IAN W. ABDULLA

Ian Abdulla’s naive narrative paintings have always been popular amongst collectors of contemporary Aboriginal art. Their popularity had been enduring as his extremely high success rate implies. It stood at 88% at the end of 2007 and even after a poor year in 2008 when only 2 works sold of the 6 offered it still remains above 80%. Abdullah’s works are hard to acquire in the primary market as they only appear in one or two exhibiting galleries, namely Paul Greenaway Gallery, Hogarth Galleries and more recently Niagara Galleries. He held a single solo show each year between 1990 and 2001 but having been ill, has been less prolific since that time. Since 2003, the secondary market has been the best place to acquire his works and 9 of his highest 10 results have been achieved since that time.

Of the 48 works that have been to auction 28 have been works on canvas and 20 works on paper. Of these 20 canvases have sold for an average price of $9,134 while the 19 successful works on paper have averaged $4,847. These averages are impressive and in line with, or slightly higher than, his gallery prices. Until 2007, 5 of his highest 10 results had been achieved in 2003, a year in which an amazing 16 works were offered for sale principally at Sotheby’s and Shapiro Auctioneers. That year not a single work failed to find a buyer however neither auction house managed to dislodge the $30,550 record set by Christies in August 2001 for Putting Sprinklers on Tomatoes at Night (Lot 32), This extremely large work measuring 199 x 273 cm. carrying an estimate of $20,000-30,000 is unlikely to be beaten for some time to come.

Lawson Menses managed to create his second highest result when Out at Night Stealing Pumpkins 1999 sold above the high estimate of $12,000 and achieved $16,800 in May 2007 (Lot 153). And Shapiro Auctioneers hold the record for the highest price achieved for a work on paper at $6,600. The majority of Abdullah’s works have sold through Shapiro Auctioneers (11) and Sotheby’s (8) which between them have generated $129,591 or 47% of his sales income. Christies, Lawson~Menzies and Bonham’s and Goodman have sold 4 works each.

While it is unlikely that Ian Abdulla’s paintings will dramatically increase in price they are likely to steadily grow in value due to and their charm and general appeal and his relatively small oeuvre. Very few, if any, have been reoffered for sale and this is testimony to the high regard in which they are held. Collectors who prefer unusual narrative contemporary works should consider this ‘outsider’ artist as one who deserves to be recongised for the special insight that he has given into the life of the marginal and dispossessed Aboriginal ‘fringe dwellers’ who grew up along the Murray and many other rivers in the rural regions from Southern Queensland to the Eastern and Southern states.

© Adrian Newstead