as p a r c o u r s des mondes b r u c e frank primitive art se m b l 20 14 a ge
assemblage b r u c e f r a n k primitive art
As an art dealer, the question I am asked most often is if I collect art myself. The answer to this is not as simple as it might seem. In a sense, all of the pieces I acquire form a temporary albeit somewhat unintentional collection of sorts that is constantly changing and evolving as objects are added or sold. However, I find the term collection problematic in this case. The objects that make up my inventory are more of an assemblage of pieces that share certain qualities than a collection in the sense of a thematic or focused group of artworks that a collector might bring together. ~ While my primary job is to obtain pieces with broad appeal that my clients would like to acquire, and while I try to keep my clients tastes in mind, I find I unconsciously gravitate toward objects that immediately attract my attention or with which I feel some sort of personal connection. When looking at a piece for the first time, I consider whether it is something that I would be pleased to enjoy at home if I can t find a buyer for it. Each piece that passes through my hands is unique and elicits some sort of reaction from me, and I have found that I can t effectively offer an object unless I find it stimulating in some way. I am particularly drawn to objects that exhibit some sort of figurative quality and this affects what pieces I ultimately acquire. There is an intrinsic familiarity in the representation of the human shape that allows us to see ourselves in an object. As a result, whether a powerful amulet or utilitarian object, the majority of objects I offer involve the human form in one way or another, and this also creates one of many shared characteristics that link many of my objects together. I don t always offer the objects I purchase to my collectors immediately. I am constantly forming concepts for future shows and exhibitions, and the pieces I acquire help bring these ideas to fruition. Sometimes I find an object particularly wonderful and compelling, and I want to spend some time with it before offering it to my clients. Whatever the case, rather than keeping objects I m not ready to offer hidden in a closet in my gallery, I bring them home so I can enjoy them. These pieces are what form my ever-changing personal collection. The group of objects that I m offering during Parcours des Mondes 2014 is entirely made up of works of art that I have had the pleasure of enjoying in my home. While mulling over a concept for a show, I looked around and realized that one was already assembled. These pieces now form Assemblage, a title that I selected not only because the word assemblage carries the same meaning in both French and English, but also because it suggests a group of things brought together without the specificity of collection to create what is a greater collective artwork unto itself. It also provides an opportunity to answer the question posed by so many of my clients. 14 ~ Bundu Mask
1 ~ Male Fetish Figure Yaka, DR Congo Early 20th century Height: 5 inches / 12.7 cm Wood, fiber Irwin Smiley Collection, New York City, by descent through family
2 ~ Male Amulet Figure Dayak, Borneo, Indonesia Early 20th century Height: 6½ inches / 16.5 cm Wood Collected in Borneo by Phillip Goldman, London, in the early 1960s P ub lish e d: The Divine Gifts: Dayak Sculpture from Kalimantan, Gallery 43, front cover
3 ~ Zoomorphic Amulet Figure Dayak, Borneo, Indonesia Early 20th century Height: 3 inches / 7.6 cm Wood Ten Houten, Netherlands; on extended loan to the Volkenkundig Museum Gerardus van der Leeuw, Groningen, Netherlands; returned to family heirs in the 1990s
4 ~ Fishing Amulet Melanau Dayak, Borneo, Indonesia Early 20th century Height: 3¼ inches / 8.3 cm Deer antler Private collection, acquired at auction in London in the early 1990s
5 ~ Flying Fox Amulet Murik Lakes, coastal Sepik River, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea 19th century Height: 7½ inches / 19.1 cm Wood Private European collection
6 ~ Betel Mortar Murik Lakes, coastal Sepik River, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea Early 20th century Height: 5 inches / 12.7 cm Wood, pigment Ben Tursch, Brussels
7 ~ Betel Mortar Murik Lakes, coastal Sepik River, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea Early 20th century Height: 6 inches / 15.2 cm Wood, fiber, pigment Nancy Ellison, New York City; acquired from J. J. Klejman Gallery, New York City, in the 1960s
8 ~ Betel Mortar Murik Lakes, coastal Sepik River, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea 19th century Height: 9 1 / 8 inches / 23.2 cm Wood, pigment Josef Herman Collection, London; John and Marcia Friede, Rye, New York P ub lish e d: New Guinea Art: Masterpieces of the Jolika Collection, fig. 51
