Clara Etso Ugbodaga-Ngu (Nigerian, 1921-1996)Dancers signed and dated 'Etso C Ugbodaga Ngu '65' (lower right)oil on board46 x 35.8cm (18 1/8 x 14 1/8in).Footnotes:ProvenanceAcquired by Ambassador Elbert G. Mathews in Nigeria in the mid-1960s;A US collection.Clara Etso Ugbodaga-Ngu (1921-1996) is an iconic figure in Nigerian art history. An influential artist and educator, she played a substantial role in the structural advancement of the postcolonial modernist art scene that emerged around the country's independence in 1960. Born in Kano, Ugbodaga-Ngu taught art in mission schools in the North before receiving a scholarship from the colonial administration to study art at the Chelsea School of Art and train as a teacher at the London Institute of Education. On her return to Nigeria, she began work as an art teacher with the Nigerian College of Arts, Science and Technology, Zaria (NCAST) becoming the first Nigerian - and furthermore, the first female - teacher in the department. This appointment was hugely significant as it placed an African woman in one of the key art institutions of the time.Ugbodaga-Ngu taught the students who went on to form the Zaria Art Society. Popularly described as the 'Zaria rebels', this group of artists played an integral part in the development of the Nigerian art canon, rejecting European modes of art production to develop a unique hybrid art-making practice. Describing her as a 'doyen of the artists, a painter and sculptor', Nigeria Magazine stated that 'she taught most of the leading Nigerian contemporary artists' and Ugbodaga-Ngu herself remarked that the 'majority of the young men who were my students are Nigeria's main source of manpower in institutions of higher learning, museums, industries and the private sector' (N. Akande, 2019). Ugbodaga-Ngu therefore made a vital contribution to the development of the Nigerian art canon as her students went on to play founding roles in nurturing later generations of artists, setting up art schools and influencing the shape of Nigerian art into the present day.Ugbodaga-Ngu was defiant of the one-point perspective or formal representational style adopted by early modernist artists working in Nigeria such as Aina Onabolu (1881-1963). Moving away from a figurative style, she produced completely abstract work early in her career, blending Western and Nigerian traditions, forms, techniques, and ideas to create fresh modernist work. To adopt the language of Modernism was a rebellious act because 'any claim from an African to be a modern artist in [the eyes of the West was] unthinkable and impudent' (E. Nicodemus, 1993: p. 32). The portrayal of local concerns and everyday life made her work distinct in a period where Nigerian modern artists were often preoccupied with producing imagery of 'woman' as the symbol of postcolonial rebirth or presenting versions of a romanticised precolonial past. In 1958, Ugbodaga-Ngu held a solo exhibition at the Commonwealth Institute Art Gallery, London — the first art exhibition by a Nigerian female artist in the UK —followed by an exhibition in Boston, USA (1963). Her work was featured in group shows such as Independence Exhibition (1960), Lagos; Contemporary Nigerian Art (1968), London; and FESTAC '77 (1977), Lagos, where she was one of only seven women among the sixty-three participating artists. Although Ugbodaga-Ngu and her contemporary female artists have been obscured by the colonial, patriarchal biases of art history, recent academic exploration into globalised historical perspectives has prompted scholars to revisit her oeuvre, to highlight, complicate and destabilise orthodox understandings of female Nigerian artists and their contributions to Modernism. For example, her oil painting Abstract (1960) was recently shown as part of Museum global. Microhistories of an Ex-centric Modernism at the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf, Germany — a project which problematised the centring of Modernism on the Western art canon. Dancers is an exceptional example of Ugbodaga-Ngu's interest in blending Nigerian motifs and subject matter with a semi-abstract style. The painting portrays two dancers within a complex architectural composition, the figures integrated into angular, tapering shapes whose sharp edges, flattened surfaces and geometric elements burst with movement. The rich, vibrant colour palette presents individuals with strength, confidence and purpose: the characters are dancing, engaged in the moment and not performing for the viewer. Ugbodaga-Ngu's recognisable geometric diamond shaping and open contouring of the human form is evident in this painting, which indicates the development of her style from earlier works such as Market Women (1961). These works sit alongside Beggars (1963) or Man and Bird (1963) as fascinating portrayals of the social, cultural and political history of Nigerian people in the moment following Nigerian independence.Dancers was acquired by Elbert G. Mathews in the mid-1960s while he was serving as the United States Ambassador to Nigeria. Appointed to the position by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, Mathews remained in the diplomatic role until 1969.We are grateful to Stacey Kennedy for the compilation of the above footnote.BibliographyN. Akande, Uncovered Female Nigerian Artists, exh. cat., FEAAN (London, 2019)E. Nicodemus, 'Meeting Carl Einstein', Third text: Third World perspectives on contemporary art and culture, 23 (1993): 31-38Nigeria Magazine, vol 96 (1968).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
We found 150138 price guide item(s) matching your search
There are 150138 lots that match your search criteria. Subscribe now to get instant access to the full price guide service.
Click here to subscribe- List
- Grid
-
150138 item(s)/page
Christo Coetzee (South African, 1929-2000)Untitled signed, dated, and inscribed 'christo Coetzee:/ Milano./ 8/10/60/ 40M.' (verso)oil and mixed media on canvas100 x 70cm (39 3/8 x 27 9/16in).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Alexander Skunder Boghossian (Ethiopian, 1937-2003)Two works on card (i-ii): (i) Untitledmixed media on card23 x 31.2cm (9 1/16 x 12 5/16in).(ii) Untitledsigned and dated 'SKUNDER/ 68' (lower left)mixed media on card22.5 x 31.7cm (8 7/8 x 12 1/2in).(2)This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Gebre Kristos Desta (Ethiopian, 1931-1981)Untitled signed and dated 'DESTA 1970' (lower right); further inscribed in Amharic (lower right)gouache on paper70 x 50.4cm (27 9/16 x 19 13/16in).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Gerard Sekoto (South African, 1913-1993)Portrait of a youth signed 'G Sekoto' (twice, lower right)oil on canvas61 x 50cm (24 x 19 11/16in).Footnotes:ProvenanceBonhams, London, 24 March 2010, lot 63;Grosvenor Gallery, London;A private collection, Lagos.It is challenging to precisely date the present work, as it forms part of a portrait series which runs through Gerard Sekoto's oeuvre from the 1950s. Portrait of a youth evokes the composition and palette of a series of bust portraits created by the artist in the 1960s – a decade colloquially referred to as Sekoto's 'Blue Head' period. The work illustrates a shift in the artist's style, as the warm yellows and oranges that had dominated his earlier palette are replaced with cool blues and black. The subject is depicted in profile, her head tilted down, so that half of the youth's face is cast in shadow. The areas of high relief – the cheekbone, bridge of the nose, and forehead – are highlighted in white and pick up strokes of buttery yellow in the clothing and background. The dominant cool palette of the present work evokes both Pablo Picasso's Blue Period and the distinctive employment of indigo in the figurative paintings of the pioneer of postcolonial Nigerian art, Yusuf Grillo, who worked contemporaneously to Sekoto. While recognising the influence of art historical references on his practice, the South African artist's decision to employ this palette was primarily motivated by aesthetic preoccupations: 'The reason for my using the blue was merely because I chose it and that it was sufficiently strong to contrast with warmer colours' (Sekoto quoted in Lindop, 1988: p. 122). In the present work, warm pink and yellow highlights powerfully contrast with the blue and black background built up using textured brushstrokes. Presented in the artist's frame, Portrait of a youth thus stands as a skilful depiction of the human subject, expressed through Sekoto's signature handling of form and colour.BibliographyBarbara Lindop, Gerard Sekoto (Randburg, SA, 1988).