Latest News Articles by Alex Capon
Extraordinary example of British avant-garde clothing makes eight-times estimate at Oxford auction
08 December 2017An embroidered and block-printed silk robe designed by Percy Wyndham Lewis in c.1912-14 generated fervent bidding at Oxford auction house Mallams today.
El Greco sells for £5.9m at Christie’s Old Master auction
08 December 2017A painting by El Greco (1541-1614) led Christie’s latest Old Master evening sale in London when it was knocked down at £5.4m.
Joseph Wright of Derby ‘candlelit’ painting makes record £6.3m at Sotheby’s
07 December 2017An atmospheric oil painting by Joseph Wright of Derby (1734-97) led Sotheby’s latest Old Master evening sale in London.
Leonardo’s Salvator Mundi heads to The Louvre Abu Dhabi
06 December 2017The Louvre Abu Dhabi has announced on Twitter that Leonardo's Salvator Mundi is heading to the newly opened museum in the Middle East.
Sotheby’s appoints ex-Christie’s specialist as MD in the Netherlands
06 December 2017Sotheby’s has appointed Sarah de Clercq as managing director in The Netherlands. She was previously head of Old Master and 19th Century European art at Christie’s in Amsterdam and will start her new role in January 2018.
Soviet art proves selective across ‘London-grad’ series
04 December 2017Despite its current high profile, commercial interest in Soviet-era art remains selective. With the centenary of the Russian Revolution and anniversary exhibitions at the Royal Academy and Tate Modern, the latest series of Russian sales in London had aimed to cash in on the focus on this sector.
Philosopher Wittgenstein shows sculpture skills
04 December 2017A philosopher of mathematics, the human consciousness and language, Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) was described by his teacher Bertrand Russell as “the most perfect example I have ever known of genius as traditionally conceived”.
Visions of Finland – dealers collaborate on London show coinciding with centenary events
29 November 2017An exhibition aiming to invigorate interest in Finnish art opened in London this week.
Egon Schiele work on paper sets highest price of the year for an Austrian auction
29 November 2017The highest price of the year to date at auction in Austria was set by a market-fresh work on paper by Egon Schiele (1890-1918) offered at the latest Modern art sale held at Dorotheum in Vienna.
Are today’s superhero movies creating a bubble for classic comics?
27 November 2017The release this year of movies such as Justice League, Wonder Woman and, most recently, Thor: Ragnarok has brought added interest in the original comics, according to specialist at Heritage Auctions, Barry Sandoval.
Nevinson marches to seven figures
27 November 2017Sotheby’s posted a record for the artist CRW Nevinson on November 21 when an important Great War scene was knocked down at £1.55m (£1.87m including premium).
They said what?! The week (20-26 November, 2017) in quotes from the art and antiques world
26 November 2017In our weekend series, Antiques Trade Gazette brings you a selection of quotes from dealers, auctioneers, collectors and others. This week, we bring you BADA’s reaction to the UK budget and a silver specialist’s view on current precious metal prices.
Feud between previous owners of $450m Leonardo could head to UK courts
24 November 2017The ongoing legal dispute between Dmitry Rybolovlev, the vendor of Leonardo’s ‘Salvator Mundi’ which sold this month for $450m at Christie’s New York, and the Swiss businessman Yves Bouvier from whom he acquired it may be heading to the UK courts.
From student common room to auction room – Stanley Spencer’s depiction of ‘conscious coupling’ leads Christie’s Mod Brit sale
23 November 2017A painting by Stanley Spencer (1891-1959) from 1938 which had previously hung at St John’s College, Oxford was the top lot at Christie’s evening sale of Modern British art yesterday.
Nevinson wartime painting marches to record at Sotheby’s as Winston Churchill’s final painting draws strong bidding contest
22 November 2017A major record for the artist CRW Nevinson (1889-1946) was set at Sotheby’s in London yesterday when an important wartime scene sold at £1.87m (including premium).
Five highlights from Tennants’ fine art auction – including a £135,000 Old Master sleeper and Lord Byron’s dog collar
21 November 2017“Excited and charged” were the words used by Tennants to describe the atmosphere at its latest fine art auction as the North Yorkshire saleroom offered a group of works from Le Pavilion – a nine-bedroom house formerly part of the Shortgrove Estate in Essex.
Leonardo at auction: how did a £45 painting end up selling for $450m?
16 November 2017Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Salvator Mundi’ set the highest price ever for an artwork sold at auction when it took $400m ($450m with premium) at Christie’s New York last night.
Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Salvator Mundi’ sells for $400m at Christie’s New York - a world auction record
16 November 2017Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Salvator Mundi’ set the highest price ever for an artwork sold at auction when it was knocked down at $400m (£304.2m) at Christie’s New York last night.
Image gallery: Six works from Old Master dealer Otto Naumann’s collection offered at Sotheby’s auction in New York
13 November 2017Old Master dealer Otto Naumann is retire from his New York gallery and has consigned a selection of paintings and sculpture to auction. The group will be offered in a dedicated sale at Sotheby’s New York on January 31 with an overall estimate of $4m-6m.
Saleroom selection: 5 upcoming lots of Martin Brothers pottery
10 November 2017The highly recognisable stonewares by the Martin Brothers pottery remain a popular collecting area and examples appear with some regularity at auction. Here, we pick out a selection of items available this month, with estimates ranging from £200 to £20,000.