News

On the Avenue Hoche

In its fourth acquisition of 2022, Bonhams has acquired the Paris and Brussels auction house Cornette de Saint Cyr, which will now be known as Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr.The highly respected auction house was founded in 1972 by Pierre Cornette de Saint Cyr. Pierre’s sons, Arnaud, the CEO, and Bertrand, Head of Valuations and Collections, continue the family tradition by remaining with Bonhams Cornette. Based on Avenue Hoche in the 8th arrondissement and with an impressive saleroom on Chaussée de Charleroi in Brussels, Cornette de Saint Cyr is famous throughout the auction world for its high-profile single-owner sales. The Robert & Jean-Pierre Rousset Collection of Asian Art: A Century of Collecting sale will take place at the Avenue Hoche saleroom in October 2022. Arnaud Cornette de Saint Cyr said: “There is a wonderful synergy between Bonhams and Cornette de Saint Cyr. We are very proud of what we have achieved and much look forward to working with Bonhams to further our goals and our international reach.” Bruno Vinciguerra, CEO of Bonhams, said: “Bonhams’ acquisition of such a celebrated and much-loved auction house is an important part of our strategy to further the development of Bonhams into a truly global player with a balanced presence across the US, Europe and Asia.” Cornette de Saint Cyr joins Bukowskis of Stockholm, Bruun Rasmussen of Copenhagen, and Skinner of Boston as part of Bonhams’ international network.

Unflinching eye

Among the early victims of the 1918-20 Spanish Influenza outbreak was the young Austrian painter Egon Schiele, a deeply controversial figure in his lifetime but now recognised as one of the most progressive influential artists of the 20th century. An exhibition of a magnificent private collection of his work The Unflinching Eye of Egon Schiele: Works from a Private Collection will be on show at Bonhams New Bond Street from 13 October to 16 November. The 15 works include; Junge im grünen Mantel, Sitzende Frau mit schwarzen Strümpfen, Sitzender Junge and MOA, all from the key years of 1910/11 and a very rare painting of Schloss Neulengbach. Schiele lived in Neulengbach in 1911- 12 and spent time in the local gaol on charges arising from his – in the eyes of his complaining neighbours at least – unconventional choice, and depiction, of models. Many of these works have been widely exhibited internationally and the show provides a wonderful opportunity to enjoy what is believed to be the largest collection of Schiele’s works on paper in the UK.

Asia week New York

A wonderful array of Asian masterpieces – snuff bottles, fine porcelain, bronzes, paintings, inros and woodblock prints among them – features in Asian Art Week in New York, September 19-21. From the Joan and Ted Dorf Collection of Chinese Snuff Bottles comes a finely enameled Daoguang mark and period porcelain bottle depicting Meng Haoran, a major Tang dynasty poet, with his attendant. He carries a blossoming prunus, representative of perseverance and purity. The Chinese Works of Art and Paintings sale offers a fine enamelled glass cylindrical vessel painted in the Guyuexuan style with ‘The Three Friends of Winter' – an art motif comprising pine, bamboo, and plum – and a fantastic Eastern Zhou dynasty (770-256 B.C.) handle from a Ritual Bronze Bell in the form known as a yong zhong. First recorded in a French collection in the 1930s, the handle represents the finest casting and design of the period. The week closes with the Fine Japanese and Korea Art sale. Highlights include Grapes, a Korean six-panel screen from the 18th century, and a fascinating woodblock print entitled Surf Riders, Honolulu, by Charles Bartlett, an English painter and printmaker who lived in Hawaii and worked in the Japanese ukiyo-e (pictures of the floating world) style.

Little flame

If asked to name a Pre-Raphaelite artist, few would mention Marie Stillman. Yet this remarkable woman was a cherished member of the circle as a friend, model and painter in her own right. Important works by Stillman rarely come to the market, which makes the emergence of her masterpiece, Fiammetta, after more than half a century in the same private collection, particularly exciting. Painted in 1876 and exhibited at the RA in the same year, the work is in the 19th Century and British Impressionist Art sale in September. It depicts the central character in Giovanni Boccaccio’s mid-14th century romantic novel Elegia di Madonna Fiammetta, and the sitter is almost certainly Stillman’s 13-year-old daughter. Stillman’s painting so inspired Dante Gabriel Rossetti that he decided to create his own version.

Caine and champagne

Sir Michael Caine is a name that is sure to attract a crowd, and that was certainly the case at Bonhams New Bond Street earlier this year. The exclusive party hosted in partnership with Langan’s Brasserie attracted an array of celebrity guests, including David Walliams and Mark Kermode. Lady Shakira Caine chatted with old friends and admirers as they explored the private view of Caine’s personal collection, champagne in hand. It was a party fit for a film star, and kicked off the white glove sale with a bang.

