa and Morocco and 39% from Europe. “The objective is to have a more sustained pace of sales on modern and contemporary African art,” he adds, noting the increased interest each year for the quality and originality of these artists who offer a vision renewed contemporary issues. ”
Artcurial in Morocco
In November 2019, Artcurial, very active in Morocco, chose to open a subsidiary in Marrakech, which allows customers to pay in dirhams. This clearly facilitates the task of Moroccan art lovers, since the dirham is a currency that cannot leave the country. “This year, 75% of buyers are Moroccan, which confirms the growing appetite for art in the kingdom,” says Olivier Berman, director of Artcurial Maroc.
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