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Gerard Sekoto (South African, 1913-1993)The Bicycle signed and dated 'G SEKOTO/ 73' (lower right); titled 'THE BICYCLE' (verso)oil on board40 x 31.5cm (15 3/4 x 12 3/8in).Footnotes:ProvenanceAcquired in Johannesburg, 1975;Thence by direct descent to the current owner;A private collection, France.The bicycle recurs as a dominant motif in Gerard Sekoto's oeuvre. It appears in the artist's early depictions of daily life in District Six (Cape Town), Eastwood (Pretoria), and the suburbs of Johannesburg (as in his masterly painting Three figures with bicycle. Sophiatown (circa 1940-42) offered in the present sale). Sekoto returned to the theme years later during his self-imposed exile in Paris. Despite the artist's geographical distance from his native country, Sekoto asserted the enduring significance of his experience as a young man living in South Africa: '[a]ll that I do, even outside of South Africa, is still with the eye, the heart and the soul of the lands of my birth' (Sekoto quoted in Lindop, 1988: p. 242). In the 1970s, he drew upon these early memories in a body of work that illustrated painted scenes of everyday life in the townships. As evidenced in The Bicycle, the figure of the cyclist persists in these works but is depicted in Sekoto's later style which embraces a softer colour palette and a more lyrical handling of form than employed in his paintings from the 1940s. While the artist recognised the evolution of his practice across the decades, he also identified a continuity in his approach to painting these scenes of daily life in South Africa. He noted that works from 'both periods still retain the endeavour to express the movement [within the scenes] and the desire to search into the innermost feelings of my subjects' (Sekoto quoted in Lindop, 1988: p. 284).BibliographyBarbara Lindop, Gerard Sekoto (Randburg, SA, 1988).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Benedict Chukwukadibia Enwonwu M.B.E (Nigerian, 1917-1994)My Mama at 80 titled, signed and dated 'MY MAMA/AT 80/ Ben Enwonwu/ 1973' (lower right)oil on canvas72 x 49.5cm (28 3/8 x 19 1/2in).Footnotes:ProvenanceThe artist's family.Painted in 1973, My Mama at 80 offers a striking portrait depicting the mother of the renowned pioneer of African modernism Odinigwe Benedict Chukwukadibia Enwonwu MBE, better known as Ben Enwonwu (1917-1994). The artist's mother, Ajie Iyom Nweze Enwonwu, was born and lived in Onitsha on the eastern bank of the Niger river in Nigeria. She used the city as the base for her successful business trading textiles. While the demands of the textile trade frequently took Iyom Nweze away from the family when Enwonwu was a young child, they developed an exceptionally close relationship in her later years. The depth of this bond is illustrated through the intimate quality of the artist's approach to his subject. His expressive handling of paint is applied using individuated brushstrokes. The tactility of the strokes convey the psychological complexity of the subject through visceral passages of blue-green, creamy white, and deep brown, all juxtaposed with flushed pinks to great effect.Enwonwu's depiction of his mother conveys the matriarch's reputation as a formidable force in family and business matters alike. The composition of the portrait is closely cropped to her head and shoulders to focalise her direct gaze and stoic expression. Her command of authority is further expressed through Enwonwu's decision to paint Iyom Nweze in her Òtù Ọdụ title regalia (also referred to as Omu regalia in S. Ogbechie, 2008: p. 194). The Ọdụ title was granted to Onitsha women who were deemed to be important contributors to the progress, development, and peace of the local community. They were understood to constitute the elite women's socio-political and economic group and were accordingly granted the title Iyom. In the portrait, Enwonwu depicts Iyom Nweze in the official dress of the Òtù Ọdụ: two white loin cloths tied over each other, a white head tie, and a coral bead necklace. These were worn in addition to bangles and anklets made from elephant tusk - a valuable material which symbolises wealth, beauty, royalty, and authority in Onitsha culture. As the only known painting of his mother by the artist, the portrait is exceptional within Enwonwu's oeuvre. The highly personal subject matter situates the work within a broader lineage of artists who sought to represent close family members through their artmaking – a trope particularly prevalent in the Western painterly traditions that constituted a significant part of Enwonwu's training in Nigeria and at the Slade School of Fine Art in London where he studied in the 1940s. The non-representational dappled blue background and passages of pink paint applied to the cheeks of the subject particularly evoke Paul Cézanne's portraits of his wife, Marie-Hortense Fiquet, created in the 1880s. The French artist's experimental approach to painterly technique was of great inspiration to Enwonwu. During his lecture tour in the United States in 1949, he declared, 'Cézanne was a bad technician but he is among the greatest of the Impressionists' (Enwonwu quoted in S. Ogbechie, 2008: p. 107). Taking a similarly experimental approach to his own portraiture, Enwonwu fused such references to Western modes of figurative representation with traditional Igbo tropes to formulate a distinctly modern Nigerian aesthetic. He argued for the importance of embracing Western techniques while retaining the traditions of African art: 'Whatever the neo-African culture is today, art should express it and should employ all the native and acquired means that are possible' (Enwonwu quoted in Ogbechie, 2008: p. 79). This impetus to cultural hybridity championed by Enwonwu was shared by other influential pioneers of Nigerian modernism who were similarly responding to figurative Western traditions including Aina Onabolu (1881-1963) and Akinola Lasekan (1916-1974).Portraiture occupies a significant place in Enwonwu's oeuvre. He developed a signature stylistic approach to the human form as evidenced by the acclaimed portraits of women he created contemporaneously to My Mama at 80 in the early 1970s. Tutu (1974), Christine (1971), and Portrait of Marianne (1972) all feature women with elongated features. Such stylisation was understood by Enwonwu to physicalize the impetus he observed in postcolonial Nigerian society for growth 'in politics, in trade, in art, in every aspect of life' following the country's independence in 1960 (Enwonwu quoted in S. Nkwagu).Enwonwu's portrait of his mother consequently stands as a striking point of distinction. He does not employ his typical stylised elongation of the body, but rather depicts her faithfully with realist proportions to express the intimacy of their relationship. The work therefore stands as a testament to the importance of his mother's role throughout his life, while simultaneously offering a powerful example of the artist's contribution to the emergent aesthetics of a transnational Nigerian modernism.We are grateful to Osa Dahlton Ozigbo-Esere for their assistance researching Òtù Ọdụ title regalia. BibliographySylvester Okwunodu Ogbechie, Ben Enwonwu: The Making of an African Modernist (Rochester, NY: 2008)Solomon Nkwagu, 'Ben Enwonwu', Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Art and Google Arts & Culture, online.