Previous Posts: articles 2023
Channelling Jean-Luc Goddard
July 8 2017
The Deputy Editor greatly enjoyed her time at the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome. In fact, we all did; the new display there, called 'Time is out of joint', is the best curation of modern art that I've yet seen. The works were cleverly placed in context with older art and the gallery space itself, with compelling themes that actually worked. Best of all, there was absolutely no pretentiousness. Every wannabe curator should go and visit this excellent museum. AHN applauds director Cristiana Collu - bravo!
AHN has also started a Vimeo page, where I will post the occasional video taken from my phone.
Achtung - Spitfire! (ctd.)
July 8 2017
Picture: ITV News
Here's a story to stir AHN's passions, including as it does paintings and Spitfires; at Cheffins last week a former Spitfire pilot bid on, and bought, a painting of the Spitfire that he actually had flown in the war. Kurt Taussig, a Jewish refugee who joined the RAF, bought the painting for just £360 hammer. What a bargain, and what a story! More, including a video, here.
Incidentally, AHN will be flying a Sptifire next month... expect more Spitfire news soon!
£3m Jewel theft at Masterpiece
July 8 2017
Picture: Masterpiece
Not art news this, but I was interested to see that thieves had struck at the annual Masterpiece fair in London. Apparently £3m worth of jewellery has been stolen. When I was working at Masterpiece (in my Philip Mould Gallery days) conjuring up schemes to steal some prized gem from a neighbouring booth was a way we exhibitors used to pass the time. Perhaps someone has gone one step too far this time...
'The Costumist' (ctd.)
July 8 2017
Video: Sotheby's
Here's another video from Sotheby's Old Master specialist Jonquil O'Reilly, who is also an expert on historical costume. The auction world is lucky to have such a good communicator - someone needs to put her on the television soon.
Apologies...
July 6 2017
Picture: BG
Sorry for the readio silence today - we were doing some exciting cleaning tests on a picture for Britain's Lost Masterpieces, which took up most of the day. I'll report on the Old Master sales tomorrow.
Bowie's Tintoretto at the Rubenshuis Museum
July 6 2017
Video: Antwerp Museums
Last week I was lucky enough to be invited to the unveiling of a new loan at the Rubenshuis museum in Antwerp (one of AHN's favourite museums, as regular readers will know). There was a wonderful concert of period music, played on 'instrumenti originale'.
The painting, of St Catherine, was one of the first artworks bought by David Bowie, and was sold with his collection last year in London by Sotheby's. It didn't fetch a great deal, to be honest (£191k), as its status was somewhat misunderstood - some suggested it was merely a studio piece. But new research has revealed that in fact it was a major commission for Tintoretto, in competition with Veronese, for a church in St Mark's square in Venice. And new analysis such as infra-red drawing has revealed numerous pentimenti, and astonishing underdrawing, which confirms it as an autograph work by Tintoretto. Eventually, it is hoped that a new campaign of conservation will remove any old overpaint. It has been sympathetically re-framed.
For now, though, the painting looks fantastic at the Rubenshuis - Rubens of course being a great admirer of Tintoretto. A new book on the painting will further explore Rubens' interest in Tintoretto, and how he borrowed many of Tintoretto's poses. Also, it turns out that David Bowie was a frequent visitor of the Rubenshuis - so this all has a serendipitous feel to it, especially when you consider that the private collector who bought the painting in London only found out about it three hours before it was due to sell. And did you know that Bowie's music label was called 'Tintoretto Music'?
I'll post more details on this painting soon, with photos of the infra-red etc, showing the under-drawing.
Tuscan Renaissance 'Cassoni'
July 6 2017
Video: Christie's
Here's Christie's Eugene Pooley talking about Tuscan wedding chests, or 'cassoni'. Christie's evening Old Master sale is tonight - all eyes on the £25m Guardi!
Sargent watercolours
July 6 2017
Video: Dulwich Picture Gallery
Lachlan Goudie guides us around the new Sargent watercolour exhibition at Dulwich Picture Gallery. There was a good review of the show from Jackie Wulschlager in the FT, here.
Brueghel the Younger's 'Wedding Feast'
July 5 2017
Video: Sotheby's
More graphics department fun from Sotheby's.
Identifying Anne of Hungary's Fool
July 5 2017
Video: Sotheby's
When the above portrait was first looked at by specialists it was thought to be of an unknown sitter. But clever decoding of the costume allowed identity of the subject as a court fool to Anne of Hungary, Elizabet.
