About Christopher Till

Christopher Till began his career as Director of the National Gallery of Zimbabwe before serving as Director of the Johannesburg Art Gallery. During his tenure he was responsible for several groundbreaking exhibitions, including The Neglected Tradition: Towards a New History of South African Art, secured the Brenthurst Collection of African Art, and commissioned several major sculptures for the collection.As Director of Culture for the City of Johannesburg, he established the city’s first cultural office and directed the formation of arts and culture policy. He was responsible for establishing the Johannesburg Arts Alive International Festival in 1992, and the Johannesburg Biennales in 1995/1997 and the re-building of the Civic Theatre (now the Johannesburg Theatre). He was also a seminal role player in the establishment and development of the Newtown Cultural Precinct in the centre of the City.He was a founding board member of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) Fine Art Committee, Chairman of the Cape Town Triennial Organizing Committee, and an executive committee member of the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown , in which capacity he was responsible for the Fine Art component of the festival, and the Standard Bank Young Artist Award. He has served on many selection panels including the Sasol New Signatures Award, and the Valparaiso, São Paulo, Abidjan, Ivory Coast and Venice Biennales. He has served on numerous boards including the Market Theatre. He co- curated the South African Pavilion at the 2015 Venice Biennale. He was the founding Director of the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg and the Gold of Africa Museum in Cape Town, and has organized exhibitions on Nelson Mandela, Steve Biko, Oliver Tambo and the Women’s March among many others.He was the principal driver in the development of the Mandela Capture Site in Howick, KwaZulu-Natal and the commissioning of the landmark Sculpture there.He was the founding director of the Javett Art Gallery and Museum at the University of Pretoria opened in 2019. He is currently working on a proposal for a new centre where art meets science as part of the Jozie my Jozi initiative to rehabilitate downtown Johannesburg among other creative projects.

About Ian Hunter

Ian Hunter (b. 1969, East London) is an Art Specialist whose art practice ignited his passion and appreciation for the artists and artworks with which he comes into contact.  He brings his wide knowledge of history and art to his position as Senior Art Specialist at Strauss & Co.Ian studied Fine Art at the Durban Institute of Technology, majoring in printmaking and concluded his studies with a Higher Diploma (with distinction) at the Walter Sisulu University in 1993.He commenced his career in the art world with two years as Assistant Curator at the Ann Bryant National Gallery in East London. His career as an art specialist began in 2001, when he joined Stephan Welz & Co. Working alongside Stephan and Ann Palmer, he built his reputation as a knowledgeable South African art specialist through nine years’ experience, becoming Senior Painting Specialist. He played a significant role in the Kahn Sale in 2007, which set a new benchmark for South African art in terms of research, catalogue articles and values achieved. Ian has also acted as an independent art advisor and consultant, assisting private and corporate clients to build their collections by buying and selling wisely. He has assisted in valuations of some of the largest private and corporate art collections in South Africa.Ian joined the Strauss & Co Cape Town office in 2017. He has driven the Eastern Cape and International Art sales, which have become annual sale events. Now based in Knysna, Ian is the Regional Representative for the Garden Route and Eastern Cape from Mossel Bay to East London. Ian is a practising painter whose work explores the natural world, and a graphic artist, specialising in vibrant expressionistic screenprints.