Brussels 30.01.2025 Each year, la  BRAFA Art Fair  seeks to offer an exceptional panorama of art history in a convivial atmosphere enhanced by a sumptuous setting, which is eagerly anticipated by numerous visitors.

La BRAFA has become a brand in its own right. We have managed to avoid the lure of passing trends and fashions. What matters is the quality of the featured works and galleries. Our move to Brussels Expo in 2022 has increased accessibility to the Fair, for visitors from outside Brussels and abroad. The general atmosphere amongst participants is positive and friendly, the exhibitors are welcoming and always ready to share their passion with visitors, and our audience is very varied, from art lovers to discerning collectors, by way of interior designers and museum curators. BRAFA is the first major event on the artistic calendar, and everyone is looking forward to discovering our Fair, which has become an unmissable event,” said  Klaas Muller, the Chairman of BRAFA.

The African masks, and sculptures attract art lovers by their unfillable aesthetic qualities, and their historical value. This year Fair displays the masks of an impeccable sophistication and significance, making this exhibition a truly exceptional and unique event. Often carved with remarkable detail, they are emblematic of the cultural and spiritual practices of the Grassfields region. Traditionally used in ceremonies, these masks symbolize power, protection, and identity within their communities.

Visitors won’t want to miss the collection of Ngon masks presented by Montagut Gallery (SP – stand 103). Often sculpted to a remarkable level of detail, they are emblematic of the cultural and spiritual practices of the Grassfields region, Cameroon.

The gallery will also be exhibiting an Italian collection of gold ornaments from the Baule culture in Côte d’Ivoire. These pieces highlight the symbolic use of gold in Baule rituals and adornments, which celebrate themes such as beauty, prestige,  and  spiritual power.

The stand of Dalton Somaré (IT – stand 8) has been designed around the decorative silhouettes of the facades of the Cà Brüta, literally the Ugly House, a building in Milan. It was designed by Giovanni Muzio, the great-grandfather of the two gallery owners, and is recognised as the Manifesto of the Novecento movement.

The gallery will be presenting a fine pair of Bamana antelope headdresses from Mali (H 85.5 cm and H 74 cm), which illustrate the astonishing modernity and dynamism of Bamana sculpture at the beginning of the twentieth century.

Claes Gallery (BE – stand 35) will be displaying a large ceremonial spoon from the Dan culture in Côte d’Ivoire, from the late nineteenth-early twentieth century (H 40 cm) and a Yoruba cup bearer (Nigeria, Igbomina region) from the same period (H 24.5 cm).