Art Market

Two rare Edward Bawden (1903-89) prints showing Ives Farm in Great Bardfield drew interest in a Modern and Contemporary art sale.

Showing the growing sensitivity towards estimates in the Modern British market, a portrait by Sir Matthew Smith (1879-1959) that had been unsold at Halls last year did rather better when it was reoffered last month with a reduced pitch.

Bright sunflowers and urban scene demonstrate different sides of the Mod Brit artist

Perhaps the most famous 21st century image of Queen Elizabeth II is the photographic portrait taken by Canadian artist Chris Levine (b.1960) showing the monarch with her eyes closed.

Copies of royal portraits from across the centuries are something that always seems to catch the eye when you flick through (or scroll through) the reams of pictures listed in auction catalogues.

Arguably the most famous portraits of an English king are Hans Holbein the Younger’s (c.1497-1543) depictions of Henry VIII.

Among recent sales with a lyrical element was Mallams’ (25% buyer’s premium) Art & Music auction on April 6 in Oxford.

London dealer in historic instruments also amassed paintings on a musical theme

Negotiating the sometimes complex world of prints by the 17th century Dutch Master

Try original advertising artwork if you want to capture the atmosphere of an era.

Focus on 19th century works by continental European artists sold recently

A Spanish picture that had been in the same family for at least the past 120 years was among the works bringing demand at Bonhams’ (27.5/25/20/14.5% buyer’s premium) latest sale of 19th Century and British Impressionist Art.

Among the works by 19th century Italian artists generating interest at recent UK auctions was a landscape by Giovanni ‘Nino’ Costa (1826-1903).

A woodland scene by Hungarian painter Bertalan Pór (1880-1964) caught the eye of a number of bidders at a Cotswolds saleroom.

When people think of the Newlyn School, most commonly it is pictures of Cornish fishermen, farmers and miners that spring to mind.

Street view by British artist offered in Orientalist sale sells at four times estimate

In February 2020 Lancashire saleroom Gerrards (20% buyer’s premium) sold a watercolour by Trinidad’s first internationally known artist, Michel-Jean Cazabon (1813-88), for £24,000 (see News, ATG No 2430).

Investors are targeting the Post-war and Contemporary market for high returns as inflation soars and uncertainty reigns

The expansion in prices for David Hockney (b.1937) has affected not just his large and famous works which now sell for multi-millions but also his smaller drawings and printed works that fall further down the price scale.

A small work by Maggi Hambling (b.1945) was among the pieces of Modern and Contemporary art attracting interest recently at Parker Fine Art Auctions (25% buyer’s premium).