Kim Martindale is no stranger to full and comprehensive lineups of events, but 2023 is already shaping up to be a special year for him and his Objects of Art Shows. With a full roster of virtual and online shows, Martindale is expecting the coming year to be a terrific time to be an art collector, whether it’s first-time art buyers or experienced connoisseurs.
Navajo Second-Phase Chief’s Blanket, mid-19th century. Michael D. Higgins Antique Indian Art.
Events kick off February 23 with the opening of the San Francisco Tribal & Textile Art Show and the American Indian Art Show / San Francisco. These shows, long held in person in San Francisco during the early spring, are once again being hosted virtually online, a change that started after the pandemic started in 2020. Although there are numerous collectors and dealers who would rather see this show return to an in-person gathering, Martindale included, there are some benefits to having the show online. “As soon as we switch it to an online show, we get dealers from around the world who are interested in participating,” Martindale says. “Sometimes these are dealers who can’t make the long trip to San Francisco, but can put work on the website so they can connect with new collectors.”
Apache Basket, early-20th century. Terry DeWald American Indian Art.
Together the two shows, which run through February 26, have been offering material to collectors for a combined 76 years. San Francisco Tribal & Textile Art Show features art from Asia, Africa, Oceania and the Americas, while the American Indian Art Show typically features material from all around North America, including Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada.
Both shows will be combined into one easily browsable website where collectors can view artwork by dealer, or even by medium, material and other factors. The website also connects online attendees to exhibiting dealers and galleries so they can ask questions, develop relationships and make inquiries. Martindale is hopeful 2023 is the final year these San Francisco shows will be held virtually. “We want to get back to an in-person show in the Bay Area,” he says. “That’s the ultimate goal.”
Wolf katsina, ca. 1880-1890. Buffalo Barry’s Indian Art.
Pictorial Buffalo Hide, 19th century. KR Martindale Gallery.
Following the February shows, Martindale will present the May Virtual Show, which will help set the mood for the exciting summer schedules that culminates in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in August. In the May Virtual Show, as well as the February shows, expect to see top dealers in American Indian materials, art and objects, both in historic and contemporary. The show will take place May 4 through 8.
The third and final online show is the November Virtual Show, taking place November 10 through 19. The show will take place under the banner of Objects of Art and Whitehawk, reflecting Martindale’s purchase of the Whitehawk show in Santa Fe.
Large Cochiti Storage Jar, late-19th century
“The November show will have a really broad range of material—not just tribal and American Indian, which is our baseline for most of our shows. It will also have modernism, folk art, furniture and just a really wide range of material,” Martindale says. “And then for all of our shows, we will either be all online or all in-person. We’ve found that if we just focus on virtual or in-person those shows are stronger. The online shows will have a really great mixture of dealers and galleries, and people can browse from their homes or phones. It will be very convenient. But then the in-person shows will be events, and will allow guests to really look at the fineness of the materials and have conversations with the people they meet.”
Navajo Child’s Blanket, mid-20th century. Red Mesa Gallery / Jeff Voracek.
The big in-person shows will take place in August in Santa Fe. These include Objects of Art Santa Fe on August 10 through 13, Whitehawk Antique American Indian & Ethnographic Art Show on August 11 through 14, and Art Indigenous Santa Fe from August 17 through 20.
The Whitehawk show is especially important to Martindale, who helped start the show when he was 16 years old. In 2022, he bought it from the show owners Marcia and Ted Berridge, completing a very large circle that took him through all of the art world. “Whitehawk is a big part of my life, so this is very exciting for me. When Ted and Marcia allowed me the opportunity to purchase it from them, I knew it was going to be a very personal milestone for me,” Martindale says. “I really like that show and I want it to stay what it is because it has a unique voice. It’s going to fit in with my other shows really nicely.”
Pomo Beaded & Feathered Pictorial Basket, early-20th century. KR Martindale Gallery.
Objects of Art Santa Fe and Art Indigenous Santa Fe, which will feature contemporary and modern Native American art, will both take place at El Museo Cultural de Santa Fe on consecutive weekends leading up to Santa Fe Indian Market. Whitehawk will be held at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center and will overlap with Objects of Art Santa Fe. To make it easy for collectors, Martindale will have a shuttle bus take guests between the two shows, which will also share a ticket. “We want people to go back and forth between the shows,” Martindale adds.
Western Apache Shirt, 1890s-1910s. James Flury Art & Antiques.
No matter what collectors are looking for—be it international material, historic Native American, contemporary and modern, folk art, online viewing or in-person show—Martindale hopes to have it in 2023.
“It’s going to be a big year,” he says.
February 23-26, 2023
San Francisco Tribal & Textile Art Show
American Indian Art Show / San Francisco
www.objectsofartshows.com
Powered by Froala Editor
