Oil, Acrylic paintings & Mixed Media

The exceptional provenance of a trademark Alfred Wallis (1855-1942) painting gave it a commercial boost when it appeared at Lay’s (21% buyer’s premium) latest sale of Cornish Art in Penzance.

If close personal connections between artist and sitter can raise the value of a portrait, then you might expect a picture by a celebrated artist of his mother to do rather well when offered on the market.

A portrait of the artist Laura Knight (1874-1970) by her husband Harold Knight (1874-1961) sounds like the kind of work always likely to generate interest at auction. And this is especially so if it happens to be previously unrecorded and offered with an inviting estimate.

The young Mary Elizabeth Hall (1908-69) was probably not the easiest sitter.

A previously unrecorded portrait of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy has set a house record for Wimbledon Auctions (25% buyer’s premium).

A previously unrecorded painting by Sir Henry Raeburn (1756-1823) that “slipped through the net of all scholars” led the latest fine art sale held by Cambridge saleroom Cheffins (25% buyer’s premium).

A well known portrait of the Duke of Wellington set an auction record for Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830) at Christie’s latest Old Master evening sale.

Charles Rebel Stanton (1887-1954) was a flamboyant and multi-faceted artist. But, although he was something of a minor celebrity in his day, he remains largely unfamiliar to many and has never had a huge presence on the market.

Painted with a scene of two St Ives double-ended mackerel luggers heeling to an offshore breeze, this Alfred Wallis (1855-1942) picture has what Mimi Connell-Lay calls “an absolute dream of a provenance”.

A newly discovered portrait by George Frederic Watts (1817-1904) is among the lots on offer at Roseberys’ sale of Old Master, British & European pictures in West Norwood on July 8.

For those with a commercial interest in the sweeping semi-abstract paintings of Ivon Hitchens (1893-1979), June 2 must have been a pretty busy day.

A house record for Olympia Auctions’ (25% buyer’s premium) picture department came in early June when a beach scene by LS Lowry (1887-1976) took an above-estimate £190,000.

An important group of Victorian pictures owned by the late American literary agent Albert Zuckerman is being offered at Christie’s this summer.