Artists

From Albert Adams to Portia Zvavahera, Strauss & Co maintains a detailed database of every artist sold at auction since 2009. Whether it is painting, sculpture, works on paper, photography, ceramics or new media, this searchable database lists by artist every lot offered and provides aggregated data useful to collectors. Famous South African artists like William Kentridge, JH Pierneef, Alexis Preller and Irma Stern are introduced with helpful biographies along with the best contemporary artists.



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Irma Stern

South African 1894-1966 


After studying in Germany in the 1910s, Irma Stern returned to South Africa and pioneered the acceptance of German expressionism in the country. Initially derided for her innovative style, she gained widespread recognition after the Empire Exhibition of 1936. She excelled in the genres of portraiture and still life, but worked diversely. A prolific artist, she travelled extensively throughout Africa to research and paint. Her golden period is bookended by her visits to Zanzibar (in 1939 and again in 1945). She published two travelogues, Congo (1945) and Zanzibar (1948). In the 1950s she gained international recognition, representing South Africa in four editions of the Venice Biennale. Highly decorated throughout her career, in 1961 she received the Guggenheim Award. Since her death, Stern has been the subject of many books and exhibitions. They include three new monographs in the 2020s alone, as well as exhibitions devoted to her nudes (Irma Stern Museum, 2021) and Zanzibar period (Norval Foundation, 2021). Her international stature has grown since the Qatar Museums Authority purchased Arab Priest (1945) in 2011. In 2024, her work appeared in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale, and in 2025 the Brücke Museum is presenting the first museum survey of Stern’s work in Berlin, the city of her youth.

Irma Stern: A Modern Artist between Berlin and Cape Town


578 lots offered      87.20% sold      ZAR 727 687 159
 

  Including Premium and VAT Results include Buyer's Premium and VAT
Irma Stern; Three African Women
17 May 2021
ZAR 4 000 000 - 5 000 000
 
Irma Stern; Roses in a Chinese Jar
11 Apr 2021
Sold for ZAR 2 000 000
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Irma Stern; Madeira
11 Apr 2021
Sold for ZAR 102 420
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Irma Stern; Three Men Under Trees
11 Apr 2021
Sold for ZAR 284 500
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Irma Stern; Seated Zanzibar Woman
11 Apr 2021
ZAR 350 000 - 500 000
 
Irma Stern; Christmas Card
23 Nov 2020
Sold for ZAR 32 830
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Irma Stern; Harvesters
8 Nov 2020
Sold for ZAR 216 220
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Irma Stern; Four Women
8 Nov 2020
Sold for ZAR 284 500
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Irma Stern; Still Life with Basket of Flowers
8 Nov 2020
Sold for ZAR 3 983 000
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Irma Stern; Still Life of Dahlias in a Vase with a Basket of Apples
8 Nov 2020
Sold for ZAR 3 983 000
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Irma Stern; Still Life of Hydrangeas in a Jar with Mangoes
8 Nov 2020
Sold for ZAR 2 731 200
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
Irma Stern; Swazi Woman
8 Nov 2020
Sold for ZAR 2 845 000
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT

Results in green indicate post sales.