London Old Master sales
July 5 2017
Video: Sotheby's
Sorry again for the dearth of news - I've been away, mainly filming for series 2 of Britain's Lost Masterpieces in Rome and Florence. The latter meant my first ever visit (I'm ashamed to say) to the Uffizi Gallery and Pitti Palace; wow - what treasures! More on that later.
But first a few thoughts on the London Old Master sales, which I viewed quickly yesterday. Both Christie's and Sotheby's have some seriously impressive pictures on offer. The myth that 'supply' is a problem in the Old Master market has again been disproved, with proper museum quality pictures on offer. The most obvious are of course the £15m-£25m Turner of Ehrenbreitstein at Sotheby's (for which see the amazing animation above) and the mega Guardi at Christie's (no whizzy videos for this though - Christie's marketing department, where are you?).
Regular readers will know that as a Van Dyck anorak I'm biased, but I was very taken with the newly discovered Van Dyck of St Sebastian at Christies. I've known of this painting for some years, and there can be little doubt that it's 'right' - indeed, I think it's even better than the supposed 'prime' version in the Louvre. The estimate, at £1.2m-£1.8m, strikes me as quite reasonable. This is a picture which could quite easily have existed in a major museum for centuries - imagine what the estimate would be if, say, it was being sold from the Louvre.
Another new Van Dyck is at Christie's; an oil on paper head study (from Van Dyck's first Antwerp period) of an old man. This is lot 1 of the evening sale, and seems again to be reasonably priced at £60k-£80k. Like many of these pictures, it has at some point been extended and turned into a more 'finished' picture. But the condition is good overall, and it's a strong image.
Van Dyck also appears at Sotheby's, with a rare grisaille, of the engraver Jean-Baptiste Barbé, estimated at £200k-£300k. Genuine Van Dyck grisailles are rare things, and lots of studio copies and later imitations turn up for sale. This one is certainly autograph, and in good state too.
Sotheby's has a portrait I've been hoping to see for many years; Thomas Lawrence's portrait of the great radical politician Charles James Fox. Years ago I used to work for the Labour MP Tony Banks, who ran the works of art committee in the House of Commons, and was passionate about all things Fox. A Lawrence portrait of Fox was always on his wish-list, and would have been snapped up by him for the Commons collection. When it was painted, the consensus of the day was that Lawrence's portrait was not a success - but I think it's excellent, and this example, in excellent condition, is as fine a demonstration of Lawrence's early technique as you'll find. The estimate is £150k-£200k.
A pricier and more flamboyant British 18thC portrait is Joseph Wright of Derby's Three Eldest Children of Richard Arkwright with a Kite. This (at Sotheby's) is priced at £2m-£3m, and could quite easily have come from Tate Britain. The most intriguing portrait of the week is also at Sotheby's; a depiction of Elisabet, Court Fool of Anne of Hungary, painted by Jan Sanders Van Hemessen (£400k-£600k). There's also a Jan Lievens portrait of a man in profile in fantastically good condition, cheap at £300k-£500k. I must congratulate Sotheby's for putting up good explanatory labels for each lot - not just the artist, title and estimate. It all helps break down the barriers for new collectors I think.
The drawings sales are full of enticing bargains by the big names. I loved the Guercino head study at Sotheby's (£12k-£15k). It's heretical to say it, but I think Guercino was a better draughtsman than a painter. Also interesting is the Liotard portrait of a Lady; this had some condition issues in the borders of the paper, but still seems good value at £10k-£15k. There are also a number of early Turner drawings and watercolours in the low thousands - it seems amazing to me that there is still this price disparity for works by artists like Turner. The centrepiece of Sotheby's drawing sale is a £2.5m-£3.5m view of the Coronation of a Venetian Doge by Canaletto.
Christie's drawing sale has a self-portrait drawing by Sir Joshua Reynolds, priced this time at £100k-£150k. It was up for sale a few years ago at (I recall) £200k-£300k, but didn't sell. It is slightly 'rubbed', but otherwise still does the business. Reynolds did it when he was just seventeen. Turner features in the Christie's sale with this £500k-£700k view of Norham Castle.
