| Today „Tingatinga“ is the description for | | | | “Buffalo”, “Monkey” etc. To |
| a trademark of East African handicraft. Hundreds of | | | | give an example it is an open secret that David |
| painters in Tanzania and Kenya produce every year | | | | Mzuguno in 2004 painted a bigger series of |
| thousands of tourist paintings on hardboard plates, | | | | “authentic” Tingatinga paintings with the |
| canvases and other objects with colourful motifs of | | | | “original” signature. |
| animals, village scenes, landscapes, shetani and other. | | | | Short time later Ives Goscinny (a Belgian art dealer) |
| One can buy the works for small money. Some | | | | published in his book “Tingatinga – The |
| attempts at the last years to sell paintings in the | | | | popular Paintings From Tanzania” a list of |
| Tingatinga style for higher prices on the international art | | | | supposedly true and alleged faked Tingatinga |
| market failed. | | | | signatures. Actually the signatures are not to be |
| If you change your point of view to the beginning of | | | | distinguished. The list seems to be a joke. Probably |
| Tingatinga you will find a different situation. Around | | | | only signatures from paintings were declared as |
| 1970 Eduardo Saidi Tingatinga created a new trend in | | | | “true” which were sold by Mr Goscinny |
| art with paintings on quadratic wood plates. He started | | | | directly or with his negotiating. It was reported that a |
| with animal motifs on monochrome backgrounds. Later | | | | collection of Tingatinga paintings were sold for high |
| his themes become more complex (e.g. village scenes) | | | | prices to Swiss ambassador in Dar-es-Salaam in 2004. |
| but always retain the naively expression. For his kind of | | | | There was a rumour at that time that around this |
| paintings there were not any example and no tradition | | | | business also paintings from the Mzuguno fakes |
| in East Africa. It is wrong to say that cave sketches or | | | | became a new Swiss owner. |
| murals are the origin of the Tingatinga painting. | | | | In 2007 a obvious fake of “Peacock on the |
| Tingatinga is not a traditional style but the | | | | Baobab Tree” was shown in the Rome |
| “invention” of a single man with artistic | | | | exhibition “Africa Today” curated by Luca |
| power who heard the “voice of art” in | | | | Faccenda and Marco Parri from “National |
| difficult economic circumstances of his life. | | | | Gallery Firenze” who proclaimed themselves as |
| Unfortunately Tingatinga died already in 1972. Despite a | | | | experts for contemporary East African Art. One can |
| severe diligence and exceptional creativity he left only | | | | see this fake painting in the exhibition catalogue. |
| a life’s work with a restrict number of paintings. | | | | What is the currently situation? All the really authentic |
| Because these paintings mark the birth of a new art | | | | Tingatinga paintings are in collections. It is rare that such |
| trend they are sought-after with collectors and later | | | | paintings reach the public art marked. Till today one |
| high prices are paid for originals. Such a situation on the | | | | can find copies of the old motifs. But now they mostly |
| art market is the typical source for fakes. Paintings of | | | | have signatures like “DAUDI |
| Tingatinga are no exception. The reason is simply: for | | | | E.S.TINGATINGA” (who painted the fake for |
| a talented painter it is easy to copy the typical motifs | | | | the Rome exhibition and is the son of Eduardo |
| and the signature “E.S.TINGATINGA”. | | | | Tingatinga) or “Agnes”. And the |
| Today we know that fakes were produced from all | | | | “authentic” fakes? It would be a miracle if |
| famous Tingatinga paintings like “The lion”, | | | | there are not also collectors and dealers for it who are |
| “Peacock on the Baobab Tree”, | | | | looking into the future and observe as the grass is |
| “Antelope”, “Leopard”, | | | | growing. |