Forthcoming Auctions
 

Bonham's
Painting by Pakistani artist who illustrated Camus Novel along with Indian Masters
June 2

Sadequain

A painting by Sadequain (Pakistan, 1937-1987) titled 'Three sitting figures', is estimated to sell for£23,000-28,000 at Bonhams Modern and Contemporary Middle Eastern & South Asian Art. Sadequain was one of the first modern artists from the Indian Subcontinent to achieve international fame and at the relatively early age of thirty-one. Whilst living in Paris in the 1960s he was chosen to illustrate the novel, The Stranger by Albert Camus, a significant achievement for the artist. He was also awarded the 'Laureate Biennale de Paris' for his painting titled 'The Last Supper'.

That Sadequain can be compared to Picasso by the French establishment shows how his innate talent was accepted as a reflection of their own great and revered master, Pablo Picasso. By 1964 Sadequain had firmly established his footing in French art circles. 'Le Monde et Lavie' in Paris reported in its April edition, "The multiplicity of Sadequain's gifts is reminiscent of Picasso." A comparison of a young Asian artist to an important figure such as Picasso was a triumph indeed. Sadequain never looked back, and while shuttling between Europe and Asia during the mid-1960s created a significant body of work over a period of seven years that in isolation could place him amongst the most significant artists of the era.

Three Sitting Figures is a study of abstract figurative forms and was painted in Karachi in March 1963. The artist possibly saw it as an important and rare work as it was deemed significant enough for it to be brought with the artist to Paris. Other than this, Bonhams second dedicated London sale of Modern & Contemporary Middle Eastern & South Asian art will feature an interesting selection of works. Offered for sale are two works from Farhad Moshiri's Jar series, one exe-cuted in soft golden brown hues, the other in a vivid turquoise-blue against a gold background (estimates £40,000-60,000). These are offered alongside an important work by Iranian artist Nasrollah Afjehei (estimates: £40,000-60,000) and pieces by Faramarz Pilaram, Pouran Jinchi and Afshin Pirhashemi. Important works by artists Dia Azzawi and Is-sam El-Said which were exhibited at their first one-man shows are also to be offered for sale.

The Indian contingent wil include an important work by Jehangir Sabavala, a part of his first solo exhibition. Two works by Maqbol Fida Husain along with an interesting work by Bhupen Khakhar titled `Republic Day' are to be of-fered alongside high quality pieces by Nandalal Bose, Jamini Roy, Syed Haider Raza, B. Prabha and Sadanand Bakre.


Provocative Elton John piece for sale
June 16
 

Zach the cigarette girl

A stunning and provocative Art Deco statuette, 'The Cigarette Girl, (£20,000 30,000) once owned by Elton John is coming up for auction at Bonhams 'Design from 1860' sale on Wednesday 16 June. During the 1970s, the singer amassed a high quality art deco collection, sparking a fashion among the rich and famous for work of this period. Much of John's art deco collection was dispersed at auction in 1988.

The bronze and ivory figure shows a self confident young woman, arms crossed, posing playfully and provocatively with her cigarette. Dressed in a remarkably modern way for women of the time (her leather jacket and tight fighting pants later known as cigarette trousers bringing to mind the look of Garbo or Deitrich) 'The Cigarette Girl' is the work of Brono Zach. Zach specialised in portrayals of women in flirtatious poses and his work has steadily increased in value in recent years. In 2009, Bonhams sold his 'The Riding Crop' for the world record price of £60,000.

The sale also features three highly important pieces by the Hungarian sculptor Demetre Chiparus, - 'Kora', (£35,000 45,000) 'Priestess' (£15,000 18,000) and 'Dancer of Kapathala' (£20,000 25,000). These date from the mid 1920s, when Rumanian born Chiparus had been living and working in France for several years, and show the enduring influ-ence on his work of the Ballet Russes and the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922.



