DAVE DEROCHE

Ceaselessly immersed in African, Pre-Columbian, and all the tribal arts since 1973, Dave DeRoche and his galleries have been dynamic and friendly focal points of the San Francisco tribal arts scene during its extraordinary rise to international prominence.

Indeed, the welcoming presence of Dave’s three walk-in public galleries over 17 years has been a major factor in the visible growth of the now internationally visited tribal arts community in the S. F. Bay Area. His gallery was a popular and vivacious venue that hosted important exhibitions, innovative theme shows, trunk shows, slide shows, lectures, parties, and cracker-barrel discussions.

Originally a professional photographer and a journalist with a Masters from Stanford, Dave turned his beloved hobby into his business in 1973 and has since been a:

• Private Dealer
• Gallery Owner
• Collector
• Writer of magazine articles
• Lecturer
• Art Photographer
• Authenticator and Appraiser
• Advisor to the de Young Museum
• Advisor to the Museum of Craft and Folk Art
• Speaker to the above and to the Hearst/Lowie Museum and the Bowers Museum, on “Fakery and Authenticity in African Art”
• President, ongoing, of Friends of Ethnic Art, the largest and most active nonprofit independent society for tribal arts appreciation in the world.

Now Dave shuns the parking problems and commuting congestion of The City and invites callers to pay a relaxing but stimulating visit to his art-filled home in the centrally located but bucolic town Piedmont, near Berkeley/Oakland, 10 miles east of S.F. There’s always a tree-shaded place to park, a beer in the ‘fridge, and collections to see. Dave’s wife Nancy assists him in their home, and keeps an eye on their two young sons.

Dave is constantly buying art and artifacts, singly and in groups. He also represents entire old collections and estates, giving free verbal consultations and appraisals to sellers, often beginning with photos. Amazingly, Dave admits to finding and selling more now than when he had the downtown galleries. From 35 years of purchasing and selling up to 500 pieces a year, Dave knows the private collectors, the specialist dealers, and the peripatetic pickers who trust him to do well by them and their favorite old pieces. And he knows the collections, old and young, rich and not, into which exciting pieces fit. Newcomers, nonetheless, are always warmly welcomed.