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Alexis Preller (South African, 1911-1975)Mapogga Women with a Child signed and dated 'Preller '53' (lower right)oil on canvas51 x 40.8cm (20 1/16 x 16 1/16in).Footnotes:ProvenanceAcquired directly from the artist;By direct descent to the present owners.Created in 1953, Mapogga Women with a Child was painted at the height of South African artist Alexis Preller's engagement with the 'Mapogga' theme. He had first encountered the people he called the 'Mapogga' (a term devised by the Boer settlers to name the Ndzundza group of the Southern Ndebele people) in 1935 on a sketching trip north of Pretoria. He came across a group of Ndebele women working in the fields and followed them to their village. Enraptured by the indigenous dress of the women, Preller embarked upon a career-long artistic project to capture his perception of the 'Mapogga' culture.In his treatment of the theme, Preller was not motivated to produce anthropological studies of the indigenous communities he encountered in South Africa. Crucially, his depictions of the Ndebele women (who served as his greatest source of inspiration) were rather shaped by his desire to formulate an iconic symbol of the essence of Africa – a distinctly modernist enterprise out of step with contemporary attitudes. His female figures are consequently highly stylised with elongated limbs, high-set breasts, and small ovoid heads. In the present work, the arms, necks, and ankles of the women are encircled with the rings typically worn by the Ndebele and their clothing is reimagined as geometric forms that enshroud the figures. Through a process of formal simplification, Preller transforms the matriarchs into icons 'through which I can convey what Africa means to me' (Preller quoted in Esmé Berman and Karel Nel, 2009a: p. 146).Preller conceived of his depiction of the 'Mapogga' people in relation to both his own situated experience and the avant-garde in Western art history. He described his painterly project as a means 'to identify myself with my age and place: Africa and the Twentieth Century' (Preller quoted in Esmé Berman and Karel Nel, 2009b: p. ix). The artist had left for England in 1934 where he studied for a year at the Westminster School of Art. In 1937 he continued his studies at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière in Paris. Here, he engaged with the paintings of French Post-Impressionists including Paul Gaugin and Vincent van Gogh, along with the work of twentieth-century modernists including Picasso whose paintings dominated the city's galleries in the 1930s. The stylisation of the figures in Preller's 'Mapogga' works resound with references to this European modernism along with the surrealist aesthetic of the Italian artist, Giorgio de Chirico. While the first work on the 'Mapogga' theme was exhibited in 1936, the present work marks Preller's particular interest in the Ndebele women which he began to pursue with renewed vigour in the early 1950s. The compositional arrangement of the figures evidences the influence of the artist's trip to Italy made in 1953, the same year in which the current work was created. The central figure holds a child with one arm, emulating Western art historical imagery of Mary with the baby Jesus. Preller fuses his mythologising of the Ndebele people with the iconography of Christianity to present a reimagining of the mother with child in his distinctive painterly style. BibliographyEsmé Berman and Karel Nel, A Visual Biography. Alexis Preller: Africa, the Sun and Shadows (Saxonwold, Johannesburg, 2009a)Esmé Berman and Karel Nel, A Visual Biography. Alexis Preller: Collected Images (Saxonwold, Johannesburg, 2009b).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Alexis Preller (South African, 1911-1975)Mapogga Wall signed and dated 'Preller '53' (lower right)oil on board25 x 30.7cm (9 13/16 x 12 1/16in).Footnotes:ProvenanceAcquired directly from the artist;By direct descent to the present owners.The present work illustrates a scene of daily life in a 'Mapogga' village or kraal. Painted in 1953, Alexis Preller illustrates a stylised female figure in traditional dress in front of a façade painted with the distinctive patterns of the Ndebele. From his first encounter with the Ndebele or 'Mapogga' people settled north of Pretoria, Preller strove to represent the indigenous community's rich cultural identity within his practice. The wall paintings of the Ndebele, illustrated here, are a recurring feature in his career-long preoccupation with the 'Mapogga' theme. Preller understood the wall paintings to be of great cultural significance to South African art. Reflecting on the exclusion of indigenous artistic practices in the Overseas Exhibition of South African Art in 1950, he commented, 'I hope future exhibitions will include such purely South African art as the beadwork of the Zulus and the Swazis, and the paintings done by the Mapogga women. Each year the Mapogga women paint their walls after the rains and the previous designs are lost through lack of documentation. Does any other country let its murals disappear through sheer lack of interest?' (Preller quoted in Esmé Berman and Karel Nel, 2009: p. 142).In his critique of the exhibition, Preller asserts the vital role of the Ndebele women as the custodians of their community's artistic tradition which he celebrates through the subject matter of the present work. BibliographyEsmé Berman and Karel Nel, A Visual Biography. Alexis Preller: Africa, the Sun and Shadows (Saxonwold, Johannesburg, 2009).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Walter Whall Battiss (South African, 1906-1982)The Hunt, 1962 signed 'Battiss' (lower right)oil on canvas60.5 x 70.5cm (23 13/16 x 27 3/4in).Footnotes:ProvenanceAdler Fielding Galleries, Johannesburg;Acquired from the above by the present owner in 1962.Painted in 1962, The Hunt superbly encapsulates the unique pictorial imagery of South African artist Walter Whall Battiss which synthesises the dual influences of South African rock art and European modernism. Born to an English Methodist family in 1906, Battiss first encountered the rock art of the Stone Age cultures of Southern Africa as a boy in 1917 when his family moved from Somerset East in the Cape to Koffiefontein. He began his formal art training at the Witswatersrand Technical College, Johannesburg in 1929. However, it was not until the artist's first visit to Europe in 1938 that he began to investigate in earnest how the prehistoric art of his native country might be incorporated within his own practice. In Paris and Florence, he engaged with the work of Henri Matisse, Amedeo Modigliani, Paul Gaugin, and Pablo Picasso (whom Battiss would later visit in the Spanish artist's studio during a trip to Paris in 1949). This experience prompted the South African artist to turn away from the orthodox impressionistic landscape paintings that constituted his early oeuvre to embrace the change in representational conventions he observed in the work of the European modernists. As Andries Walter Oliphant describes, '[f]or the European modernists, this change was facilitated by the non-naturalistic conventions gleaned from West African and Oceanic masks, Japanese prints and Polynesian decorative design. For Battiss, Southern African rock art was the catalyst' (Walter Battiss: gentle anarchist, 2005: p. 21). The Hunt epitomises Battiss's artistic experimentation with techniques responding to Western modernism including abstraction, perspective, and simplification of form. Inspired by his deep knowledge of the prehistoric hunting scenes represented in South African rock art, he depicts two groups of stylised figures: one forms a border around three antlered animals, while a second line of figures march across the top of the canvas. In turn, the artist's use of thick impasto to sculpt abstract forms atop the surface of the canvas evokes the formalist experimentations of Western modernism. Inspired by his interest in graffiti and Southern African petroglyphs, The Hunt also evidences Battiss's incorporation of sgraffito technique in his works of the 1960s. Scratching images through wet paint, he incises two stick figures into layers of white and pink pigment and drags a series of vertical lines through thicker points of the green impasto. Battiss's painterly investigations of the 1960s anticipate the development of his imaginary artistic construct, Fook Island, which flourished in the 1970s. He populated the imagined world with a devised material culture that draws heavily on the iconography of the same prehistoric rock art that informs the present work. The Hunt can consequently be contextualised as a key precursor to this later culmination of Battiss's unique engagement with South African visual culture. BibliographyWalter Battiss: gentle anarchist. A retrospective exhibition of the works of Walter Whall Battiss, exh. cat., Standard Bank Gallery, Johannesburg, 2005.