Alex van Opstal an early African Art collector.

By Bernard de Grunne. (translated from French)

In 1932, Alexis van Opstal created an African room in his big house," la Maison Blanche". This house in Brussels was build   and entirely decorated by the famous architect Jean-Michel Franck.

The African saloon showed a complete panorama of the artistic production of Belgian Congo, who was at he origin of his fortune. This African saloon was done it the 1930's taste and gives also a clear view of the owners vision on Africa. 

mangbetue statue

Alexis Jacques Jules Marie van Opstal (1874–1936),  was the one who created the ’Agence maritime internationale'.  Under his direction, a line  Antwerp–Matadi was created and many new travelers ships  like the  Anversville, the Elisabethville, the Thysville, the Bruxellesville  and the Albertville.

He married the niece of Albert Thys, and had two daughters  Lucienne and  Mathilde. Mathilde had no children but her sister Lucienne married Martin Thèves and had one daughter Isabelle, who owned the actual collection.

According to familial tradition most of the  Art works was collected by major Laurent, administrator of the Compagnie du Fer du Congo between 1902 & 1910  and who was a long time friend of the van Opstal family.

The comparison between old time pictures taken in 1933 and those from today show with what respect the family kept this collection together and the African saloon also reflect the high curiosity and sense of elegance et refined details he had.

The collection was made of 899 lots subdivides in logical  categories like figurines, masks, seats, music instruments, pottery, ornaments, moneys, ivories and weapons, but also some animal trophy as shown on the picture below.

Each object was identified with a metallic number tag, corresponding to a mention in the catalog, and with detailed explanation for all categories, and with a map .

After he died, his two daughters Mathilde & Lucienne showed 54 pieces from the collection in the famous  exhibition "Tentonstelling van Kongo-Kunst" organized par Frans Olbrechts in Antwerp in 1937.

Bernard de Grunne.

This  catalogue bounded in a sumptuous manner was published in 230 sample private in 1933 and include a map with tribes of Congo, it mentionned the two statues, that you see below that have a numbered tag attached on the feet of the statues . 

David Norden

Lot nr 72 is a fine Luba statue, with a waxed patina :

Luba Opstal information request of availability 

Lot 62 is a very seldom Mangbetu Zande  statue that was presented on a separate stand on the wall you can see it on this picture taken in the early 1930's a little bit under the middle of the image on the right side :

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Mangbetu-Zande information request of availability It has a dark waxed patina, a fine elaborated coiffe and interesting eyebrows going from ear to ear. This type of statues from the Zande Mangbetu border are quite rare, and I do not remember having seen any in a museum or in a private collection.

Let me know if you are interested in receiving more images and if you mght be interested in adding one of these historical pieces to your collection. 

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