WASHINGTON, DC.- The international market of Washington, D.C., with hundreds of foreign embassies, major global institutions and passionate collectors, set the stage Feb. 3 for the sale of Janet Stanley’s important collection of 20th and 21st century African Art.

Stanley, former chief librarian for the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art’s Warren M. Robbins Library, spent four decades building her collection, reflecting years of personal engagement and correspondence with artists and scholars, as well as extensive travel. Many pieces came to her directly from the artists themselves.

The collection was sold by the Potomack Company auction house in Alexandria, Va., with the title “Important 20th and 21st Century African Art from the Collection of Janet Stanley,” with 100% of the lots sold. The sale performed 169% above estimate.

The top lot of the auction, “Ants and Ceramicists No. 1 and 2” (sold - $64,000/estimate - $30,000-$50,000), made of stitched yarn and found objects on canvas, was created by renowned Ethiopian visual artist and sculptor Elias Sime, whose work is in the permanent collections of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art and other top U.S. museums. In addition, Sime’s work has been shown internationally in New York, Venice and Dakar.

Among other artists who attracted strong bidding was the Ethiopian painter Skunder Boghossian, 1937-2003, with his work, “The Eye in the Mirror,” 1968 (sold - $35,000/estimate - $8,000-$12,000). It’s likely some of Boghossian’s bidders engaged with him during his decades in Washington, where he taught at Howard University. He also worked on a commission for the Embassy of Ethiopia in Washington.

Also, African artist Gerard Sekoto (1913-1993), whose work sold in Potomack’s auction, is said to have influenced Boghossian’s style. In his own right, Sekoto is recognized as a pioneer among South African artists. Both Sekoto and Boghossian lived in Paris and were part of the same circle of African diaspora artists there.

Important Nigerian artist Ben Osaghae (1962-2017) was represented by several works in the sale. According to the Smithsonian, Osaghae “was concerned with social and political realities rather than the expectations of the Lagos [Nigeria] art market. His painting style was figurative but highly expressive. He liked color, broad-brush strokes, and a flat background of a single color that allowed the figures to float.” Those qualities were perfectly embodied in the works that sold at Potomack Co. Auction House.

Janet Stanley forged strong professional and personal relationships with many living artists whose works were in the auction. Among those were Sam Joseph Ntiro (Tanzanian, 1923-1993) and several women artists, including Gladys Mgudlandlu (South Africa, 1925-1979), Sophie Peters (South Africa, b. 1968) and Susanne Wenger (Nigerian, 1915-2009).