The Norval Sovereign African Art Prize 2023 Benefit Auction | Hosted by Sotheby’s

The Norval Sovereign African Art Prize 2023 Benefit Auction | Hosted by Sotheby’s

View full screen - View 1 of Lot 23. High Neck.

Serge Attukwei Clottey

High Neck

No Reserves

Lot Closed

January 31, 05:25 PM GMT

Estimate

20,000 - 30,000 USD

Lot Details

Description

Serge Attukwei Clottey

Ghanaian

b. 1985

High Neck


signed and dated 2022 (on the reverse)

oil on canvas

134 by 92cm., 52¾ by 36¼in.

framed: 145.5 by 103.5cm., 57¼ by 40¾in.

Please be aware of the Conditions of Sale when bidding. As a benefit auction, there is no buyer’s premium charged. The only additional costs due to the winning bidder are applicable sales tax and shipping. Works auctioned are sold “as is,” and condition reports are included with lot descriptions as available. In-person previews of the auction artwork will be available at Norval Foundation at 4 Steenberg Rd, Tokai, Cape Town, 7945, South Africa from 25 January – 20 March, Monday to Sundays 9AM – 5:00PM (Closed on Tuesdays).Please note that while this auction is hosted on Sothebys.com, it is being administered by Norval Foundation (“the museum”), and all post-sale matters (inclusive of invoicing and property pickup/shipment) will be handled by the museum. As such, Sotheby’s will share the contact details for the winning bidders with the museum so that they may be in touch directly post-sale.

This work has been kindly donated by the artist

Serge Attukwei Clottey is a multidisciplinary artist living and working between Accra and Los Angeles. Although his main practice involves his unique revisioning of scrap materials, his work delves into questions of image-making, representation and identity as well. His sensitive oil paintings are inspired by mid-century black and white photography made on the coast of West Africa, updating its visual language with figures who express the contemporary moment.


High Neck (2022) is a portrait painted in oil on canvas. The work draws on imagery Clottey sources from contemporary media; in this instance, he references a collection by fashion designer Oswald Boateng. The artist chooses subjects for their expressive nature, paying particular attention to those who playfully subvert conventions of race, gender and sexuality. In the artist’s world, black bodies are no longer props; they assert their independence, pushing beyond antiquated notions of personhood.