Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains the names people who have died.
Sotheby’s New York is hosting a major auction of Aboriginal art following a two-year hiatus, curated by the team at Tim Klingender Fine Art in acknowledgement of the late Australian art dealer Tim Klingender.
Klingender was known for playing a fundamental role in building an international market for Aboriginal art, establishing Sotheby’s Aboriginal Art Department in 1996 and consulting on numerous auctions. The first auction dedicated to Aboriginal art in the US was held by Sotheby’s in 2019, achieving a total US$2.8 million (AU$4.37 million).
Klingender died tragically in a boat accident in 2023, and this is the first Aboriginal art auction honouring his legacy to be held following his death.
Klingender’s final auction for Sotheby’s in New York, May 2023, broke the record for the highest grossing sale of Aboriginal art, as well as breaking artists’ records for 13 individual artists.
Highlights from the upcoming New York City auction on Tuesday 20 May (US time) include a suite of works by the late Emily Kam Kngwarray, the most significant of which – a two-metre tall painting from 1990 – has a high estimate of over AU$1 million. (US$500,000-700,000).
Straightening the Spears at Ilyingaungau (1990) by Turkey Tolson Tjupurrula (1942 – 2001), regarded as a work from the most influential series on the style of Pintupi painting; the late Johnny Warangkula Tjupurrula’s Water and Tucker (1972); and Bush Plum (2015) by Angelina Pwerle, now aged 86, are among the highest valued lots.
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The current auction record for an Aboriginal artwork is AU$2.4 million for Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri’s Warlugulong, purchased by the National Gallery of Australia from Sotheby’s in 2007.
Works by contemporary living Aboriginal artists including Richard Bell, Tracey Moffatt and Judy Watson are also included in the auction.
Works have been sourced from private collections across Australia, Europe and the United States.
The auction is slated for 20 May 4pm EDT at Sotheby’s New York; learn more.