On October 28, when the hammer finally fell, Edward Saidi Tingatinga had broken another record, more than 50 years after his death. His painting of a lion, measuring barely 60 by 60 centimetres, had just sold for Sh7.6 million.
The sale at Nairobi’s Circle Art Gallery made the Tanzanian artist’s work the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction in East Africa, surpassing his previous record of Sh5.6 million set in 2019 by a painting of an elephant.
The latest painting had entered the auction with an estimated price of between Sh1.2 million and Sh1.6 million. But collectors who had gathered in person, on the phone and online were prepared to pay considerably more.
Within two minutes, bidding had crossed the Sh2 million mark. It took another eight minutes before the hammer finally fell at Sh7.6 million.
In a statement, the organisers of the Art Auction East Africa said the sale had ‘established a new world record’ for the artist, fetching more than four times its maximum estimate.
The lion and the elephant are not his only artworks to gross millions of shillings.
In 2021, his painting of a rhino sold for Sh3.17 million, while another titled ‘A Kiss’ fetched Sh1.05 million.
A year later, a painting of a pangolin went for Sh2.1 million and one of a tree fetched Sh1.76 million. In 2023, two of his works sold for up to Sh2.14 million each.
The rising demand for his artworks is partly due to an unusual combination of artistic influence and scarcity. Tingatinga painted for barely four years, between 1968 and 1972, leaving behind a relatively small collection of original works that collectors continue to compete for whenever they appear at auction.
Danda Jaroljmek, director of Circle Art Gallery and organiser of the annual auction, told BDLife that the limited number of original paintings was a major factor behind their appeal.
‘The works are very rare,’ she said. ‘So, they [paintings] aren’t readily available.’
Although she would like to feature as many of his paintings as possible at the annual auctions, securing them , she said, is not always easy.
Tingatinga Untitled Enamel on board artwork by Edward Saidi pictured during Art Auction East Africa held on October 28,2026 at Circle Art Gallery in Nairobi.
Billy Ogada | Nation Media Group
‘In some years, we’re lucky to have one. In some years, we don’t. Like last year [2025], we didn’t,’ she said.
Born in 1932 in Tunduru, southern Tanzania, Tingatinga had only two years of formal schooling. According to a 2019 article by US-based historian Azaria Mbughuni published in The Citizen, he left home at about 25 in search of better opportunities.
His first stop was Tanga, where he found work on sisal plantations. The work was difficult, particularly under the colonial plantation system in which Europeans owned much of the land.
Towards the end of the 1950s, he moved to Dar es Salaam, initially working as a houseboy for a colonial official. He later sold fruits and vegetables before securing employment at Muhimbili Hospital.
It was while working at the hospital that Tingatinga began painting in his spare time in 1968, aged 36. According to his profile published by Circle Art Gallery, he turned to painting out of necessity to supplement his income.
With little money for conventional art materials, he improvised, using enamel bicycle paint on pieces of ceiling board. ‘He found that he could use enamel bicycle paint on ceiling boards and sell his work inexpensively,’ the gallery’s profile says.
Jaroljmek said he used Masonite boards, a type of hardboard commonly used in ceiling construction, which he cut into squares measuring approximately 60 by 60 centimetres.
Tingatinga developed a distinctive style characterised by brightly coloured animals, bold outlines and striking compositions. He initially displayed his paintings in shops around Dar es Salaam, where expatriates began noticing and buying his work.
According to the gallery’s profile, his growing success enabled him to enlist close friends and relatives, initially to help prepare the boards before training some of them to produce their own paintings.
What began as an improvised way of earning a living would develop into a recognisable artistic movement. His approach was adopted by numerous artists, helping create an industry in Tanzania that continues to attract local and international buyers.
Dr Alastair Meredith, director and global head of art at South African firm Strauss and Co, which has partnered with Circle Art Gallery for the auction for the second consecutive year, said Tingatinga’s influence was central to the enduring interest in his originals.
‘He’s a man that formed a style that many, many others have copied,’ Dr Meredith told BDLife. ‘They’ve all worked in the mode of Tingatinga. He is the original, I suppose. And because of that, there’s always extra interest in his work. He’s had a whole school of artists work in his style.’
But Tingatinga’s artistic journey was abruptly cut short. On May 17, 1972, he was shot dead by a police officer who reportedly mistook him for a fleeing robber. He was 40.
Mbughuni noted that although his earnings had begun to improve, Tingatinga died relatively poor, unaware of the extraordinary prices his paintings would command decades later.
Today, his work occupies a different place in the art market. Collectors are not only buying paintings but also acquiring pieces of a legacy that has become increasingly difficult to find in its original form.
Jaroljmek said the buyer of the Sh7.6 million lion painting was unlikely to put it back on the market anytime soon.
‘Most of our collectors don’t buy to resell. So, I’m presuming it’s going into a collection for a very long time,’ she said.