African stone sculptures, wooden carvings find niche in Beijing

Made from smooth stone, intricately carved busts of African figures stand on a mantelpiece in a gallery in the north of Beijing. The stone sculptures are in the company of oil paintings and wooden works depicting animals of the savannas.

This is the Apex African Art Gallery, a showcase of art mainly from Zimbabwe, its surrounding countries, and Tanzania. Gallerist Wang Jian has been operating the gallery for 14 years, having moved locations a few times within China's capital.

Walking around the gallery, art appreciators and collectors can view a selection of stone artworks, wooden carvings – including some that can function as furniture – and paintings of love stories and other subjects.

Wang said she has been travelling to Africa regularly to source art.

"Since 2007, I have been going to Africa from time to time. I used to work for a company in Hong Kong, and I was assigned by the company to work in Zimbabwe. This is when I fell in love with local African art and so I decided to leave the company and run my own art gallery. I go and search for markets. Sometimes I have to travel out of the cities, as some artists live far out," said Wang.

These days, she curates a selection of works that she feels appeals to art collectors in China, many of whom have had links to Africa. Her customers mainly come from Beijing and are older than 40.

"Most of them have experience with Africa, maybe having worked in railways in the continent. When they come to my gallery, they are reminded of their time in Africa. Some have small galleries or yards where they later display the works," she said.

When sourcing pieces, she focusses on colors that appeal to the Chinese market.

"Different buyers from different countries chose differently. For the European market, many chose stone works with black and white colors; they have a sense of art," she added.

"For the Chinese market, the buyers like colorful stones, such as green and red. The value of the stone is also considered, and if the stone's value will appreciate…. It's a market-driven process. Zimbabwe is famous for its stone sculptures. When I first arrived in the country, I sought out stone sculptures only. After that, I saw locals make wooden sculptures too. Wooden sculptures have a promising market in China too, because China has a historical tradition of this art too, such as the wooden sculptures from Shanxi Province. After that, I found oil paintings in Zimbabwe, so my journey with the country's art went from stone sculptures to wooden sculptures to oil paintings.”

Walking around the gallery, various pieces stand out, displaying the meticulous craftsmanship of the artists.

Among the stone sculptures is a bust called "Shona Lady," a reference to a language and ethnic group in Zimbabwe, and another called “Queen." "Shona Lady" is made from soapstone, while "Queen" is made from butter jade, a very smooth stone.

Highlighting "Queen," Wang said: "The entire sculpture is from one piece of stone. The artists do a lot of work on it. To carve dangling earrings from the stone piece is really hard work. The black lines here throughout the piece are seaweed fossils. Her eyes show a lot of sympathy."

The wooden sculptures in the gallery include pieces that double as furniture and some that show the features of African wildlife.

A large table artwork carved from the root of an African padauk tree –a hard, red wood type – stands in the center of the gallery, with noticeable carvings of a turtle, crocodile and other animal forms. Wang said she selected the work as it resonates with the Chinese traditions of wooden root carvings.

Another piece, titled "Big Five," also made of padauk, boldly displays the faces of a leopard, elephant, lion, buffalo and rhinoceros.

Natural oils need to be regularly applied to these wooden sculptures to avoid damage amid dry weather conditions.

A wooden chess set table, with creative chess pieces shaped like wildlife, invites visitors to play. A closer look at the functional artwork shows lions and lionesses in the positions of the chess kings and queens, hippopotamuses for the pawns and rhinoceroses for the knights. The art set includes two carved stools to sit on while playing a chess game.

"It is also furniture. This artist is taking art into our daily life and towards our interests.” And among the paintings is a mixed-material work titled "African Story." It features an optical illusion that on the one hand resemble two buffalos, but also human limbs."African art has a niche fanbase in China. Fourteen years later, I am still introducing African art to people because I really love it."