There's plenty more to write about, but my train is just pulling into London. As a mark of my dedication to you, AHNers, I've been writing this a la Jeremy Corbyn, sitting on the floor, resting against a bin. That's British trains for you, and I'm afraid it must explain the lack of photos in this post. There's no wifi either. I'm hoping to catch Bonhams sale this morning (their view ended at 4.30pm yesterday!). Also, I wrote a piece for The Art Newspaper on the sales, but for some reason this is not yet online, and only in the printed version. There are some other videos about the sales, which I'll post shortly.
Apologies...
June 30 2017
Picture: BG
I'm sorry about the dearth of news lately, I'm afraid I'm on the road again for Britain's Lost Masterpieces. We're in Rome at the moment, which is as wonderful as ever. Last night we went to film the Girandola fireworks. These were first put on by Michelangelo in 1481, and have been going more or less ever since. It's amazing where the letters 'BBC' can get you overseas, and as you can see above we were able to get right to the front of the crowds.
We're in Rome again today, and then on Sunday off to Florence.
Cleaning Hull's Dobson
June 25 2017
Video: ZCZ Films
The Great Waldemar, who is the British 17th Century artist William Dobson's appointed representative on earth, has paid for the conservation of Dobson's 'Portrait of a Musician' in Hull's Ferens Gallery. He's also made the above short film. Bravo Waldemar!
Claude and the National Gallery
June 25 2017
Video: National Gallery
The National Gallery in London have a new series of videos on the history of taste. In the above video, Susanna Avery-Quash looks at how works by Claude were the cornerstone of the National's collection. You can see the other videos here.
'Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites'
June 25 2017
Video: National Museum of Scotland
There's an excellent new exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland here in Edinburgh on Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobite movement. I wrote a review of the show for the Financial Times, here. It was a pleasure, of course, to see some old friends on display, including the Allan Ramsay portrait of Charles (below), and the La Tour pastel of his brother, Henry, Cardinal York. I always remember fondly the time I had the former on my mantelpiece for a day.
Boughton House
June 25 2017
Picture: BG
It was a great treat to film at Boughton House last week for Britain's Lost Masterpieces. In the photo above, you can see us in the drawing room, where all the Van Dyck grisailles are hung; a holy of holies for us Van Dyck fans.
The attributions for these little monochrome paintings, made as part of the preparations for Van Dyck's series of Iconografie engravings, have swung back and forth over the years. Some of the paintings at Boughton are certainly not by Van Dyck, and have long been accepted as later imitations. But I think the most recent Van Dyck catalogue raisonné, published in 2004, was a little too restrictive in accepting which grisailles were autograph or not. Indeed, the authors of the catalogue did not always agree amongst themselves which works were 'right'.
For example, Horst Vey, the eminent art historians who wrote the relevant 'second Antwerp' period of Van Dyck's career, when the grisailles were painted, rejected the attribution to Van Dyck of the above portrait of Rubens, while Sir Oliver Millar, who wrote the later English section of the catalogue, accepted it. For what it's worth I think Millar was right. The other grisaille of Rubens, below was accepted by both experts.
There will likely never be unanimity about these works, and nor must there be. But it's a fascinating conundrum. Happily, many questions will soon be answered by the new Jordaens and Van Dyck Panel Paintings Project.
Anyway, the point of this post is mainly to tell you that Boughton will soon have its annual summer opening, in August. I highly recommend a trip. More here.
Apologies...
June 21 2017
Picture: BG
Sorry for the lack of posts lately; I'm in London doing some filming for series 2 of Britain's Lost Masterpieces. Today we went to Hampton Court, and tomorrow we're going to Boughton Hall in Northamptonshire. On Monday we were on a boat off the North East coast of Scotland.
Me on connoisseurship!
June 20 2017
Picture: Martin Postle
The Royal Academy have kindly asked me to lead a short weekend course on connoisseurship in December. It will be a very hands on course, and we'll get be up close and personal to some fascinating pictures and conundrums. Although I can't pretend that everybody who comes will be guaranteed to find a Leonardo on Ebay, the idea is to give people the basic tools so that, with practice, one day they might. We also want to start some wider conversations about connoisseurship and its role in art history. More details here.
'Friedländer 3.0'
June 19 2017
Picture: Kikirpa
Digital art history just gets better and better; the Belgian Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage has put all 14 volumes of Max J. Friedlander's English edition of Early Netherlandish Painting (1967-1976). Search for old photos and references to your heart's content here.
