Latest News Articles by Jonathan Franks
Oak chair designed by Hoffmann for Klimt's studio appears at Vienna sale
28 June 2021At the beginning of the 20th century, Gustav Klimt was without doubt the most famous Austrian painter, and Josef Hoffmann the most renowned designer and architect.
Hopes for a John Roddam Spencer-Stanhope chain reaction
31 May 2021Along with his famous Pre-Raphaelite colleagues Edward Burne-Jones, Dante Gabriel Rossetti and George Frederic Watts, John Roddam Spencer-Stanhope was often influenced by the tales of classical antiquity and the paintings of Italian Old Masters.
Photography via a painted focus
31 May 2021The early 20th century German photographer August Sander has a legendary status, not least for his long-running series of documentary portraits, published under the title 'People of the 20th Century'.
Cathedral connection at sale of ‘Viennese Cosmopolitan's’ collection
31 May 2021Over many decades, a ‘Viennese Cosmopolitan’ amassed a collection of works of art which are now being sold in the second auction of Tiberius in Vienna.
Gallé vase captures Lake Como at dusk
31 May 2021One of the highlights at Quittenbaum’s sale in Munich on June 8 is a Gallé vase from the period 1920-36.
Barbarity brings faith for Arthur Segal
31 May 2021Having spent seven years in Berlin, the Romanian artist Arthur Segal left Germany at the outbreak of the First World War.
Bureau cabinet rated highly as Mainz ‘masterpiece’ example
31 May 2021Distinctive bureau cabinet form could have been intended for presentation to the guild.
Artist Zacharie Noterman goes ape
31 May 2021A south German collector is parting with a painting by Zacharie Noterman, which is coming under the hammer at Metz in Heidelberg on June 18-19.
Take your opportunity to own a game of chance
31 May 2021Wendl in Rudolstadt is holding its 100th sale and among the unusual collectables is a 19th century game of chance, known as Kakelorum, from c.1830.
Portrait influenced by Caravaggio on offer at Dorotheum
31 May 2021Among the many paintings on offer at the Old Master sale held by Dorotheum are numerous works that document the vast artistic influence of Caravaggio.
Swiss and German fine art highlights
10 May 2021Recent stand-out lots from salerooms in Basel, Zurich, Constance, Stuttgart and Dresden
Watchmaker to the royal family
10 May 2021Little is known about the biography of the German watchmaker Sigismund Rentzsch, who came to London in the early 19th century, where he set up a workshop.
Goldscheider lamp offered at Plauen sale
10 May 2021'Orangepflückerin' (Orange Picker) lamp by Goldscheider up at auction in Germany.
Dragon vases fire up Zurich interest
10 May 2021Porcelain on offer in Swiss saleroom catches the eye of international bidders.
Lapis lazuli lion from the Elamite Empire
10 May 2021Hermann Historica in Grasbrunn, on the outskirts of Munich, is holding its extensive spring auction from May 26-28 and June 1-2.
Collection comes to Munich auction after royal family avoided the Nazis then fled Soviets
12 April 2021Sometimes there is no need for hyperbole: the story behind the auction on March 15 at Neumeister (27% buyer’s premium) in Munich was quite remarkable in itself.
Odysseus casts his gaze down on a tea-salon
12 April 2021A cast zinc figure of Odysseus is one of the prominent works of art at the Prussian Sale that Lempertz is holding in Berlin on April 24.
Korean box emerges in Cologne sale
12 April 2021More than 2600 online bidders registered for the sale at Van Ham (25% buyer’s premium) in Cologne on February 24-25.
Seasonal offering of fruit and flowers in Berne auction
12 April 2021Still Life with Autumn Fruit and Bouquet of Flowers by the Swiss artist Johannes Dünz was probably conceived as one of four seasonal paintings.
Russian artists who preferred the Parisian scene
12 April 2021For the first time in almost 30 years, Wendl (21% buyer’s premium) in Rudolstadt was forced to hold a sale without a public view and in an empty room.