Belgium

Staffordshire blue and white ware, figures and Leeds creamware will be among a selection of English ceramics featured in Maison Jules’ large mixed-discipline auction of art, antiques and vintage items to be held online over three days from May 16-18 in Gent, Belgium.

Tintin was a major player in a sale of Comic Strip art staged in Belgium.

Several surprises emerged in the tribal art sale held by Cologne auction house Lempertz (24% buyer’s premium) in a recent sale held in Brussels.

This Ming ink and colour on silk painting of Shakyamuni Buddha, offered for sale by Rob Michiels (27.5% buyer’s premium) in Bruges on February 15, is thought to be part of an imperial order made in the short reign of Emperor Jingtai (1449-57).

A group of objects belonging to dealers who took part in the BRAFA art fair in Brussels were seized following an investigation by Interpol.

This impressive and rare pair of silver table candlesticks with cluster columns, square bases and drip cups had no visible hallmarks but is probably Dutch and late 17th century in date.

BRAFA Art Fair, Brussels’ major international art and antiques show, is one of the earliest events in the European fairs calendar.

This Gallé marquetry tray is to be offered by the Horta saleroom in its next auction taking place in Brussels on September 9-10.

This gold, enamel and diamond tiger orchid brooch offered by Belgian auction house Haynault of Woluwe-Saint-Pierre last month was made by Tiffany c.1890.

A trio of art and antiques events coming up soon in Belgium.

The market for tribal art covering works from Africa, Oceania and the Americas has a global reach these days. While particular centres form cultural and commercial hubs (New York, Paris and Brussels in particular), you can find fairs and shows, shops and auctions around the world. Recent sale highlights and previews from some of the upcoming auctions and fairs are featured here.

Tribal art is a sector with truly international appeal and fairs and shows go on throughout the year across various locations.

One of the attractions of BRAFA, the Brussels art and antiques fair which is traditionally a new-year opener in continental Europe, is its breadth. This is not a specialist event: it concentrates on quality across a range of disciplines.

Among the numerous dealers at BRAFA showing early works of art is Brussels’ Gallery Desmet, which specialises in sculpture and objects ranging from Antiquity to the Grand Tour.

Whitford Fine Art from London is a long-standing BRAFA stalwart (understandably given that the gallery’s core stock is work by 20th century Belgian and international artists).

With so many tribal art galleries concentrated in Brussels it is no surprise to find 10 specialists in the field showing at BRAFA, six of them from the Belgian capital.

Another returning BRAFA exhibitor is the Paris dealer Xavier Eckhout, who specialises in animalier sculpture from 1880- 1950.