Former PM on sale
June 23

Even as Britain grapples with a hung Parliament, Bonham's will be holding the 'Spitting Image' sale of puppets of former Prime Minister John Major and his wife Norma at the Bonhams Entertainment auction. Estimated at £3,000-3,500 these puppets appeared in the British satirical puppet show during the Tory Prime Minister's final term of office. The puppet is made entirely in shades of grey including his skin reflecting the writers' impression of his dull character. In the show he was shown enjoying meals of peas in silence with his wife Norma and being mocked by the Downing Street cat.

Bonhams has previously sold Spitting Image puppets of Gordon Brown (£4,800, June 2007), Margaret Thatcher (£5,040, June 2007) and Tony and Cherie Blair (£12,600, January 2008).

Stephanie Connell of Bonhams Entertainment Memorabilia Department comments, “These items are a great piece of British television and political memorabilia and the popularity of Spitting Image puppets continues they are much loved by politicians and the public alike.”

Why not snap up your own piece of political memorabilia?


French luxury on sale
June 23

The weird and wonderful contents of the late luxury watch manufacturer Severin Wunderman's 12-bedroom chateau in the South of France, the place where he enjoyed spending time the most, are to be sold at Bonhams, Knightsbridge on 23 June 2010. It will be the third in a series of sales of Wunderman's remarkable collection: the contents of his Califor-nia and Chelsea homes achieved excellent results at Bonhams auctions in May and November 2009 fetching $500,000 and £889,902 respectively. Head of the Furniture Department at Bonhams, Knightsbridge, Charlie Thomas, comments: “It has been a privilege to work on this sale. Every room in Chateau Montfort was like a treasure trove - a feast for the eyes. This sale is perfect for buyers who are looking for unique, one-off pieces at affordable prices.” Wunderman, the founder of Gucci timepieces and owner of Swiss luxury brand Corum, was well-known for his eclectic taste. This sale comprises 18th and 19th century furniture, sculpture, hunting trophies, glass, ceramics, and 18th and 19th century paint-ings, as well as more unusual items such as a pair of larger-than-life Majolica hens (estimate £800 1,200 each), which stood in the kitchen; a pair of early 20th century African elephant tusks mounted as a dressing mirror (£3,000 4,000); and a number of carved and painted fairground animals with prices ranging from £400 2,000.


Fine English furniture on sale in Australia
June 25-26

The sale at Bonham's Australia includes some of the finest English and Continental furniture and works of art, Natural history including taxidermy, Australian paintings, clocks, silver, art deco, ceramics, European paintings, Chinese and Japanese works of art, Tribal, Oceanic and Aboriginal art, tapestry and Russian art. It promises to be a feast for collectors worldwide. Chairman of Bonhams, Robert Brooks, comments: "This will be the most glamorous and exciting sin-gle owner sale anywhere in the world this year. It is a world-class collection put together by someone with a real eye for the best and the most beautiful art. Because a significant part of the items are sold without reserve it will create massive interest. Many of the objects are simply breathtaking.” Bonhams won the right to sell the collection in its entirety as a single-owner sale titled “The Owston Collection” following tough competition from local and international auctioneers. The decision to entrust the sale to Bonhams was made by Stephen Duncan and Chris Powell of KordaMentha in their capacity as Receivers and Managers for Owston Nominees No 2. Pty Ltd.

Some of the star lots in the sale include: Sir Joseph Banks collector's cabinets estimated to sell for A$250,000 to 350,000. * An important and rare early 19th century Russian ormolu forty-two light chandelier. Estimate A$150,000-200,000. * Norman Alfred Lindsay (Australian, 1879-1969)'The Sisters' signed 'Norman Lindsay' oil on canvas. Esti-mate A$160,000-240,000. * An Important late George II giltwood mirror. Estimate A$100,000-160,000.


