East of England

In our continuing series looking through the keyhole of ‘bricks and mortar’ shops and centres, ATG talks to Nicola Crooks who runs Antiques and Chic with her husband Nick.

An unexpected highlight of a recent sale at Sworders in Stansted Mountfitchet was this set of four early real tennis rackets. They came from a client in the North of England and had been owned by the family for many years.

Led by the portrait of an Italian mastiff by il Guercino (1591-1666), dogs took a starring role in the Cheffins' March 8 sale. The delightful oil of a stocky ‘Cane Corso’, perhaps the artist’s own dog, overshot a £80,000-120,000 estimate and was knocked down at £570,000 – the highest auction price in the English regions so far this year.

About 500,000 people a year visit Snape Maltings, on the banks of the River Alde, to take in the exhibitions, galleries, independent shops and riverside walks as well as the Aldeburgh Festival and the Snape Proms.

A pair of trademark gouaches by Mary Fedden (1915-2012) drew strong bidding at auctions in Derbyshire and Essex.

British portraiture with pedigree provided plenty of action in a strong sale of pictures at Cheffins (22.5% buyer’s premium) of Cambridge.

Flash from the past at the Diss rooms of TW Gaze (18% buyer’s premium).

A painting by the obscure Welsh artist James Dickson Innes (1887-1914) generated keen bidding at Essex saleroom Stacey’s (24% buyer’s premium) on February 26.

The run of recent six-figure auction sums in the English regions now includes Cheffins posting a house record in Cambridge.

Magazine by ‘heathen staff’ sells for 10-times top estimate in the city where it was produced...

It all started in 1972 when Bob Evans Fairs launched a small and pioneering antiques fair in Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, followed by 70 more up and down the country.

He’s 30 now but a love for antiques all started for decoratives and jewellery dealer William Driver when he was eight. His interest began with collecting Wade Whimsies, progressing to Clarice Cliff and other pieces as he trawled antiques fairs and markets.

The first annual exhibition at English Antiques, in the small Suffolk market town of Eye, is titled 'A Taste of the Orient'.

More than 100 paintings owned by the Royal Society of Marine Artists were dispersed in a Norfolk auction.

Topographical watercolours may not be the hottest area of the art market, but they can still pack a punch in the saleroom.

A dazzling red and black herringbone-patterned Conklin Nozac cushion point pen and pencil set dating from 1932 and with an ability to write 7000 words before running out, is for sale at the Eastern Pen Show on March 4.