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Vladimir Griegorovich Tretchikoff (South African, 1913-2006)Resurrection signed, dated and inscribed 'TRETCHIKOFF/ SA/ 53' (lower left)oil on linen85.5 x 108.5cm (33 11/16 x 42 11/16in).Footnotes:ProvenanceToronto, Eaton's, American and Canadian Tour Exhibition, September 1954;Private Collection of Jack Hammell (acquired from the above exhibition);Private Collection, Ontario;Waddington's, Toronto, 29 November 1984;A private collection.ExhibitionCape Town; Johannesburg; Durban, Stuttafords Department Store, South African Tour Exhibition, September - November 1952San Jose, CA, Rosicrucian Art Gallery, June 1953USA; Canada, American and Canadian Tour Exhibition, 1953-1954.LiteratureV. Tretchikoff and H. Timmins, Tretchikoff (Cape Town, 1969), n.p (illustrated)Vladimir Tretchikoff and Anthony Hocking, Pigeon's Luck (London, 1973), p. 205 (illustrated, pp. 134 & 136)Andrew Lamprecht, ed., Tretchikoff: The People's Painter (Jeppestown, 2011), p. 166 (illustrated)Boris Gorelik, Incredible Tretchikoff: Life of an Artist and Adventurer (London, 2013), p. 288 (illustrated, p. 138).In 1952, when Tretchikoff was preparing for his first show in America which would launch his international career, a Cape Town director asked him to star in a film. It would be a documentary set in the artist's studio, showing the birth of an artwork from the first sketches to the painted canvas. Tretchikoff accepted the challenge. Although it meant working under the penetrating gaze of the camera, he decided that he could use the colour film to promote his work in the United States. The resultant documentary, Birth of a Painting, traced the creation of Resurrection (1955).At the time, Tretchikoff was fascinated by the idea that, when dying, the old gives way to the new - a theme explored by the artist in Resurrection. 'The painting was to symbolise the emergence of the soul from the body', recounted Tretchikoff. 'I painted a young girl awaking as if from a dream, the reincarnation of the gaunt, black, crooked body that she had been' (V. Tretchikoff and A. Hocking, 1973: p. 205).Cape Town papers reported that the artist's wife, Natalie, acted as a model for the painting. 'I was so cold, it was a wonder I did not get pneumonia', she told the press. However, the existing footage indicates that another nude model sat for Tretchikoff during the filmed sessions.Resurrection was first exhibited during Tretchikoff's tour of South Africa in 1952. The following year, it was taken to California and included in his show at the Rosicrucian Gallery, San Jose. The startling Resurrection was one of the highlights of this exhibition, and reproductions of the work were available for sale. At all of the public talks and lectures to promote the artist's American debut, Tretchikoff showed the Birth of Painting documentary, asserting the significance of Resurrection within his artmaking practice at this time.The commercial success of the San Jose show enabled Tretchikoff to hold a tour of the United States and Canada, which lasted for nearly two years. In September 1954, among the 52,000 visitors who attended his exhibition at Eaton's Toronto, 'Canada's Greatest Store', was the mining magnate Jack Hammell. He became the first owner of Resurrection.Along with Resurrection, Hammell purchased several paintings by Tretchikoff that day, including the iconic Dying Swan (1949). Later, the artist learnt that this prominent collector had only one painting in his private suite: it used to be a Titian, but had been replaced with Resurrection. The 1969 volume of Tretchikoff's works indicates that the painting subsequently belonged to John McKay-Clements of Haileybury in North-eastern Ontario (now part of Temiskaming Shores). Apparently, the new owner purchased the work from Hammell's heirs after 1958. Resurrection first came to auction in 1984, when it was sold by Waddington's in Toronto. For nearly seventy years, this work, highly valued by the artist, has remained in private collections. We are grateful to Boris Gorelik for the composition of the above footnote.BibliographyVladimir Tretchikoff and Anthony Hocking, Pigeon's Luck (London, 1973), p. 205.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Godwin Oluwole Omofemi (Nigerian, born 1988)Lost in Thought 1 signed and dated 'Oluwole Omofemi/ '19' (lower right); further signed, titled and dated (verso)oil and acrylic on canvas 120 x 100cm (47 1/4 x 39 3/8in).Footnotes:ProvenanceA private collection, Nigeria.Using vibrant colour to explore a deeply felt political message of self-love, Oluwole Omofemi has crafted a distinctive approach to contemporary Black portraiture. Born in Ibadan, Nigeria in 1988, Omofemi's aptitude for painting was recognised at a young age and fostered by established artists who collectively drew inspiration from the vibrant city. Through his developing body of work, he has gained a reputation for his dazzling depictions of female subjects, typically set against luminous backgrounds such as the zingy red and cool blue floral motif of the present work. Omofemi arrives at the composition of his paintings through a carefully considered process. He first determines the mood that he wishes to convey through a work and selects the corresponding colour palette and clothing of his subject. He then takes numerous photographs of a model which are narrowed down to one or two images from which he paints. Working in acrylic and oil, he introduces an imaginative element that transcends the photographic image as he stylises the figure, often exaggerating elements such as the model's hair. The realist approach taken to depict the subject are juxtaposed with the flatness of the background which, as in Lost in Thought 1, often feature flowers as a dedication to the artist's mother. While the models for the paintings are typically friends and family of the artist, Omofemi believes they accrue a spiritual quality when transferred to canvas. He understands women to be close to God as he associates the qualities traditionally associated with femininity, including love, acceptance, and forgiveness, with the Divine. As Omofemi explains, 'I don't want to just paint a picture. I want a picture that captures the soul. I want a picture that captures personality. These are the things I want people to see' (Omofemi quoted in P. Laster, 2021). Lost in Thought 1 belongs to a body of work in which Omofemi explores the politicisation of hair to assert a powerful Black subjectivity. He explains, '[i]n my paintings, I try to tell black people to accept who they are; accept their identity; accept their beauty' (Omofemi quoted in P. Laster, 2021). He looks back to the transnational Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s and 1970s when natural hair was valued as a means to eschew European styles and assert a strong Pan-African identity. In the present work, a woman is presented in profile and her oversized afro dominates the canvas. Entwined, in places, with the floral motif of the background, her hair is presented as a sign of beauty, strength, and power. Reflecting on the symbolic qualities of his subjects' hair, Omofemi notes '[a] surprising capillary effect of Black hair which fills me with awe is no matter how we comb or treat our hair, [it will] never fall down, [but will] rather stretch or rise. To me, hair is a pole or antenna which gives us the power to connect with the Divine' (Omofemi quoted in M. Mobengo, 2021).In the last two years, Omofemi's work has garnered significant critical attention. Since his debut on the secondary market in June 2020, his paintings have incited a string of record-breaking results at auction. He has received two solo exhibitions at Signature Art Gallery in London; The Way We Were (12 March - 9 April 2020) and In Our Days (1-30 September 2021). He has also exhibited work elsewhere in the UK and in Nigeria, Ghana, Italy, Belgium, and the US, asserting his place as one of the most sought-after emerging artists today.BibliographyPaul Laster, 'Reclaiming Identity: Oluwole Omofemi's Paintings Reflect His African Roots', Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art, May 2021, online Murielle Mobengo, 'Art Talk with Oluwole Omofemi', Revue {R}évolution, 27 April 2019 (updated September 2021), online.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Ben Osaghae (Nigerian, 1962-2017)Untitled (Blocks) signed and dated 'Osaghae '11' (lower right); further titled and dated 'Untitled (Blocks) 2012' (verso)oil on canvas136 x 91cm (53 9/16 x 35 13/16in).Footnotes:ProvenanceA private collection, Nigeria.