Porcelain owned by Sussex collector to go under the hammer
June 30

Porcelain plate

An outstanding collection of Blue and White Porcelain assembled by the renowned ceramics expert Geoffrey Godden is to be auctioned at Bonhams on Wednesday 30th June. Godden's encyclopaedic knowledge has earned him the nick-name 'God' to many in the ceramics field, and this collection, many items of which are included in his Guide to British Blue & White Porcelain, is much admired. Geoffrey Godden, a leading British authority on ceramics, and the author of over 30 books on the subject, was the second generation of an antique dealing family. He learnt about antiques, and particularly ceramics, in his father's shop in Worthing before starting to collect English blue and white in 1948 while on National Service. One of his first purchases was three teapots from the sale of the contents of Wentworth Woodhouse in Yorkshire, which he bought for £11. One of these (c.1746-48) is included in this auction and is now expected to fetch £15,000-20,000. Highlights include a very rare Worcester plate painted with 'Boys at Play', circa 1752, estimate £10,000-12,000; an Isleworth tankard, inscribed with initials and dated 1779 (£6,000-8,000) and a Lowestoft miniature or toy teapot, circa 1785 (£6,000-8,000).


Christie's
The Sensational 6 jewel sale
June 1

'The Sensational Six'is a selection of six superlative gems which will draw the eyes of the jewellery world to Hong Kong on June 1. Each the best of its type, these jewels present serious gem collectors with a remarkable opportunity at a time when high quality jewels become increasingly rare on the market. Led by a magnificent single-strand jadeite bead necklace (estimate: US$6.4-10 million) and a superb 5.01carat Fancy Vivid Blue VS2 heart-shaped diamond ring (US$4.8-7million), the other lots include a stunning pair of 2.48 carat and 2.03 carat Fancy Deep Blue heart-shaped and 10.12 carat D VS2 and 9.61 carat E VS1 pear-shaped diamond ear pendants (estimate: US$3.7-5 million); an exquisite Kashmir sapphire and diamond bracelet, circa 1960, by Cartier (estimate: US$3-5 million); an impressive 10.05carat D IF old cushion-shaped Golconda diamond ring (estimate: US$1.25-2 million) and an exceptional four-strand natural coloured pearl and diamond necklace (estimate: US$1.2-2 million).


Sky Moon Tourbillon tops Hong Kong sale of watches
June 2

Jules Audemars Dynamograph

Presenting over 570 lots with a pre-sale estimate of US$ 10.5 million, Christie's Spring auction of Important Watches marks its largest and most valuable ever offered in Hong Kong, with top examples offered from makers such as Audemars Piguet, Breguet, Cartier, Patek Philippe, Rolex, Ulysse Nardin, and Vacheron Constantin.

Leading the sale is The Millennium Collection, a selection of over 170 of the finest and most technically intricate watches ever assembled in a single private collection. Valued at US$1.7 million, this collection was assembled over the last decade by a passionate connoisseur with an eye for only the finest in horology design. Forming the cornerstone of this season's auction, this collection will offer today's discerning collectors the opportunity to acquire truly inspiring creations of horological ingenuity.



Francis Newton Souza revealed & celebrated at Christie's in June
9 June
 

Christie's unveils an unprecedented sale of works of art selected from the Estate of Francis Newton Souza to take place on 9 June 2010 as part of the South Asian Modern & Contemporary Art auction. Comprising over 150 lots created throughout the artist's career - from the late 1930s through to the 1990s and through his time in India, London and New York the sale includes paintings, drawings, collages, watercolours and prints as well as ten revealing sketch books. Estimates range from £1,000 to £150,000, offering collectors an extraordinary and unprecedented opportunity to participate in an event that celebrates and commemorates one of 20th Century India's leading artists.

