Tribal Art London attracted a diverse array of visitors.
LONDON — “Do you have a fresh pack of red dots?” “Yes.” “Then follow me!” said the decorator. This anecdote from exhibitor Nick Jones set the tone for the opening days of the autumn Decorative Fair, held in Evolution London in Battersea Park from October 1-6. The international trade was out in force during the week, with plenty of American buyers shopping widely around the fair alongside their UK counterparts. With big new projects to fulfill across the world, furniture flew out of the stands as decorators ticked items off their lengthy lists.
Members of the US antiques trade were there to fill containers for export and many furniture dealers reported fantastic sales. From traditional country pieces to Modernist and Brutalist designs, across the board both exceptional and practical pieces went to new homes. Dealers including Chalet White, Wakelin & Linfield, Dorian Caffot de Fawes, Nadin & Macintosh, Jeroen Markies Art Deco, Foster & Gane, Hudson Antiques, Interior Boutiques, Streett Marburg & Charlotte Casadejus, Cal Smith Gallery, Galerie Arabesque, Linda Jackson Decorative Antiques and Nick Jones all reported it was one of their most successful Fairs, or their best ever. Lighting, mirrors and occasional furniture sold well as did as larger cabinet pieces, tables and seating. Art Deco and Arts and Crafts designs, both English and European, also proved popular.
Foot traffic across the week was back to pre-pandemic levels, with exceptional numbers over the weekend, giving a busy, vibrant feel to the fair at all hours of every day. The high turnout brought lots of extra business to dealers in collectable and affordable items and art, while notable sales of more important, high end pieces to private buyers were also evident on Friday and Sunday. Dealers across all disciplines made strong sales. Contemporary, Modern and traditional art all sold well.
This early Eighteenth Century crewelwork panel — ticketed £2,200 — was one of several sales reported by first-time vendor, Gilbert Bannerman.
The country house look remained strong, with buoyant sales of large upholstered seating, club fenders, gilded mirrors, dozens of occasional tables, upholstered and cabinet pieces and painted Gustavian furniture. Crewelwork and floral textiles retained their popularity while Linda Jackson Decorative Antiques, selling silverware and porcelain tableware, reported her best ever Fair.
New exhibitor Elliot Davies Fine Art reported, “I’ve sold so many good things and met fantastic clients.” Another new exhibitor, Gilbert Bannerman, sold an early Eighteenth Century crewelwork panel to a private buyer on opening day. “I’m very happy with everything, it’s been a dynamite experience.”
Trade buyers were extremely active. Jay Arenski transacted, among other things, a bronze sculpture of a hippopotamus by Jonathan Knight. “Nearly all our sales were to interior decorators. I was delighted. It was great fun and we’ve made after sales too.”
“Major US dealers purchased multiple items from us, both antique and Twentieth Century pieces. It’s been a very good fair,” was the report of Streett Marburg and Charlotte Casadeius.
Vagabond sold a pair of Tuscan console tables with Brescia marble tops to an American designer and a Nineteenth Century Italian majolica mirror to a new UK private client, noting “So many US designers were here on opening day, making very decisive purchases.”
An American designer bought a pair of Tuscan console tables with Brescia marble tops priced at £16,500 — one of the pair is shown here — that Vagabond Antiques was selling. Petworth, UK.
Well-known visitors to the Fair included Ellen De Generes; Portia de Rossi; Max Chilton, the Goodwood Festival of Speed record holder; poet Pam Ayres; Jemima Goldsmith; Robin Birley; actors Michelle Dockery, Nigel Havers, Richard E. Grant, Peter Firth, Shaun Evans and Charlotte Richie; lead singer of The Foals Yannis Philippakis; Jenny Éclair, Lord & Lady Bamford and architect John Pawson. Decorators and trade buyers seen included: Nina Campbell, Rita Konig, Olga Polizzi, Max Rollitt, Edward Hurst, Rose Uniacke, Billy Cotton (US), Rose Tarlow (US), Willy Nickerson, Kathryn Ireland, Ainsworth Noah (US), Les Trois Garcons, Hollie Bowden, Lee Stanton (US), Anthony Barratta (US) and Gerald Chan (owner of Heckfield Place hotel).
