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Seminal Michael Nelson Jagamara work goes to auction at Sotheby's London

Michael Nelson Jagamara's seminal work, Five Stories, an iconic poster image for Australian Aboriginal Art in the 1980s, is a highlight of next week's Sotheby's London auction, in their second London sale solely curated of Aboriginal Art. Accompanied by works of other revered Aboriginal artists such as Emily Kngwarreye and Tracey Moffat, the auction is one not to be missed.

 

Five Stories, painted in 1984, due to its extensive publication and exhibition, could be said to be one of the most significant and recognisable pieces of Aboriginal Art. Most importantly, the work featured on the cover of the exhibition catalogue for South Australia Museum's Dreamings: The Art of Aboriginal Australia exhibition, which pushed open the door for the conversation of where Australian Aboriginal Art fits into both contemporary collections and the fluid nature of the contemporary art market internationally. Further, Five Stories is the famous work in which Imants Tillers appropriated for The Nine Shots 1986, now in the National Gallery of Australia's collection. The work is estimated to reach AUD$300,00* at auction, perhaps more.

 

Due to significant nature of this auction, we will be hosting a 'performance signing' at the gallery on WEDNESDAY 21st SEPTEMBER at 1PM, with Michael Nelson flying over from Papunya to sign high quality, limited-edition prints of this iconic image. Whilst philosophical about the Aboriginal Art market fluctuations, and the fact that he will receive nothing from this major sale, Jagamara remains upbeat and excited by the event, as well as the prospect of enthusiasts and supporters being able to collect a piece of this history through the hand-signed prints.

 

The prints will be 100x132cm, and an edition of 20 hand-signed prints (archival ink on 300gsm Hahnemuehle rag paper).

 

Please see link HERE for a summary of next week's auction and the highlights that will be present, and also link HERE to the work on the Sotheby's London website, with catalogue note by Wally Caruna, ex-curator of Aboriginal Art at the National Gallery of Australia during the 1980s and 1990s.

 

 

*Sotheby's, 2016, Michael Nelson Jagamara Five Stories, http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2016/aboriginal-art-l1632..., accessed 19/09/16.