When the 14th edition of 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair closed at Somerset House on 18 October, the event looked different from its predecessors. The fair, founded by Touria El Glaoui to champion artists from Africa and its diaspora, focused this year on mid-century modernists through the exhibition West Wind, curated by art historian Nancy Dantas. The fair also operated on a smaller scale, with 42 exhibitors compared to more than 60 in 2024 and over 50 last year. Its Marrakech edition similarly contracted, falling from 30 galleries in 2025 to 22 this February.
Market Correction and Recovery
Auction sales of modern and contemporary African artists dropped 45% in 2024 to $43.9m, a sharper decline than the global auction market, which fell 25% that year. However, the sector began to recover in 2025. Sales rose 42.6% to $62.8m, outpacing global growth of 11.1%, with the average price climbing 26.7% to $13,133.
Giles Peppiatt, who launched Bonhams’ modern and contemporary African art department in 2006, describes a split in the market. The contemporary sector, driven by living artists whose prices surged after the pandemic, experienced a “rather brutal correction” and is now seeing prices for artists who sold for hundreds of thousands in 2022 drop to about half. In contrast, the modern market, covering artists active roughly between 1945 and 1990, remains “very strong” and “as strong now as it’s ever been.” This difference is largely due to supply; contemporary artists are still producing work, while modern artists have a finite body of work often held in private collections.
Dealers in Africa face structural challenges. Only 30% of their 2025 sales value came from within the region, the lowest share among 11 regions surveyed by Art Basel and UBS. High import duties, sometimes reaching 20% to 30% in parts of Nigeria and East Africa, further complicate the market.
In London, Peppiatt remains confident the city will remain the main hub for African art sales, citing deep ties to Nigeria and South Africa. Bonhams sold a rare cast of Ben Enwonwu’s Anyanwu for between £400,000 and £600,000 at a London sale on 21 October. Only three other large casts are known to exist, one in each of those countries and one at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
Regional Growth and Challenges
Despite the contraction in London and Marrakech, the appetite for African art on the continent continues to grow. Art X Lagos marked its tenth edition last November with record crowds. In Cape Town, the Investec Cape Town Art Fair welcomed 34,000 visitors, which is its highest attendance to date. Galleries reported strong sales across multiple sections and price points at the Cape Town fair.
Meanwhile, the secondary market in Nairobi is taking root. Last November’s Art Auction East Africa, run with Strauss & Co, sold close to 80% of its lots. Bidders came from 19 countries. More than 45% of the bidders were new to the sale. Prices ranged from about $2,000 to $27,000. These figures represent modest values by London standards, yet they signal a developing market.
Strategic shifts are also occurring within London’s commercial environment. In May, Tiwani Contemporary closed its Cork Street space after 15 years. Its founder, Maria Varnava, cited the shifting environment of the London art market. The gallery also paused its operations in Lagos. This move followed the closure of Stephen Friedman Gallery in February. Stephen Friedman Gallery went into administration after showing artists like Yinka Shonibare and Kehinde Wiley.
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