Fine Art

Erté (1892-1990) was an artist and designer whose works influenced fashion, film and theatre throughout the 20th century.

The work of non-combatant artists in wartime is covered in two separate exhibitions...

Dorchester auctioneer Duke’s said it has changed its due diligence procedures after advertising fake works it claimed were by Cornish artist Alfred Wallis (1855-1942).

A brace of unrecorded pastels by celebrated Scottish Colourist SJ Peploe (1871-1935) sold strongly at Lawrences (22% buyer’s premium) in Crewkerne.

Masters of Design are very much in the spotlight in Paris at the moment. A week after Artcurial’s Charlotte Perriand sortie on October 31, Sotheby’s Paris (25/20/12.5% buyer’s premium) was mounting its traditional autumn sale devoted to major works from the Art Nouveau, Art Deco, post-war and modern design periods.

Figuring why a specific lot did unexpectedly well is part and parcel of reviewing auctions but this oil on board lunette of a pastoral idyll below is more of a challenge than most.

'A Dawn', a 1914 picture by CRW Nevinson (1889-1946) in his trademark Vorticist style has been consigned to Sotheby's from a private source.

This evening village scene by the landscape painter James Hamilton Hay (1874- 1916) drew multiple bids at Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood (21% buyer’s premium) in Exeter on October 3.

Among recent highlights at the Drouot in Paris, Beaussant- Lefèvre’s (21.53% buyer’s premium inc VAT) classic sale of Old Masters, furniture and works of art on October 18 produced a substantial €265,000 (£240,910) for a modestly estimated bronze of the goddess Diana.

Our weekly selection from salerooms and dealerships.

Albert Irvin (1922-2015) is known as one of the few UK artists to work in abstract expressionism and his paintings are popular among collectors and the public.

A new fair in a favourite Parisian location opens this month. Devoted to drawings, paintings and sculpture from the 16th century to today, Fine Arts Paris (FAP) will be staged from November 8-12 in the Palais Brongniart on the Place de la Bourse.

Paris Photo also serves as an opportunity for Paris auction houses to mount their own photo fest. Sales taking place during early November to coincide with the event at the Grand Palais include dedicated auctions at Sotheby’s, Christie’s and various firms at Drouot. Like the fair itself, the material on offer will range from contemporary works by living photographers through to pieces by some of the earliest pioneers.

A double portrait by Federico Beltran Masses (1885-1949) attracted a flurry of bids at Bonhams’ (25/20/12% buyer’s premium) 19th Century European, Victorian and British Impressionist art auction on September 27.

“I was astonished by the group, both in terms of their individual quality and how cohesive the collection was,” says Waterhouse & Dodd’s Jamie Anderson, who earlier this year went to see a private collection of works by David Bomberg (1890-1957).

Winter landscape. Early 20th century, possibly Russian or Scandinavian school, and ‘indistinctly signed’. That was lot 222, summed up in the catalogue at Chiswick Auctions (23% buyer’s premium) in London on October 3.