An antique dealer since 1996, Bernard de Grunne obtained his PhD in History of Art from Yale University in 1987. He headed the Tribal Art and American Indian Art Departments at Sotheby´s in New York and London, from 1987 to 1992. Besides his activities as gallery-owner, he curated important exhibitions of Nok statues from Nigeria in 1995, of Black Africa´s leading artists with ´Mains de Maîtres´ in 2001, and of the Lega ivories from the Ben Hein collection. Bernard de Grunne is also the resident expert in African Art for the Artcurial-Briest-Poulain-F.Tajan auction house in Paris, his last sale there being the celebrated Van Opstal collection in 2007.