9 ~ Spoon Lower Ramu River region, Madang Province, Papua New Guinea Early 20th century Height: 6¼ inches / 15.9 cm Coconut shell John and Marcia Friede, Rye, New York
10 ~ Banana Scraper Azera people, Markham Valley, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea Early 20th century Height: 6¾ inches / 17.1 cm Bone Joel Greene, San Francisco
11 ~ Comb Gogodala people, Fly River Delta, Gulf of Papua, Papua New Guinea 19th century Height: 11¼ inches / 28.6 cm Wood, pigment Collected by Frank Heald Sr. in Port Moresby in 1923; lent to the Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, 1926 (CMA inv. L759/15) and exhibited there until 1960, then returned to the Heald family
12 ~ Tattoo Stencil Dayak, Borneo, Indonesia Early 20th century Height: 10½ inches / 26.7 cm Wood Tilburg Mission Museum; Emile Deletaille, Brussels
13 ~ Heddle pulley Yoruba people, Nigeria 19th century Height: 8 inches / 20.3 cm Wood, metal Private New York City collection
14 ~ Bundu Mask Mende people, Liberia Early 20th century Height: 16½ inches / 41.9 cm Wood Michael Oliver Collection, New York City
Bundu Mask ~ 15 Mende people, Liberia Early 20th century Height: 17 inches / 43.2 cm Wood Irwin Smiley Collection, New York City, by descent through family
16 ~ Mask from a Headdress Sawos people, middle Sepik River, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea Early 20th century Height: 5¾ inches / 14.6 cm Fiber Loed and Mia van Bussel, Amsterdam; John and Marcia Friede, Rye, New York
17 ~ Baba Mask Abelam people, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea Early 20th century Height: 17 inches / 43.2 cm Fiber, pigment John and Marcia Friede, Rye, New York
18 ~ Stopper from Medicine Horn, Naga Morsarang Toba Batak, Sumatra, Indonesia Early 20th century Height: 10½ inches / 26.7 cm Wood Jose Manuel Ferrater Lambarri, Barcelona
19 ~ Ornament for a Sacred Flute Murik Lakes, coastal Sepik River, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea 19th century Height: 12¼ inches / 31.1 cm Wood, pigment, trade buttons Abbey Art Centre and Museum, New Barnet, UK; William Ohly (1883 1955), New Barnet, UK The National Museum of Denmark Photo by: Ulrich Kortmann
20 ~ Seated Ancestor Figure Leti, Indonesia 19th century Height: 5¼ inches / 13.3 cm Wood Collected by Jacobson in the second half of the 19th century; Dahlem Museum, Berlin; obtained through exchange by Emile Deletaille, Brussels
Seated Ancestor Figure ~ 21 Babar, Indonesia 19th century Height: 6½ inches / 16.5 cm Wood Private collection, Germany
22 ~ Ere Ibejis Yoruba people, Nigeria 19th century Heights: Female: 12 inches / 30.5 cm Male: 10½ inches / 26.7 cm Wood, metal Charles Mack, Boston (acquired in the 1970s), by descent through family Published: African Arts & Cultures, 1993, page 57
Male Deity Figure ~ 23 Igbo people, Nigeria 19th century Height: 31 inches / 78.7 cm Wood, fiber, pigments Allan Stone Collection, New York
24 ~ Male Figure, Kandimbong Murik Lakes, coastal Sepik River, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea 19th century Height: 18¾ inches / 47.6 cm Wood, fiber, pigment John and Marcia Friede, Rye, New York P ub lish e d: New Guinea Art: Masterpieces of the Jolika Collection, fig. 47
25 ~ Guardian Figure, Hampatong Dayak, Borneo, Indonesia 19th century Height: 33½ inches / 85.1 cm Wood Jean-Baptiste Sevette, Geneva
References ~ Avé, Jan and Victor T. King, Borneo: The People of the Weeping Forest, National Museum of Ethnology, Leiden, the Netherlands, 1986. Chanda, Jacqueline, African Arts & Cultures, Davis Publications, Inc., Worcester, MA, 1993. Friede, John; Greg Hodgins; and Philippe Peltier, New Guinea Art: Masterpieces of the Jolika Collection, 5 Continents Editions, Milan, 2005. Glaze, Anita and Alfred L. Scheinberg, Discoveries: African Art from the Smiley Collection, Krannert Art Museum, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne, 1989. Goldman, Philip, The Divine Gifts: Dayak Sculpture from Kalimantan, Gallery 43, London, 1975. Credits ~ This catalog accompanies an exhibition at the Parcours des Mondes, Paris, September 2014 Exhibition design by Edouard Vatinel Introductory essay by Emma Wingfield Edited by Jonathan Fogel Design by Suva Inc. suvadesign.com Photography by Oren E. Copy editing by Bob Christoph - typofinders.com Bruce Frank Primitive Art, 2014 Bruce Frank Primitive Art 208 West 83rd Street, New York, New York 10024 Gallery +1 212-579-3596 Mobile +1 917-733-9589 info@brucefrankprimitiveart.com www.brucefrankprimitiveart.com Also Available ~ Powerful Magic Miniature Sculptures from the Sepik River Region by Bruce Frank Primitive Art, 2013
208 West 83rd Street New York NY 10024 Gallery +1 212-579-3596 Mobile +1 917-733-9589 info@brucefrankprimitiveart.com www.brucefrankprimitiveart.com
Bruce Frank Primitive Art 208 West 83 Street ~ New York City BruceFrankPrimitiveArt.com