Exclusive - Garrick Club buys 'Garrick' by Zoffany
December 8 2011
Picture: Sotheby's
There was great speculation last night as to who bought the pair of Zoffanys showing the actor David Garrick at play. The pair sold at the lower estimate of £6 million, making £6.8m in all. The buyer was the Garrick Club, and the pictures will hang alongside their pre-eminent collection of theatrical portraits, including numerous Zoffanys. This is splendid news for the preservation of English heritage, for there was a risk the pictures could have been sold overseas. It seemed to me that the Garrick's was the only bid in the room - so it may be that they could have let them get bought in, and secured a lower price.
Sotheby's total last night was £20m, so a little less than Christie's £24m. Quite a few lots bought in, and the room was a little subdued. But they did set a new record for a work by Jan Steen, which sold for £4.3m hammer (£4.85m with premium) below its £4.5m-£6m estimate.
