Registered Australian Business with integrity and experience.
From the proprietor: Milanka J Sullivan
As a practising artist with a Bachelor of Education Degree in the area of art education from the University of Melbourne, I have worked as an art consultant and private art trader through the 1990s to now, though not always under the name of Artspeak Studio Gallery. In addition, I shared the world of Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri (Pultara) as his partner for approximately five years through a 6 year period from January 1991 to November 1996. Besides this, I remained the artist`s friend and confidant until he died in June 2002. In addition, I have spent many hours over a number of years in the company of other important Classical Aboriginal Artists. As a result, I have come to `specialize` in the art of the peoples from the desert, which remains my main focus and a subject that continues to offer more to learn.
Artspeak Studio Gallery developed into an online business as technology made it possible. Online trading is vast becoming the norm with shoppers and traders embracing the concept because it works. All Artpeak`s transactions are via bank transfers/direct bank deposit, bank cheques and personal cheques. All transactions are assured to meet client satisfaction and come with a money back guarantee, along with free delivery and insurance. For collectors who specifically wish to make a purchase via a credit or debit card, this option is also available upon request.
In relation to prices accompanying each work, these prices are not fixed, but are altered in relation to artists` achievements. The alternative is to omit prices, but given that I personally find the absence of prices irritating when `window shopping` on the net, I have chosen to give this alternative a miss. In addition, each work is priced in relation to its individual aesthetic, which makes some works by a particular artist more expensive, or less expensive than another, regardless of the fact that the works might be similar in size; size alone does not constitute value. In addition, all works are priced in relation to Australian currency with 10% GST included.
With all the `hoo ha` recently going on between the art establishment and certain private dealers, which has become quite ugly, it seems important to add that Artspeak Studio Gallery, or Warrandyte, and paintings created elsewhere in my presence, or in the presence of Frank Mosmeri have long been highly regarded in terms of provenance. For example, Daphne Williams, the long term former manager of Papunya Tula Artists, asked me to oversee the creation of two major Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri paintings in 1991, which were Papunya Tula commissions. The first was for a monumental `Fire Dreaming` commissioned by the Strehlow Research Centre, and the second work was `Warlukurlongu`, another monumental work commissioned for the new Alice Springs Airport.
In more recent times, the National Art Gallery of Australia purchased a stunning painting titled `Possum Dreaming`, which was painted in November 1994 and created in the company of Frank Mosmeri and sold directly to the gallery by the artist with some help from Frank Mosmeri and Judith Ryan, the curator of Aboriginal Art at the National Art Gallery of Victoria. In addition to this, Sotheby`s Australia sold a Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri `Love Story` in July 2005, which was created here at Warrandyte. This work sold for $411,000.00, even though it was only estimated to fetch a fraction of the hammer price, between $50,000-$70,000 to be precise. This, of course, was a preposterous estimate to begin with.
There is no doubt that exploitation exists in the Aboriginal Art arena, but the art that dumb dealers generally acquire is of little worth to begin with. Quite frankly, the Aboriginal Art market has evolved into an industry that needs to be entered into with caution. It was bad in 1990, but today it is absolutely out of control and the only real victims in this terrible situation are collectors and reputable dealers and Aboriginal artists who create, or had created, with heart. Scandal after scandal has entered the Aboriginal Art arena, which has largely become a `dog eat dog` kind of industry with the latest scandal having to do with many Aboriginal Art centre managers pulling art works out of the annual Telstra Indigenous Art Award competition prior to the announcement of the 2008 winner.
1992
Thank you for your attention and welcome to Artspeak.
Comments:
" Milanka Sullivan is a rare gem in today`s art industry. Her knowledge and love of Aboriginal people is what sets her apart. She is not about `selling` but about teaching the culture so you can understand what the artists are saying in their paintings. It is pure joy getting to know such a genuine and trustworthy person and my paintings were sent packed with great care and are enjoyed here in California by all who see them. "
J Moore .....Danville, Ca. USA
" We thank Milanka for giving so generously of her expertise and time assisting us to understand the significance of the beautiful Aboriginal work of art that we now own "
K and R Bousfield .....Croydon, Vic. Australia
And thank you for your kind words and support....