 

South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art 'Untitled (Arjuna & Krishna)' by M F Husain a 10 June
'Saurashtra' by S H Raza	Christie's South Kensington would present some of the best works of Indian masters. S.H.Raza's Saurashtra has an estimate of £1,300,000 - £1,800,000 followed by Husain's Untitled (Arjuna & Krishna) which has an estimate of £500,000 - £700,000. The other artists whose works are up for auction include Husain, Tyeb Mehta, Subodh Gupta, V.S.Gaitonde, Ram Kumar, Ganesh Pyne, Hemendranath Mazumder and others.	'Falling Bird' by Tyeb Mehta

Emperor Tiberius, Ramesses II and Cleopatra's son lead Antiques Auction in NY
June 10

This sale of Antiquities will offer over 150 lots with a stunning selection of Roman marbles, Greek helmets and vases, and Egyptian art. The high-light of the sale is a rare Roman marble relief from the Julio-Claudian period, circa early 1st century A.D., that depicts the Em-peror Tiberius standing before a seated Genius with the goddess Concor-dia between them as in-termediary. This out-standing Imperial com-mission, perhaps from an altar or other civic monu-ment, is superbly sculpted in high relief.

Roman Marble relief of Emperor Tiberius

Carved with great tech-nical precision the relief combines depth and per-spective within the limited thickness of the marble slab. The sculptor of the relief was an artist of im-portance and considerable skill, one well acquainted with Classical and Helle-nistic styles of drapery. Another notable work is a Roman bronze lamp stand, circa late 1st century B.C. (estimate: $800,000-1,200,000). On the base of the lamp stand is a figure of a youth, possibly de-picting Alexander Helios, son of Mark Anthony and Cleopatra VII, in the guise of an Armenian prince with his high pyramidal headdress and eastern at-tire. This piece compares to the famous bronze youths, one at the Metro-politan Museum of Art and one at the Walters Art Museum.

The sale also presents a fine Egyptian Diorite Head of an Official, Late Period, Dynasty XXX, 380-343 B.C. (estimate: $500,000-700,000). This is a skillfully sculpted and superbly polished idealiz-ing head, part of a tradi-tion that sought to imbue the individual with eternal youth and vigor. The im-portant official repre-sented would only be identifiable by the accom-panying inscription, here lost. While a number of these portrait heads are preserved in museum col-lections in the U.S. and Europe, this example is rare to the market for its quality and condition.

An Egyptian sandstone relief depicting the Phar-aoh Ramesses II is also featured in the sale, dated to his reign, 1290-1224 B.C. (estimate: $100,000-150,000). Here Ramesses is portrayed offering a bolt of cloth to a deity. It is likely from a column drum. The Pharaoh is wearing a tunic and a short ibes wig with echeloned curls hanging over his ears. Only the right arm and sceptre of the god before him remains. Two of Ramesses' five names in cartouches are visible above, and red pigment for Ramesses' flesh is well preserved.


Mid-century modern lifestyle for sale
June 22

The Interiors sales offer an opportunity to source a diverse and eclectic selection of home furnishings with an extensive selection of lots in each sale including everything from ceramics and textiles to furniture and lighting, whilst each piece is defined by its inherent value and design integrity. The second June sale in this category celebrates fun and funky modern interiors, presenting a large selection of top quality modern design items, and modern and contemporary paintings, as well as antique furniture, carpets, decorative objects etc. Vintage film posters feature in the same magazine-style catalogue, and will be offered the following day, on June 23.
 
 The sale includes a selection of over thirty interesting highlights from a Private London Collection that illustrate progressive space age styling, the trend that defined international design of the 1950s, 60s and 70s. The pieces on offer demonstrate an emphasis on the use of new materials sculpted into fantastic fibreglass shapes from respected designers such as Eero Saarinen, Verner Panton, Joe Colombo, Ettore Sottsass and Marc Newson. These striking works have estimates ranging from just £500.

Picasso masterpiece on offer
June 23

An exceptionally important and highly celebrated masterpiece by Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) will be on offer at the auction of Impressionist and Modern Art in London. Portrait of Angel Fernandez de Soto, 1903 comes from the artist's celebrated Blue Period, arguably the greatest period in Picasso's career.

