Strauss & co - 2019 Mid-year Review

Strauss & Co’s 107-lot contemporary art sale, held in Cape Town in February, established 23 world records and six national records. Athi-Patra Ruga’s The Night of the Long Knives I , a vibrant colour photograph of a balloon-clad figure astride a zebra, became the first photograph to ever surpass the R1- million mark at auction in South Africa and eventually sold for R1 707 000. Presented in a beautifully appointed quayside venue at the V&A Waterfront, this boutique sale grossed R12 million Athi-Patra Ruga The Night of the Long Knives I Sold R1 707 000 World record for the artist Painting and photography dominate contemporary sale (R12 028 660), which is consistent with last year’s result (R133 873 748). The second iteration of the contemporary sale witnessed a noticeable uptick in interest in photography, with photographs by Jane Alexander, David Goldblatt, Zanele Muholi, Mary Sibande and Wolfgang Tillmans also performing well. “The broad interest in photography at our second contemporary art sale was really encouraging and marks an important consolidation,” said Matthew Partridge, Strauss & Co Contemporary Art specialist, after the sale. Strauss & Co established a world record for painter Mustafa Maluka when it sold his 2008 portrait titled You Say the Things You Think You Have to Say for R477 960. Other young painters who performed well at the contemporary sale included Zander Blom, Mia Chaplin, Georgina Gratrix, Alexandra Karakashian, Banele Khoza, Simphiwe Ndzube and Pierre Vermeulen. 25