Why this auction of SA masterpieces is worth your time

For art lovers - whether seasoned collectors or simply curious - there is a rare opportunity to encounter some of South Africa’s most important modernists up close during  Strauss & Co's Art Week auctions running until 26 March. 

At the centre of it is a tightly held group of works by icons, including Irma Stern, Gerard Sekoto, J.H. Pierneef and George Pemba, which will go under the hammer on the evening of Tuesday, 24 March. These are not just names from textbooks, but artists who shaped how South Africa sees itself, and whose work continues to resonate far beyond the gallery wall, enticing you to consider what it really means to invest in art today.  

The headline lots you'll be able to preview in person read like a roll call of twentieth-century South African art. 

Sekoto’s Game of Draughts in a Crowd captures a moment of everyday life with warmth and dignity, while Stern’s Congo-period gouache reflects a pivotal journey undertaken alone at a time when such independence was almost unheard of for women. 

Pierneef’s landscapes depict a structured colour blocking and calm. By contrast, the expressive immediacy of Pemba’s The Orator, a late-career work, seems to distil decades of observation into a single, compelling scene. For collectors, this is a chance to acquire works with both historical weight and growing international demand. Ultimately, it’s also just a rare opportunity to see these pieces in one place and to gain a deeper sense of why they matter.  

The story behind the collections

In a moment when conversations around investment are often dominated by volatility and abstraction, art offers a tangible quality enhanced by the narrative and context of a particular period in time. It’s not just about financial return - though with average starting bids leaning towards R50,000, that's a large part of the conversation. 

It is also about stewardship, connection and cultural continuity, which comes through with the Stan and the late Lee Boiskin collection. As respected cultural patrons, they extend their legacy far beyond collecting and demonstrate a commitment to social justice through the assembled body of work rooted in South African experience. Following Lee’s passing in August last year, the decision to release the collection marks a poignant transition, according to the Strauss & Co team.

Within the collection are smaller, thoughtful groupings of artists, including Maggie Laubser, whose depictions of rural life centred not just on landscape but on the people within it - underscoring a perspective that quietly challenged the conventions of her time. 

More than price! 

Beyond the headline paintings, the sale also offers something less expected - a refreshing approach to jewellery and silver. You'll gain insights into the reverence around Cape Silver, with authentic pieces in limited supply. 

Often these precious metal pieces are valued according to their intrinsic worth: weighed, measured and priced in relation to the day’s gold value, for example. Only exceptional items - a finely made piece by a house like Cartier, commands a premium beyond that.

But beyond the numbers, there is something more enduring. Jewellery, after all, carries memory. It holds the traces of its wearers, its histories, its moments. Standout pieces include an unusual, pure-gold handwoven coin purse and an intriguing charm bracelet featuring a unique passport charm. They're the kind of pieces that will have you fall in love with collecting. Or, at the very least go an dig out that heirloom broach and start wearing it again.  

Make a day of it

Online bidding is already active, but before the auction concludes, you'll be able to experience the works in a more relaxed setting at the public preview on Sunday, 22 March. There will be specialist walkabouts, time to browse and a curator-led talk by Wilhelm van Rensburg titled The Gentleman’s Artist, exploring the life and legacy of George Pemba. 

It’s an invitation to look closely, ask questions and engage with the works beyond their price tags. Whether you’re looking to start collecting or to understand why these works endure, this is the kind of opportunity that doesn’t come around often.

Preview programme: 

• When: Sunday, 22 March 2026, RSVP required 
• Where:  2nd Floor, Brickfield Canvas, 35 Brickfield Road, Woodstock. Secure parking is available.
• Viewing time: 10am–4pm 
• Specialist walkabout: 10:30am –11:30am 
• High tea until noon
• Talk: A Gentleman's Artist - George Milwa Mnyaluza Pemba at 12pm

Visit Strauss & Co for the full March Auction Programme.