Portrait of Angel Fernandz de Soto by Picasso

The painting will be priced at £30 million to £40 million and all the proceeds will benefit The Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, a charity founded by the celebrated composer in 1992. Working for the public benefit, The Foundation focuses on the promotion of arts, culture and heritage in Britain.

The painting had been consigned for sale at Christie's in New York in November 2006 but was withdrawn from the auction at the request of the vendor after an 11th hour ownership challenge based on a sale of the painting in the 1930s. This challenge has since been resolved by agreement and the claimants have withdrawn all claims to the painting, leaving the Foundation free to sell the work.

The painting was acquired by The Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation at auction in New York in May 1995 for $29.2 million from the Stralem Collection using funds donated for this purpose by Lord Lloyd Webber. Since then the market for works by Picasso has grown considerably and over 10 works have sold in excess of this figure, including 3 works which have realized over $50 million. In 2004 the Rose Period Garçon à la pipepainted only two years after Portrait of Angel Fernandez de Sotobecame the first painting to sell at auction for over $100 million.



Phillips De Pury
Stunning display of contemporary Italian art
June 30

Italia will provide a comprehensive overview of contemporary Italian visual art and design, in which contemporary masters and younger talents will be showcased together. The sale will offer works of the past 50 years by contemporary Italian artists, designers and photographers, all of whom have had a far-reaching influence on the European avant-garde of the 1950s and beyond.

Masterpieces by artists such as Mimmo Paladino, Alberto Burri, Alighiero Boetti and Giovanni Anselmo alongside an outstanding piece by Salvatore Scarpitta, 'Trapped Canvas', will feature in the Contemporary Art section of the sale.

The sale will present notable works from the Arte Povera movement of the post war years and 1960s as well as works from a younger generation of artists that came to prominence in the 1990s. Works by Michelangelo Pistoletto and Mario Merz will be shown alongside pieces by Maurizio Cattelan, Patrick Tuttofuoco, Paola Pivi, Stefano Arienti, Monica Bonvicini, Roberto Cuoghi and Francesco Vezzoli's spectacular video installations.

Of interest to collectors the Italian design section will form an important part of the Italia sale. The lots will encompass a range of influential design from the works of Giò Ponti, Gino Sarfatti and outstanding Fausto Melotti ceramics to historical Venini glass and significant furniture makers such as Carlo Bugatti and Fontana Arte.

One of the unique highlights from the design section is the 'Sessantuna' table by Gaetano Pesce developed with Cassina. The photography section of the Italia sale will offer arresting and sublime works by artists such as Massimo Vitali and Mario Giacomelli. The sale will also feature work of non-Italian artists who have worked in Italy or who have undertaken projects for Italian galleries and collections.



Sotheby's
Fine and decorative items from the contents of Albermarle House
June 8-9
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The two-day auction will be held on the premises, located outside of Charlottesville, Virginia. Albemarle House, a 45-room English country manor, was conceived by Mrs. Kluge and renowned designer David Easton and is regarded as one of the most important residences created in America since the 'Golden Age'. Among its neighbours are Thomas Jefferson's Monticello and James Monroe's Ash Lawn-Highland. Mrs. Kluge's collection of several hundred works of outstanding Georgian furniture, decorative objects and paintings is estimated in excess of $13.5 million.

Albemarle House, home of Patricia Kluge

Mrs. Kluge will remain in her beloved Charlottesville, where she has lived for almost 30 years, and will continue her duties as chairwoman and owner of Kluge Estate Winery and Vineyard. Following the sale of Albemarle House and the auction of its contents, her future plans include creating a new home on the vineyard property which will be built and decorated in a style entirely different from Albemarle House, reflecting her changing taste and more streamlined lifestyle. She will continue to develop the winery, which is one of the largest and most influential in Virginia, increasing its presence on the world wine map, and she also intends to travel more so that she can enjoy her other homes.



Lorenzo de' Medici's collection rediscovered
June 11

Sotheby's New York will offer for sale a redis-covered antiquity from the collection of