When Lyn Rathburn was 14 years old, his grandfather unearthed an ancient artifact during their travels together. That artifact ignited an interest in Rathburn for curating ancient art.
Years later Rathburn tracked down the piece of art his grandfather discovered. That piece went on to become the first of his collection, much of which is now on display and for sale at Art Tribe in Spring.
Rathburn’s collection features tribal art pieces from throughout the world, including pre-Columbian pieces, African art, American Indian artifacts, Mexican pieces and South Pacific artifacts. In addition the collection also features many handmade African jewelry pieces.
Martin Crawford was a musician with no knowledge of art culture when his and Rathburn’s paths crossed. As he learned more about Rathburn and how Rathburn’s aunt and uncle introduced Rathburn early on to art from the Philippines and Indonesia, his passion for art also grew, Crawford said.
“I knew that I wanted to put his collection on display,” Crawford said. “He told me that if I was able to find a place to sell some of his items, I could.”
Crawford and Rathburn opened Art Tribe at 26310 I-45 N. in June 2014, and although sales have been fewer than hoped for once opening the gallery, the duo is in the process of discovering what business practices work best, Crawford said.
“I have a couple of regular customers that will come in to purchase batches of items,” Crawford said.
The collection features predominately African tribal artifacts, which is where Crawford’s passions lie.
“I started learning about all of these tribes, and the uniqueness of their rituals fascinated me,” he said.
Crawford said Rathburn acquired much of the art that is featured in the gallery through large auction sales in the mid-1990s.
Rathburn’s personal collection numbers in the 3,000s, Crawford said, with the store offering about 700 items for sale.
“They have been in storage for years waiting for an opportunity to come out and be seen,” he said. “We literally have pieces from all over the world.”
Crawford knows the history behind each piece in the gallery’s collection.
Whether it is a 250-year-old tribal mask or ancient copper jewelry of an African queen, he can tell the narrative behind the piece and knows that is what sets this business apart from other art collections.
“These artifacts are all from a single collection, which I grew passionate about and wanted to put on display and sell to this community,” Crawford said.
26310 I-45 N., Spring, 936-445-8927, www.facebook.com/marttribe
Hours: Tue.-Sun. 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
