Art Leven, a Sydney-based gallery focused on First Nations art, is opening its First Nations and Australian Fine Art Auction and Exhibition, headlined by the private collection of the late Dame Marie Bashir AD CVO and Sir Nicholas Shehadie AC OBE. The exhibition runs from 15–19 May 2026 at Art Leven's new Woolloomooloo gallery, with the live auction on 19 May at Artspace. The sale includes approximately 115 artworks, with 79 from the Bashir-Shehadie collection, featuring works by Balang John Mawurndjul AM, Arthur Boyd, Emily Kame Kngwarreye, Albert Namatjira, and others. The collection reflects decades of travel to remote art centres and close relationships with artists, supported by archival material like handwritten notes and early catalogues.
This auction matters because it highlights the pivotal role of early collectors like Bashir and Shehadie in bringing Aboriginal art to broader audiences during a formative period in the Australian art market. It also underscores Art Leven's four-decade commitment to championing First Nations artists with integrity, now deepened by its new purpose-built gallery. The sale's inclusion of archival material offers rare insight into the networks that shaped the Indigenous art market, while the return of Priority Bidding—offering a 10% discount on buyer's premium—signals evolving auction practices aimed at engaging collectors.