Tribal Art London (TAL) took place on the mezzanine of Evolution London alongside The Decorative Fair; all exhibitors reported positive outcomes and strong sales. The event attracted a diverse and enthusiastic audience of collectors, art enthusiasts and interior designers, leading to a dynamic atmosphere that translated into robust commercial activity across the board.
A buzzy opening day with high footfall, mixed with focused collectors, made for strong sales. Several high-ticket items were sold to international collectors from the US who had flown in specifically for the fair. The presence of other top fairs in London such as Frieze (opening a day after TAL and The Decorative Fair closed), The British Art Fair and 1-54, also helped to create a crossover of both industry and public sales.
Every participating exhibitor reported solid sales throughout the event, with many noting increased interest from both returning collectors and new buyers. This success reflects the growing market demand for tribal and Indigenous art, as well as the high caliber of works presented by the galleries. Particularly consistent sales were made in Oceanic works.
Zac Ziebarth was showing at Tribal Art London for the first time and had a good selection of Native American material. Ziebarth’s Antiques, Mount Horeb, Wis., US.
Zac Ziebarth, president of the board of directors of the Antiques Dealers’ Association of America (ADA), said, “I first attended The Decorative Fair & Tribal Art London in the fall of 2023 as a customer. I recognized then that Native American material was not represented, so it became my goal to fill that void here at one of the leading art fairs in the world. The response has been delightful amongst show attendees and designers alike. I have sold exemplary examples of Native American jewelry, textiles and beadwork.”
This year’s fair demonstrated the resilience and vitality of the UK tribal art market, even amid broader economic uncertainties. The demand for unique, historically significant pieces remains strong and buyers showed a willingness to invest in “masterpieces” alongside more decorative items.
Overall, the fair exceeded expectations, setting a positive tone for future editions and further solidifying its role as a key event in the tribal art calendar.
Among the sales reported were an important collection of Bushman ostrich eggs, by Adam Prout; an early Nineteenth Century high backed chair from the Wollaga Region of Ethiopia; and a collection of Neolithic and later axe and adze heads, by Tom Hurst.
Adam Prout was asking £12,000 for this collection of Bushman ostrich eggs, which found a new home during Tribal Art London. Adam Prout Ethnographic Art, London.
In 2025, The Decorative Fair will celebrate its 40th birthday. The fair was launched in the autumn of 1985 to offer “antiques with design in mind” primarily to the interiors trade. It was one of the first to subsequently embrace art deco and mid-Twentieth Century design, industrial and retail furnishings and with a general dateline now of 1979 for furniture and accessories, today dealers can offer Post-Modernist and Brutalist pieces, too. The fair is a veritable one-stop shop for American trade buyers who wish to purchase both English and European pieces without the need to travel around the Continent and an unmissable buying opportunity for many in the interior design world.
Formally known as Tribal Perspectives and launched in 2007, Tribal Art London began in a single gallery space off Portobello Road, Notting Hill, West London, as a group show for a handful of UK dealers in authentic tribal art. By 2014, the event moved to the spacious modern setting of the Mall Galleries, located next to the ICA and in the prestigious art heartland of St James’s. To coincide with this move, the event was rebranded as Tribal Art London to reflect its new status as a leading, internationally-recognized fair showcasing more than 20 exhibitors and its importance to the UK community of specialist tribal art dealers, connoisseurs and collectors. In 2017, Tribal Art London celebrated 10 years in the making.
Dates for The Decorative Fair in 2025 are January 21-26, May 6-11 and September 30-October 5; Tribal Art London will return September 30-October 5. For information, www.tribalartlondon.com or www.decorativefair.com.
