Andres Moraga
Textiles and Ethnographic Art
Africa, South America, Oceania, SE Asia

Berkeley, CA
510.527.2556
moraga@lmi.net

ANDRES MORAGA offers rare textiles and works of art from a variety of cultures, with an emphasis on AFRICA and SOUTH AMERICA. Early fiber art, bark paintings, ceremonial headdresses, fine basketry and outstanding beadwork are a specialty.

During the past 25 years, Andrés Moraga has been instrumental in promoting interest in little-known traditions such as the extraordinary textile arts of the Kuba and other Congo peoples, the lyrical paintings of the Mbuti Pygmies, and the ponchos of the Mapuche and Pampas tribes of Chile and Argentina. He has placed significant collections with major US and European museums, including the Chicago Art Institute, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the DeYoung Museum, the Musée Dapper, the British Museum and the Linden Museum.

A diverse inventory-sometimes esoteric, always visually compelling-reflects a discerning eye, shaped by an interest in ancient and contemporary aesthetics, and informed by extensive research into the cultural and historical context of each piece. All works offered for sale meet the highest standards of artistic creativity and authenticity.

Please click on the images shown on the right for details about these works of art, or contact us directly at moraga@lmi.net to request photographs, digital images or a CD-rom of other antique tribal textiles and objects from our current inventory.

AREAS OF FOCUS

North and West Africa
A broad and varied selection includes Berber village textiles and urban silks [Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco]; Tuareg Tent Hangings, Fulani Blankets and other unusual Saharan weavings [Mali, Niger]; superb old Dida Tie-dye textiles [Cote d'Ivoire]; early 20th c. Ewe Prestige Wraps [Ghana]; Ndop Cloth from the Grassland kingdoms and vibrant Kirdi beadwork [Cameroon]. Exceptional hats and ritual gourds. Colonial Kabylie ceramics.

Central and South Africa:
Important Kuba Ceremonial Skirts and Embroideries ("Velvets") and exemplary Congolese raffia textiles, baskets and masks dating from the late 19th/early 20th centuries. Mbuti Paintings; Mangbetu Chief's Barkcloths and Dance Ornaments [DR Congo]; Tutsi Baskets and Dance Shields [Rwanda]; Zulu and Ndebele Beadwork [South Africa]. Unique currencies and decorative objects in fiber and other media.

South America
Post-Conquest textiles from the central Andes to Patagonia, especially Mapuche Chiefs Ponchos and Masks. [See Andrés and Vanessa Moraga, "From the Infinite Blue," Hali Annual 1, 1996.]

SE Asia and the Pacific
Khmer and Lao Ceremonial Textiles [Cambodia, Laos]; Painted Tapas from the South Pacific.

Catalogue and Appraisal Services for Collectors (references on request).