Lot 36

Adeusi Mandu Mmatambwe (Tanzanian, c. 1914 – c. 1984)
Birds, circa 1972
Signed ‘ADEUSI’ (lower right)
Enamel on board, in the artist’s hand-painted frame
61 x 61 cm
KES 230,000 – 330,000
(US$) 1,750 – 2,500
Provenance: Private collection

A relative of E.S. Tingatinga’s wife, Adeusi Mandu Mmatambwe moved to Dar es Salaam in around 1971 along with Simon Mpata, Abdallah Ajaba and Tedo Kasper Henrick, where they were tutored by E.S. Tingatinga. Adeusi’s work demonstrates how the students of Tingatinga developed their style, introducing new motifs such as mashetani (spirits and devils).

After the death of E.S. Tingatinga, Adeusi trained several artists who became the second generation of Tingatinga painters.

An intriguing detail of this work is the faint visibility of an earlier composition featuring cashew nuts, which the artist later painted over.