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Aime Mpane (Democratic Republic of Congo, born 1968)Enfants jouant dans l'eau signed 'aime mpane' (lower left)oil on canvas99.5 x 114cm (39 3/16 x 44 7/8in).Footnotes:ProvenanceA private collection, Ghent.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Monsengwo Kejwamfi 'Moke' (Democratic Republic of Congo, 1950-2001)Le photographe signed and dated 'ARt.P./ MOKe./ 81' (lower left)oil on canvas made from flour sacks93 x 90cm (36 5/8 x 35 7/16in).Footnotes:ProvenanceA private collection, Ghent.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Amon Kotei (Ghanaian, 1915-2011)A watched pot never boils signed and dated 'Kotei '75' (upper right)oil on canvas60 x 90.5cm (23 5/8 x 35 5/8in).Footnotes:ProvenanceArthouse, Lagos, 4 June 2018, lot 83;A private collection, Lagos.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Ablade Glover (Ghanaian, born 1934)Forest signed 'Glo' (lower left)oil on canvas102 x 100cm (40 3/16 x 39 3/8in).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Chéri Samba (Democratic Republic of Congo, born 1956)J'aime la Couleur signed and dated 'Chéri SAMBA/ 2004' (lower right)acrylic and glitter on canvas113.5 x 144.5cm (44 11/16 x 56 7/8in).Footnotes:ProvenanceAcquired directly from the artist by the present owner. 'Colour is everywhere. To me, colour is life. Our heads must twirl around as if in a spiral to realize that everything around us is nothing but colours. So I say 'I like colour' instead of saying 'I like painting'. Colour is the universe, the universe is life, painting is life.' – Cheri Samba(J'aime Chéri Samba, 2004: p. 126)A kaleidoscopic celebration of colour, J'aime la Couleur (2004) belongs to the best known series by the Congolese painter Chéri Samba. It depicts the artist with a surrealist spiralling head unfurling upwards from his shoulders. The vibrant pink glittered interior of the figure's head materialises Samba's conviction that '[a]n artist must show people what he has inside' (J'aime Chéri Samba, 2004: p. 19). The artist's passion for colour is evidenced through the rainbow palette employed in the unconventional self-portrait. A line of multicoloured droplets fall from the end of a paintbrush clenched in the artist's teeth, echoing the beads that fall vertically within his coiled neck. The message is clear: colour is the lifeblood of the artist. While the majority of works in the J'aime la Couleur series set Samba's head against a bright blue backdrop, the present work offers a rare black background. Samba's distinctive graphic style was fostered through his early training as a sign painter. Born in 1956, he left home at the age of 16 to apprentice himself to a studio in Kinshasa that specialised in producing signs for advertising. He found inspiration in the work of the more established sign painters Moké, Bodo, and Cheri Cherin which were displayed along Kasa Vubu Avenue - a central thoroughfare of the capital city. Samba was driven to differentiate himself by finding his own distinctive style. Influenced by his work as a comic strip illustrator for the bimonthly magazine Bilenge Info, he began introducing text to his paintings in 1975. He believed this would prompt viewers 'to stop and take time to read it, to get more into the painting and admire it' (J'aime Chéri Samba, 2004: p. 15). He coined this idiosyncratic inclusion of text in banners and speech bubbles the 'Samba signature'. The text offered Samba an opportunity to present narrative commentary on his work. In J'aime la Couleur, the writing in the blue box proclaims the artist's conviction in the importance of colour both aesthetically and as a metaphor for the diversity of life. BibliographyJ'aime Chéri Samba, exh. cat., Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain, Paris, 24 January - 2 May 2004.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Abdoulaye Diarrassouba 'Aboudia' (Ivorian, born 1983)Untitled, 2016 mixed media on canvas178.5 x 182.5cm (70 1/4 x 71 7/8in).Footnotes:ProvenanceThe artist's studio, Brooklyn, NY;Acquired from the above by the present owner in 2016.Abdoulaye Diarrassouba, known as Aboudia, stands at the forefront of the landscape of contemporary art with his energetic paintings rendered in oil stick and acrylic. Born in Abidjan, the major urban centre of Côte d'Ivoire, Aboudia trained at the School of Applied Art in Bingerville before graduating from the Abidjan Institut des Arts in 2005. Aboudia recognises the influence of his experience growing up in Abidjan as central to his artistic practice. His canvases and works on paper fuse imagery drawn from the local street culture of his hometown with traditional West-African sculpture and voodoo iconography. Lines of brightly coloured oil stick articulate figures, traffic and animals atop ghostly passages of semi-opaque acrylic paint that, in places, reveal the layers of newspaper pages, magazine cut-outs, and educational materials typically pasted beneath. The gestural application of pigment and large-scale format favoured by the artist recall both the graffiti murals of Abidjan and the avant-garde formalist experimentations of artists central to the Western canon such as Cy Twombly, whose work Aboudia had greatly admired when visiting the permanent collection at the Tate Modern, London. Recognising the fusion of diverse cultural and artistic references in his work, Aboudia names his stylistic approach Nouchi – a term more typically used to describe the colloquial language spoken in urban Abidjan which blends several Ivorian languages with French. Now working between his studios in Abidjan and Brooklyn, Aboudia employs his artmaking as a vehicle to convey the experiences of the Ivorian youth following the violence of the 2011 civil war. 'As an artist, my contribution is to tell our story for the next generation. Writers will write, singers will sing. I paint' (Aboudia quoted in O'Reilly, 2011). He conceives of the figures that populate his work as representative of this next generation of children who he believes to be central to the future success of the country. Aboudia has achieved global appeal through his kinetic canvases bursting with colour. Since 2007 the artist's work has been widely exhibited in international solo and group exhibitions and is held in major collections including that of the Saatchi Gallery (London), the Nevada Museum of Art (USA), and the Jean Pigozzi Collection of African Art.BibliographyFinbarr O'Reilly, 'Ivorian artist paints as bullets whizz overhead', Reuters, 29 April 2011, online.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: * TP* VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.TP Lot will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Abdoulaye Diarrassouba 'Aboudia' (Ivorian, born 1983)Untitled, 2016 signed 'ABOUDIA' (lower centre)mixed media on canvas114.4 x 195.2cm (45 1/16 x 76 7/8in).Footnotes:ProvenanceTis Fine Arts Corp, New York;Acquired from the above by the present owner in 2018.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: * TP* VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.TP Lot will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Limoges plate; France, second half of the 17th century.Copper and enamelled.Size: 14 cm (diameter); 22 x 22 cm (frame).A death floods the composition of the scene, on the ground a mature man lies murdered while other two personages, standing up, observe the scene. They are a woman wearing a helmet and a man pointing to the deceased, indicating to the woman the situation in which they find themselves. The circular composition is notable for its vibrant, saturated colours. The characters depict the story from the Book of Judges, in which Yael, having killed Sisera with a hammer and nail, shows Barak the scene. Limoges enamelling has a long tradition dating back to the Middle Ages, to the last painting of the 12th century. It was the most important enamel workshop in France, and owed its success in particular to its production of enamel-decorated objects in addition to the usual enamelled plates. Its medieval pieces had their own characteristics, such as a very shallow background dragging or a very fine partitioning for details, as well as an innovative chromatism that included new tones such as light blue-grey or white.
