BOLD AFRICAN VOICES

STRAUSS & CO LAUNCHES ART MARKET INNOVATION IN CAPE TOWN

WORDS JAMES SEY yourluxury.africa

STRAUSS & CO IS LAUNCHING AN AMBITIOUS AND INNOVATIVE NEW EXPANSION PROGRAMME in Cape Town, timed to coincide with this year’s flagship Investec Cape Town Art Fair. Focused on the company’s plans to have a cross-continental presence in its key markets, it is opening a new ‘artistic office and exhibition space’ in Brickfield Canvas, the creative hub and technology campus located in Woodstock, Cape Town.

The inaugural exhibition programme is an innovative move from the company. The public exhibition showcases works of art offered in a new auction format, titled Curatorial Voices: Modern and Contemporary Art from Africa, and will take place on 28 February 2023. This Pan-African auction will feature collectable art by renowned modernist and contemporary artists. Curated by Strauss’ Kate Fellens and Kirsty Colledge, with additional works by five leading female curators from important art centres across Africa, namely the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Kenya, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Some of the highlights include works by Pierre-Christophe Gam, Cyrus Kabiru, Zanele Muholi, Simphiwe Ndzube, Thierry Oussou, Athi-Patra Ruga, Cinga Samson and Tafadzwa Tega.

Some curators include Egyptian Heba Elkayal, who specialises in modern and contemporary Middle Eastern art and Dana Endundo Ferreira, founder and CEO of Pavilion54, a one-stop digital platform and community around modern and contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora. Danda Jaroljmek, director of Circle Art Agency in Nairobi, joins the list, as does Valerie Kabov of First Floor Gallery Harare in Zimbabwe, a curator who has been actively engaged in pan-African art initiatives. The final curator in this stellar line-up is South African Kimberley Cunningham, who recently launched Cunningham Contemporary, an alternative gallery and curatorial space focused on art from Africa and the diaspora. She is now head curator for the Singita Art Gallery and residency programme, and will launch Women in Art Africa, a networking and support platform for women in the sector, in 2023.

“Curatorial Voices: Modern and Contemporary Art from Africa is a celebration of African achievement,” says Bina Genovese, managing executive at Strauss & Co, another authoritative female art professional who also acts as the auctioneer for the sale. “The auction will present works by renowned African artists to the public at a time when Cape Town, a global art capital, is the centre of attention.”

The Curatorial Voices: Modern and Contemporary Art from Africa exhibition will take place from 13 to 28 February at 35 Brickfield Road, Woodstock, Cape Town. ■

PERSONALISATION IS THE NAME OF THE GAME when it comes to adding that exclusive touch, and no one does this better than the automobile industry. We look at three leading luxury brands that offer their customers some of the best customisation options.

ROLLS-ROYCE BESPOKE

Rolls-Royce doesn’t consider itself a carmaker, but rather identifies as a ‘house of luxury’. So, when it comes to the personalisation of a motor vehicle, the Goodwood automaker is understandably at the top of its game. Each car from the marque is a canvas that clients can use to showcase their personality in the most unique ways. If more than a whopping 40 000 paint shades to choose from aren’t enough, the Bespoke division will emulate the sunlight that hits your part of the globe to show you exactly how the hues will look in your city. You can also get anything from your family crest to a specific flower from your garden embroidered onto the leather upholstery and the umbrella hidden within the door, or commission a work of art onto the car’s dashboard. For those looking for even more exclusivity, there is Coachbuild which will let you build your one-off car from the ground up, just like the 2021 Rolls-Royce Boat Tail.