Guy Laliberté sells his collection of African art | The Press

The founder of Lune rouge and co-founder of Cirque du Soleil, Guy Laliberté, has decided to part with his collection of African art. About sixty of his works will be sold at Christie’s New York on May 11. A sale that will take place in full effervescence of the New York art world.

Eric Clement
The Press

Parting with works acquired over a quarter of a century is a step that the collector always takes with emotion. But Guy Laliberté got used to the idea of ​​parting with a large part of his African works. “I had the pleasure of enjoying them,” he explains by email. They accompanied me in part of my adventure. Life is constantly changing and I live very well with the changes in my environment. »

Its African collection has been developed for 26 years under the supervision of curator Jacques Germain, a specialist in black African art. “Guy has always been attracted to Africa,” says Mr. Germain, who is preparing the sale with Christie’s. He always wanted old, classic and beautiful art objects. »

This collection is of international quality, with a wide variety of objects and cultures represented. Among the sculptures, seats, reliquaries and masks, many have affinities with circus art. These objects were carved to mark community events and not for commercial purposes. “Many traditional African manifestations reminded Guy of the circus world, such as dances or masked appearances,” says Jacques Germain.

Guy Laliberté will however retain a few works. “I am more emotionally attached to certain works that speak to me more than others, on a historical or emotional level in particular,” he writes. I’m a collector and that’s why I want to keep a balance in my corpus. »

Varied origin

The provenance of the works put up for auction is varied: Gabon, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Cameroon, Congo or even Madagascar. They have sometimes been exhibited in museums or been the subject of publications. While there is more and more talk of the restitution of African works looted by States with a colonial past, Jacques Germain specifies that these works – from the end of the 19^and and the beginning of the XX^and century – are “unassailable”.

The objects come from the most fruitful African stylistic centers of the time (ie regions recognized for the quality of African art). They all have a pedigree, having belonged to great collectors. “In Africa, there are no more such objects,” says Jacques Germain. To find them, I had to connect with an art market that was already proactive in Europe and the United States, especially the auction houses. »

Not all works are of the same value. The sale will be an “all public” event. The 60 lots are estimated between US$3,000 for the cheapest and US$600,000 for the most expensive. They will be exhibited in preview from April 30, with other works sold on May 11. The sale will take place in the midst of the effervescence of the art world in New York, with Frieze, the TEFAF fair (The European Fine Art Fair) and the opening, a few days earlier, of the Whitney Biennial.

“All art lovers, collectors, dealers will converge on New York,” says Jacques Germain. We know that Guy Laliberté is a contemporary art collector, so organizing this sale during this buzz is very good. In addition, Christie’s will put on sale in May the portrait of Marilyn Monroe by Andy Warhol, estimated at 200 million and which could become the most expensive work ever sold at auction. »

One foot in America

For Christie’s and its French director Guillaume Cerutti, the sale of the Laliberté collection is strategic. This will be the first auction on American soil organized by the art department of Africa and Oceania of Christie’s for more than 20 years. Because Paris is the hub of premier art auctions. “Tribal art is more and more coveted by painting collectors,” says Jacques Germain. They inspired great painters, such as Picasso. For a lover of cubist painting or surrealist objects, owning beautiful pieces of tribal art makes sense. »

Guy Laliberté has often lent his African works, notably to the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, in 2006 and 2008, for exhibitions sacred africa and Sacred Africa II. Could he have given his collection to a museum? The option was explored, says Mr. Germain, but discarded. “I have been collaborating with museums for years,” says Guy Laliberté. It’s not said that I won’t [un jour] donated part of my collection, but at the moment I am a collector and my collection is part of my family office’s investment portfolio. »

That said, offering a world-class collection requires complex logistics, adds Jacques Germain. “For the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, for example, it would have involved huge investments to create a space for this collection,” he says. It was getting complicated. He therefore decided to make it available to other collectors. But in such a historic sale, museums will be on the line to buy these works whose prices are very attractive. Buyers will come from all over the planet. Because art has become more than ever a precious asset. »