New records for South African contemporaries

Pierneef’s Lowveld Eastern Transvaal (1928), a mesmerising kaleidoscope of acutely observed colours, sold for a record R5 917 600, while a second example, Willow Trees, Rooiplaat, achieved a price of R2 276 000. Two works by Moses Tladi – a contemporary of Pierneef’s – fetched three times their high estimate and marked a world record for an artist seldom seen on the secondary market. Farm Cottage Driefontein, J.H.B. (1939) sold for R147 940 while Mountain Landscape (Mont-aux-Sources) set a record at R455 200. The two Tladis featured in An Unsung History, a session inspired by the landmark 1988 exhibition at the Johannesburg Art Gallery, The Neglected Tradition.