Conversation piece

In May 1947, the English artist Ben Nicholson – then at the height of his fame – paid a visit to his old friends Fred and Madge Staite Murray at Red Stream Cottage, their home in Surrey. Fred, an engineer by profession, had been a keen and shrewd collector of art for many years and owned several of Nicholson’s paintings, which he frequently lent to exhibitions of the artist’s work. It was during the May ’47 visit that Nicholson executed a wall painting in the spare bedroom, possibly as a thank you present to Fred for his generosity with loans. Over subsequent years it seems that Nicholson and Fred – himself a keen amateur painter – worked on the mural together as a kind of conversation piece with Fred adding elements which Ben then fleshed out or supplemented. This was the conclusion of the experts at Fake or Fortune which featured the work in a programme broadcast in August. The mural has now been removed from Red Stream Cottage and ingeniously mounted and framed in preparation for its sale in the Modern British and Irish Art sale in London in November – a fitting tribute to a close and fruitful friendship.

Long and winding road

The ground-breaking Blazing a Trail: Modern British Women sale in 2021 shone a light on women artists whose talents had too often been overlooked. It showcased their work with that of more established painters. In this year’s sale, an iconic Head by Elisabeth Frink, for example, sits alongside Still Water and Madonna by the surrealist painter Ithell Colquhoun whose Battle Fury of Cuchullin established a new world auction record for her work at last year’s sale. Vanessa Bell’s Street Scene in Tuscany (above) rubs shoulders with These Laid the World Away, a powerful and symbolic image by Anna Zinkeisen, one of the discoveries of last year’s sale. Among those making a welcome reappearance in 2022 are Mary Newcomb with Man came out to see the Blossom and Mary Potter with Girl with Ukulele. New names include Dora Holzander (Autumn Lovers); Audrey Cruddas (Artist with a Seagull) and the contemporary ceramic artist Kate Malone who is represented by the spectacular and intriguing Wide Mouthed Snap Dragon Vase.

Magnificent Cadillac

In the long Franco-Belgian tradition of comic books, there have been many memorable creations. But the king of them all has to be Asterix the Gaul, who with his friend Obelisk, leads the resistance of ‘one small village of indomitable Gauls’ against the Roman invasion in 50 BC. He was the invention of René Goscinny (story) and Albert Uderzo (illustrations) who used their ancient hero to poke fun at some very 20th century events and figures (General de Gaulle was a favourite target). Asterix made his first appearance in 1959 and the series has become hugely popular around the world with the books translated into several languages and TV cartoon and film versions. It made wealthy men of its creators and Uderzo used part of his success to indulge his love of cars. The Zoute sale in October at Knokke-Heist features a splendid 1959 Cadillac de Ville S62 Convertible from his collection.1959 is considered the very best year for the model (though doubtless Uderzo was attracted by the link to Asterix’s debut), and the car was restored for him by Carrosserie Lecocq in Paris – the top name in restoration in France.

Wheel of fortune

It is surprising how often the proverbial saying ‘clogs to clogs in three generations’ turns out to be true. Take, for example, the Arkwright family. As every schoolchild knows, Richard Arkwright (1732-1792) invented the Spinning Jenny (or rather made the crucial adaptation to James Hargreaves’ initial idea). It revolutionised the manufacture of cotton and helped make Arkwright ‘the richest commoner in Europe’. His son consolidated the family’s wealth and, in 1857, handed down to his 24-year-old heir, John, a vast fortune, several properties including Hampton Court Castle (100 years older than the Palace) and vast swathes of Herefordshire. By the early 20th century, however, it was all gone, and the family retreated to a charming nearby manor house, Kinsham Court. The contents of the house were preserved and are now coming up for sale in London in October. The Contents of Kinsham Court offers an unrivalled opportunity to acquire furniture and paintings dating back to the founder of the dynasty himself, including a sensitive group portrait of Richard and Mary Arkwright and family from the studio of Joseph Wright of Derby.

Vast vase

Thanks to the good offices of Asaph Hyman, Bonhams’ Global Head of Asian Art, the world-famous Guimet Museum in Paris has acquired an exceptional mid-14th century Chinese vase with blue and white decorations. The vase, which had formed part of the collections of a distinguished French family since the 19th century, was donated to the museum by the Hong Kong philanthropist Richard Kan. Dating from the time of the Yuan dynasty (1279-1368), the meiping vase is an exceptional piece, not only because of its size but also because of its astonishing decorative qualities. There are no similar vases in France's national collections.

Record player

Bonhams and the Ravenscroft family celebrated the legacy of the legendary DJ and broadcaster John Peel in June, hosting an exclusive vinyl evening and listening party at Bonhams Knightsbridge. DJ Leon Nockolds from the John Peel Archive played some of Peel’s favourite records to guests, with the DJ Paul Gambaccini and a host of fellow music aficionados in attendance. The saleroom became a dancefloor as guests partied to the sounds of The Undertones, The Smiths and The Clash. “What better way to remember John, than an evening listening to his personal records”, commented Gambaccini.

What happened next...

Purrfect result

The Siegfried & Roy: Masters of the Impossible two-day sale in Los Angeles was a near sell out achieving $1,446,327 with 480 lots out of 481 sold.

Big splash

Georges Mathieu’s Exil de Go Daїgo dans l’île d’Oki sold for €1,182,375 at the De l‘Avant Garde à nos jours sale in Paris in June, a new record for the artist in France.

Dog has its day

Black and White Spaniel Pointing, a recently rediscovered painting by George Stubbs, sold for £252,300 at the Old Master Paintings sale in London in July.