Primary Source
John Strusinski4847 W. Jefferson Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90016
Tel: (323) 732-6131 Fax: (323) 732-6306
john@primarysourcearts.com
www.primarysourcearts.com
John Strusinski has been a collector and dealer of tribal art for more than thirty years. After extensive travels throughout the Americas, Europe, Southeast Asia, and Oceania, he set up base in Jagyakrarta, Java Island, Indonesia in 1976. For many years, he searched throughout the Indonesian Archipelago for exceptional handicrafts, art objects, and heirloom textiles and furniture, selling to prestigious American dealers and collectors.
Primary Source was established in 1989 as a gallery and warehouse in Los Angeles, as well as a workshop and warehouse on Bali Island, Indonesia. Primary Source has a broad and eclectic inventory, including masks, sculptures, jewelry, textiles, armaments, furniture, and architectural elements from Southeast Asia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Africa. John Strusinski is known for his in-depth references and curations, providing a cultural and historical context for each item that passes through his hands.
In addition to his long abiding interest and care for the Indonesian peoples and their cultures, John Strusinski also is knowledgable in the arts of India, Nepal, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, New Guinea, Japan, China, and the metal work of Africa. He has a special expertise and understanding of Indonesian Keris (sacred daggers), Indonesian textiles, and Indonesian tribal art. He is often on the vetting committees of highly regarded tribal art shows and has exhibited for many years at the major tribal art shows on the East and West Coasts. His clients include top experts, dealers, and collectors of tribal art. Specimens from Primary Source are included in many public and private collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Boston Museum of Fine Art, the Fowler Museum at UCLA in Los Angeles, the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana, CA, the Mingei Museum in San Diego, CA, the Thomas Jaffe collection in New York, and the Colette Ghysels collection in Brussels, Belgium.
