Pilar Ordovas opens an exhibition at her Mayfair gallery in collaboration with Jean Fritts, former international chairman of African & Oceanic Art at Sotheby’s, and Pierre Mollfulleda, former head of Sotheby’s African & Oceanic Art department in Paris. Titled *Dialogues: European, American, African and Oceanic Art from the 20th and 21st Centuries* (9 October–12 December), the show pairs Modern and contemporary Western works with African and Oceanic pieces that inspired them, including a Fang reliquary figure from Gabon and a David Hammons work. Many objects are shown in London for the first time.
The exhibition highlights a growing trend: experienced auction-house specialists leaving to collaborate with galleries, bringing deep expertise to focused shows. Ordovas, a former Christie’s specialist herself, notes that this shift offers galleries flexibility to stage niche exhibitions. The show also underscores the rising market for African and Oceanic art, which saw a record €14.7m sale at Christie’s in 2024, and reflects increasing crossover among collectors of Western Modern, African, Oceanic, and other art categories.