Harold Septimus Power (Australian, 1878-1951)Huntsmen and hounds on a heather moor signed 'H.S.Power' (lower right)oil on canvas63.5 x 76.2cm (25 x 30in).Footnotes:ProvenanceAnon. sale, Phillips, London, 5 march 1991, lot 7.Private collection, Belgium. Purchased from the above.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Alexander Kircher (German, 1867-1939)The Austro-Hungarian fleet signed '.ALEX.KIRCHER.' (lower right)oil on canvas86 x 151.1cm (33 7/8 x 59 1/2in).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Ernest Crofts, RA (British, 1847-1911)'Funeral of Her late Majesty Queen Victoria' signed and dated 'E.Crofts 1901.' (lower left)oil on canvas142.6 x 104.7cm (56 1/8 x 41 1/4in).Footnotes:ExhibitedLondon, Royal Academy, 1903, no. 167.Ernest Crofts was one of the leading military and historical painters of the late Victorian and Edwardian periods, exhibiting extensively at the Royal Academy in London. His interest in painting and eventual decision to pursue an artistic career were formed during trips to Berlin following his education at Rugby School. He studied at the Düsseldorf school of painting and under the eminent German artist Emil Hünter, then military and historical painting to the Prussian Emperor. The young artist witnessed some of the closing action in the Franco-Prussian war and it would be scenes from this conflict along with the Napoleonic Wars and English Civil War that Crofts would become best known for (see lots 143 and 144 in this sale). This focus on historical scenes makes the subject of the present lot an unusual example of Crofts painting a scene of great historical significance which he would have witnessed first-hand. Queen Victoria died on the on 22 January 1901 at Osbourne House on the Isle of Wight and here we see a snapshot of the journey from these to the Frogmore Mausoleum where she was interred on the 4th February. Here we see the procession making its way through central London from Victoria to Paddington. Specific instructions had been left for the service and ceremony following her death, these did not include a period of public lying-in-state which accounts for the multitudes of mourners which can be seen lining the street and gaining any vantage point possible in the surrounding buildings in an attempt get one last glimpse of the Queen. Victoria had also dictated the funeral be a white funeral, having spent the her life after the death of her husband dressed in black, and a military affair to reflect her role as head of the military. Therefore, in the centre of the scene, being drawn passed flags draped at half-mast on the adjacent buildings, is the coffin itself carried on a gun carriage and covered in white. Using all his experience of painting crowded military scenes and knowledge of military uniforms (of which he kept an extensive private collection), Crofts presents the crowded yet sombre scene giving us a rare first-hand pictorial account of the event.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Heywood Hardy (British, 1843-1933)A visit to the blacksmith signed 'Heywood Hardy.' (lower left)oil on canvas51 x 76.5cm (20 1/16 x 30 1/8in).Footnotes:ProvenanceW. H. Patterson, London.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Heywood Hardy (British, 1842-1933)The travellers signed and dated 'Heywood Hardy. 1874' (lower left)oil on panel49.5 x 61cm (19 1/2 x 24in).Footnotes:ProvenanceAnon. sale, Christie's, London, 1 November 1985, lot 152.Anon. sale, Sotheby's, London, 13 October 1999, lot 91.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Antonio María de Reyna Manescau (Spanish, 1859-1937)The Doge's Palace and the Molo, Venice with the Church of Santa Maria della Salute beyond signed and inscribed 'A. Reyna/ Venezia' (lower left)oil on canvas34.5 x 75cm (13 9/16 x 29 1/2in).Footnotes:ProvenanceCooling Galleries Ltd., London.Private collection, USA. This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
László Mednyánszky (Hungarian, 1852-1919)A tree lined river in winter signed 'Mednyánszky' (lower right)oil on canvas laid to board37.8 x 56.8cm (14 7/8 x 22 3/8in).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Léon Augustin Lhermitte (French, 1844-1925)Les laveuses de la Marne signed 'L.Lhermitte' (lower left)pastel 25.1 x 33cm (9 7/8 x 13in).Footnotes:This work is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from the Comité Léon Lhermitte and will be included in the supplement catalogue raisonné being prepared by Galerie Brame & Lorenceau.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
André Hambourg (French, 1909-1999)'La fête des gondoliers' signed and dated 'a. hambourg 1960' (lower left); titled 'La fête des gondoliers' (lower right)ink, gouache and pastel 32.7 x 50.1cm (12 7/8 x 19 3/4in).Footnotes:ProvenanceGalerie Anne Apesteguy, Deauville.Private collection (acquired from the above circa 1987).Anon. sale, Christie's, Paris, 23 May 2007, lot 223.Anon. sale, Bonhams, New York, 6 May 2014, lot 48.Private collection, Switzerland.The authenticity of this work has kindly been confirmed by Madame Nicole Hambourg.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: * AR* VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.AR Goods subject to Artists Resale Right Additional Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Raphael Lewisohn (German, 1863-1923)Mary Cassatt in her studio signed 'R. Lewisohn' (lower left)oil on board62 x 78cm (24 7/16 x 30 11/16in).Footnotes:ProvenanceAmbroise Vollard, Paris. Thence by descent.Sale, Christie's, Paris, 23 March 2018, lot 247.Acquired at the above sale by the present owner. This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Serge Mendjisky (French, 1929-2017)Quai des Celestins, Parissigned and dated 'S.Mendjisky/74' (lower left); bears title (on the reverse) oil on canvas 50.8 x 65.4cm (20 x 25 3/4in).Footnotes:ProvenanceWith Galerie L'Orangeraie, Paris, no. 3370.Anon. sale, Ader-Picard-Tajan, Paris, 22 June 1989, lot 166.Private collection, France.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: * AR* VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.AR Goods subject to Artists Resale Right Additional Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Eugene Petit (French, 1839-1886)Spaniels flushing a woodcock signed 'E.Petit' (lower right)oil on canvas 54 x 65.1cm (21 1/4 x 25 5/8in).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Eugene Petit (French, 1839-1886)Spaniels wildfowling signed 'E.Petit' (lower right)oil on canvas54 x 65.1cm (21 1/4 x 25 5/8in).