Modern, Post-War and Contemporary Art, Decorative Arts and Jewellery

Live Auction, 7 October 2019

Modern, Post-War and Contemporary Art

Sold for

ZAR 91 040
Lot 628
  • Ephraim Ngatane; Composition with Figures and Houses


Lot Estimate
ZAR 80 000 - 120 000
Selling Price
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
ZAR 91 040

About this Item

South African 1938-1971
Composition with Figures and Houses

signed and dated '69

oil on board
60 by 75cm excluding frame

Notes

“Ngatane painted township life in all its forms, from its overcrowding living conditions to social entertainment, sports and memorable events. Stylistically, his masterful command of the watercolour medium displays a painterly sense of abstraction which distinguished his work from the descriptive styles of most other so-called township artists (see lot 576). Although Ngatane experimented with different techniques, he only started working predominantly in oils in the mid-1960s. Many of his later oil paintings were composed in a much more abstracted style, where his subject matter became fragmented, often to the point where it disintegrated into purely abstracted shapes and colours, forming its own rhythmic balance.”

Michael Stevenson and Joost Bosland (2008) ‘Take your road and travel along’: The advent of the modern black painter in Africa, Cape Town: Michael Stevenson, Michael Graham-Steward & Johans Borman. Page 128.

View all Ephraim Ngatane lots for sale in this auction


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