Cleveland, 7 June 2011
The Cleveland Museum of Art has acquired thirty-five unique Congolese sculptures from Belgian collectors René and Odette Delenne. These pieces, which are in excellent condition, highlight the diversity of Central African art, from Congolese naturalism to Ngbandi abstraction. The acquisition was part of a donation made by the Delennes couple to the Cleveland Museum, the museum with the most varied African art collection in the United States.
An exhibition dedicated to the Delenne collection will be hosted in the summer of 2013 to celebrate the new purchase. Constantine Petridis, the museum’s curator of African art declared “\[this\] private collection with a personality and character of its own, and comprising artwork of exceptional quality, at once expands and elevates the Cleveland Museum of Art’s existing African collection.” David Franklin, director of the Cleveland Museum of Art added: “These acquisitions bring our collection to a level equal to that of the country’s finest African art holdings—while making it possible for us to develop new exhibitions and programs, and conduct new research in the field,” as reported on museumpublicity.com.