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Edward William Cooke, RA (British, 1811-1880)The upper floor of Rembrandt's father's mill, Koukerksigned, dated 'E.W. Cooke/1838'; inscribed 'JAN BRANDT/R' (to the wall centre right) oil on panel 50 x 61cm (19 11/16 x 24in). Footnotes:ProvenancePurchased by Sir Thomas Baring, 1839, and by descent to The Countess of Northbrook, C.B.E., sold for the benefit of the Red Cross and St John Fund, Christie's, London, 20 December 1940, part lot 46, as A Corner of the Mill (2½ gns to Gibbon).H. S. Gibbon, Christie's, London, 30 October 1942, part lot 89, as A Corner of the Mill (3 gns to Beck).Anon. sale, Bonham's, London, 22 January 2014, lot 72.ExhibitedLondon, British Institute, 1839, no. 131.LiteratureJohn Munday, E.W.Cooke A Man of his Time, Woodbridge, 1996, Appendix 2: 'Catalogue of Paintings in Oils', 38/18, p.329; Appendix 4: 'The Itinerary 1824-1879: '1838 Oct. 8 Hazersworde: Rembrandt's mill'', p.366Five paintings of 'Rembrandt's father's mill' are mentioned in the Catalogue of Paintings in Oils, three of them being roughly the same size as the present lot including one that depicts the lower chamber of the mill. The other two depict the upper floor and measure 20.5 x 20.5cm and 25 x 32cm respectively. Four of the paintings were exhibited at the British Institute in 1839.One of the versions measuring 20.5 x 20.5cm is illustrated in John Munday, E.W.Cooke A Man of his Time, Woodbridge, 1996, p.249, 38/4, illus. pl.163and was sold at Christie's, 25 January 1974 for £550 (lot 116); and Sotheby's A Great British Collection: The pictures collected by Sir David and Lady Scott, 19 November 2008 for £31,250 (lot 18).The version measuring 25 x 32cm was sold at Sotheby's, Chester, 6 November 1986 for £528 (lot 3192). Both of these versions are cropped compositionally as well as being of smaller dimensions than the present lot.For an external view of Rembrandt's father's mill see 'The Mill on the Old Rhine near Leiden', J. Munday, E.W.Cooke..., p.107, 38/19, illus. pl. 53.The present lot is a rare example of a Dutch interior from Cooke, him being mostly pre-occupied with maritime subjects. The fact that this mill was in Rembrandt's family was obviously of great interest to the artist. This is demonstrated by his returning to the subject repeatedly and also a note detailing the link of the mill to the van Rhijn family via Rembrandt's father which Cooke wrote and attached to the back of one of the pictures he exhibited at the British Institute. It was acquired by William Wells who kept an open house for artists in Redleaf, where Cooke stayed frequently.The well worn steps, the objects hanging on the walls, the old hook holding up the sack for the flour to find at the bottom of the wooden ramp, well polished by use, all of these details combine to create a vivid portrait of a place of work. The building seems to have seen better days but still functions and does so with great character, all of which is captured by Cooke who relishes these details as well as the overall composition which draws the eye through the room, past the shutter hanging off its hinge and out to the river beyond. The rich and varied ochres, siennas and umbers that form the palette are a tribute to Rembrandt whilst maintaining the unmistakable economy and strong draughtsmanship of Cooke.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Pieter Cornelis Dommersen (Dutch, 1834-1908)Kampen on the Zuiderzee signed and dated 'P.C.Dommersen.1890' (lower left); stamped with artist's wax seal and bears title (on the reverse)oil on panel28 x 38.4cm (11 x 15 1/8in).This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Circle of John Robert Dicksee (British, 1817-1905)Cinderella going to the ball bears monogram (lower right); bears title (on the reverse)oil on canvas93 x 82.5cm (36 5/8 x 32 1/2in).unframedThis lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
William Callow, RWS (British, 1812-1908)Town hall at Courtrai, Belgiumsigned and dated 'WmCallow 1858' (lower right) oil on board 25.4 x 35cm (10 x 13 3/4in).Footnotes:ProvenanceThe collection of John Fisher, 1877.The collection of Adam C. Capper, Belfast.Anon. sale, Christie's, lot 35, 1968.ExhibitedBritish Institution, 1858, no. 209.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
Charles Burton Barber, ROI (British, 1845-1894)The lamb with the lion signed and dated 'C.B.Barber/1873' (lower right)oil on canvas71 x 91.5cm (27 15/16 x 36in).Footnotes:ProvenanceGifted to the grandmother of the present owner, 1950s.Thence by descent.Private collection, USA.An unusual subject for the artist, in the present lot, Barber has used his skills as an animal painter to produce a work brimming with religious symbolism. Used in Christianity to represent the Messianic Age, the lion is seen to symbolise Christ's resurrection, while the lamb stands for Christ's sacrifice. The symbols are also used to represent a time of peace; the work makes an interesting comparison with William Strutt's 1896 work Peace which draws inspiration from Isaiah, and depicts a child surrounded by a group of animals, among which a lion stands next to a lamb.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
SYNTHETIC SAPPHIRE AND DIAMOND CLUSTER EARCLIPS AND RINGEach earclip set with a synthetic sapphire cabochon within a brilliant-cut diamond surround, the ring of similar design, diamonds approx. 1.80cts total, earclip length 1.6cm, ring size approx. K½ (2)Footnotes:Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
BLACK ENAMEL AND GEM-SET SNAKE BRACELET/WATCHDesigned as a coiled, double-headed snake with sprung structure, the body decorated with black enamel, the eyes set with marquise-cut emeralds, each head accented with brilliant-cut diamonds and opening to reveal a watch dial, diamonds approx. 1.90cts total, inner circumference approx. 14.0cm (adjustable)Footnotes:Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
BLACK ENAMEL AND GEM-SET SNAKE RINGDesigned as a coiled snake with sprung structure, the body decorated with black enamel, the eyes set with marquise-cut emeralds, the head and tail accented with brilliant-cut diamonds, ring size approx. K½ (adjustable)Footnotes:Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
SAPPHIRE AND DIAMOND RING, CIRCA 1950The octagonal step-cut sapphire, weighing 19.33 carats, between brilliant-cut diamond accents, within radiating courses of baguette-cut diamonds, in a raised wirework setting, diamonds approximately 1.20cts total, French assay mark, ring size approx. MFootnotes:Accompanied by a report from The Gem & Pearl Laboratory stating that the sapphire is of Sri Lankan origin with no evidence of heat treatment. Report number 19751, dated 7th April 2021.Accompanied by a report from Laboratoire Français de Gemmologie stating that the sapphire is of Sri Lankan origin, with no indications of heat treatment. Report number 156924, dated 28th September 2001.Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
RUBY AND DIAMOND BRACELETSet with circular-cut rubies and baguette and single-cut diamonds, diamonds approx. 2.60cts total, length 16.5cmFootnotes:Accompanied by a report from Gem & Pearl Laboratory, stating that a sample of rubies were tested as Burmese origin, with no evidence of heat treatment. Report number 21117, dated 1 February 2022.Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
