FORUM
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The Forum is an opportunity for readers to interact with the magazine on the major issues confronting the tribal arts community. To participate in an ongoing discussion of these and other topics, go to the Letters section.
The Editorial of our Winter 1998 issue.
Observers of the tribal art market over the past few decades have long been predicting that great leap forward, that long-awaited surge in awareness and in prices, which happens from time to time when art and commerce meet. Any number of events have taken place that were predicted to serve as a catalyst and propel the market in this manner. Among them have been the opening of the Rockefeller wing at the Met, the launching of the Center for African Art in New York, and the Royal Academy blockbuster show Africa: The Art of a Continent in London and New York. Each of these did indeed make a splash but their long-term effects have been a gradual upward incline rather than a sharp leap into new realms.
President Chirac's decision not only to put African art in the Louvre, but to construct an entirely new Musee des Arts et Civilizations on some prime real estate in Paris, is the latest validation of our esoteric interests. At the same time, though not necessarily the result of a simple cause and effect relationship, forces are clearly animating the market for tribal art. A prominent indicator of this activity was the recent auction in New York at which two pieces sold for more than one million dollars each. Major works of tribal art have changed hands privately at this level, and even at public auction higher prices have been occasionally reached, but this high-profile transaction and the publicity it generated was a milestone event that will surely be felt in the pulse of the market.
At a time when collectors and dealers are bemoaning the dwindling supply of works of high quality, an occurrence such as this can serve as a lure to bring important works to the marketplace. There are of course many reasons for outstanding objects to be offered for sale, but aside from death and taxes, one of the most compelling motivations is the seller's belief that somewhere out there is a buyer who is willing to pay a substantial amount for a particular piece which at that moment belongs to the seller.
Despite its upward movement in recent years, the market for tribal art remains relatively small, and the success of a given auction or exhibition can depend on the state of mind of a mere handful of potential buyers, and not necessarily persons of vast means. A sense of momentum can be generated when as few as two individuals decide to pursue the same object with energy and persistence. A salesroom can become animated in an instant if would-be buyers are moved by a genuine determination to acquire a particular piece. Even at a major art fair, a prompt decision by a knowledgeable collector can set the pace for a level of activity that might not otherwise occur.
What this means in the end is that any collector or dealer or other interested individual who chooses to do so can take the initiative and influence the course of events. Eager buyers bring about eager sellers, and vice-versa, and their actions can send ripples that flow through the market as a whole. Individuals who act on their interests have a more active influence than they probably realize in fueling the market, and in creating an environment in which a broad array of the art objects that they appreciate so passionately are more readily accessible.
-Jonathan Fogel