A valuable piece of art by Irma Stern which was being used as a kitchen pin board has been sold at auction for nearly one million pounds.
Arab in Black by the renowned South African artist sold for £842,000 at a Bonhams sale of South African art in London.
Stern (1894 – 1966) was a prominent artist who achieved national and international recognition in her lifetime.
The artwork was discovered hanging in a London kitchen and being used as a noticeboard by owners who had no idea of its true value.
The piece has historical significance, having been donated by Stern to raise money for Nelson Mandela’s trial for treason in the 1960s.
“In the 1970s, it came to Britain when the buyer emigrated to the UK and was subsequently bequeathed to the current owner. For many years, Arab in Black hung in a London flat and was used as a notice board,” O’Leary said.
The 1939 painting provided a key part of Mandela’s defence fund when he was handed a life sentence for treason.
Giles Peppiatt, director of Bonhams South African art department, told reporters following the discovery that its owners were “shocked” and “astonished”.
“They loved the painting and they knew it had some value but they had no idea it was such an important work.”
“In some ways they are very sorry to see it go, but it would be a great luxury to keep a million-pound painting hanging on a kitchen wall.”
Stern’s art has been rising in popularity and value recently, and another of her paintings, Bahora Girl, also from the artist’s time in Zanzibar, sold at Bonhams for £2.4 million.