ALDAO: SAPPHIRE AND DIAMOND BROOCH, CIRCA 1960Composed of scrolls of baguette and brilliant-cut diamonds, and pear-shaped sapphires, diamonds approximately 7.50cts total, signed Aldao, length 4.8cmFootnotes:Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
CULTURED PEARL AND DIAMOND BRACELETThe two rows of 8.0mm cultured pearls on a clasp of flowerhead design, set with brilliant-cut diamonds and a cultured pearl, diamonds approx. 1.10cts total, length 18.0cmFootnotes:Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
ENAMEL AND GEM-SET SNAKE BRACELET/WATCHDesigned as a coiled snake with sprung structure, decorated with red enamel, the head opening to reveal a round red dial with dot hour markers and baton quarters, the eyes set with marquise-cut emeralds, the head and tail accented with brilliant-cut diamonds, diamonds approx. 1.20cts, inner circumference 15.0cm adjustableFootnotes:Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
ENAMEL AND GEM-SET SNAKE RINGDesigned as a coiled snake with sprung structure, decorated with red enamel, the eyes set with marquise-cut emeralds, the head and tail accented with brilliant-cut diamonds, ring size approx. M (adjustable)Footnotes:Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
SAPPHIRE AND DIAMOND DRESS RINGThe sugarloaf sapphire weighing 7.09 carats, between baguette-cut diamond shoulders, in a bombé mount, pavé-set with brilliant-cut diamonds, diamonds approximately 6.30 carats total, ring size O½Footnotes:Accompanied by a report from Gem & Pearl Laboratory stating that the sapphire is of Sri Lankan origin with evidence of heat treatment observed. Report number 19748, dated 7 April 2021. Please note this lot has VAT at the prevailing rate on both Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ΩΩ VAT on imported items at the prevailing rate on Hammer Price and Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
* Great War and WW2 South African Medal Group of 4, 1914-15 star “PTE W.B. HUTCHINSON 1st INFANTRY”, British War medal and Bilingual Victory medal “DVR W.B. HUTCHESON S.A.S.C.” with a South African Medal for War Services 1939-45 unnamed as issued. Note differences in spelling of surname. This lot has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to 5% import duty on the hammer price
* Medal Group of 4 for Service in the Indian Army Prior to and During WW2, India General Service medal 1936-39 with clasp North West Frontier 1937-39, “RISLDR FATEH SINGH R.I.A.S.C.”, 1939-45 star, Burma star, War medal 1939-45 and India Service medal (last 4 unnamed as issued) This lot has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to 5% Import Duty on the hammer price
* WW2 Canadian Long Service Medal Group of 7, consisting of 1939-45 star, Italy star, France & Germany star, Defence medal, Canadian Volunteer Service medal with Maple leaf clasp, War medal 1939-45, all unnamed, with a Canadian Forces Decoration GVI named on the reverse of the suspension bar “SGT R.C. COX”. With a small religious medallion. A note with the lot attributes the group to B591424 Sgt. Rod Charles Cox, Royal Canadian Artillery. Group mounted as worn, Defence medal, Volunteer Service medal and War medal appear to be later (non-silver) issues. This lot has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to 5% Import Duty on the hammer price.
* WW2 Territorial Medal Group of 5 to the Royal Engineers, 1939-45 star, Africa star, Defence medal, War medal 1939-45 with an Efficiency medal GVI (2nd type) with bar Territorial, “2052748 SPR E. DABBS R.E.” First 4 unnamed as issued, possibly later issues (copies?), Efficiency medal has been plated. Group court mounted as worn. This lot has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to 5% Import Duty on the hammer price.
* Group of 3 Canadian Medals for WW2 and Korea, consisting of WW2 British War medal 1939-45, unnamed, Queens Korea, Canadian silver issue, “B801636 G.D. HYNES”, United Nations Korea medal “B801636 G.D. HYNES”. With assorted original documents (military and civilian) including Korea Veterans Association membership card (1967), Australian Military Forces driving licence, Canadian Army Clothing & Equipment Statements and several photographs in uniform including a group photograph of 25 Canadian Provost Detachment, Canadian Provost Corps, March 1951 with all individuals identified. Gerald Douglas Hynes was form Toronto. This lot has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to 5% Import Duty on the hammer price.
* Canadian WW2 & Later Medal Group of Five, consisting Defence Medal 1939-45 (Canadian issue in silver), Canadian Volunteer Service medal 1939-45 with a Maple Leaf clasp for overseas service, War Medal 1939-45 (Canadian issue in silver) and a United Nations Korea medal (unnamed), medals mounted on bar as worn. With a Canadian Forces Decoration, ERII, named to “SGT W H THOMPSON”. This item has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to a 5% import duty on the hammer price.
* Canadian Medal Group of Six Covering Service from WW2 Into the Korean Conflict, group consists 1939-45 star, France & Germany star, Defence medal 1939-45 (Canadian silver issue), War Medal 1939-45 (Canadian silver issue), Canadian Volunteer Service medal 1939-45 with a Maple Leaf clasp for overseas service and a United Nations Korea medal awarded to “SB4735 C.H. PRICE”. This item has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to a 5% import duty on the hammer price.
* Canadian Medal Group of Four Covering Service from WW2 Through to the Korean War, group consists of WW2 British War medal 1939-45, unnamed as issued, Queens Korea Canadian silver version “SD800408 J.F. PARR”, United Nations Korea medal “SD800408 J.F. PARR”, Canadian Special Service medal with clasp NATO-OTAN, unnamed as issued. War medal appears to be British version. Service number prefix indicates enlistment in District 4, Western Quebec. This item has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to a 5% import duty on the hammer price
* Canadian Long Service Medal Group of Six Covering Service in WW2 and with the United Nations, Canadian Volunteer Service medal, War medal 1939-45, Canadian Peacekeeping Service medal. United Nations Emergency Force medal, United Nations Force In Cyprus medal, Canadian Forces Decoration ERII, “CPL F ROBERT”. Group court mounted as worn, first 2 medals later issues. This item has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to a 5% import duty on the hammer price.
* A WW2 Canadian Long Service Medal Group of Seven, consisting 1939-45 star, Italy star, France & Germany star, Defence medal, Canadian Volunteer Service medal with maple leaf bar, War medal 1939-45, all unnamed as issued with a Canadian Forces Decoration ERII, “CPL D C TURNBULL”. This item has been imported from outside the EU so is subject to a 5% import duty on the hammer price.
Loading...-
150138 item(s)/page