The gracious neo-classical mansion that is Townley Hall near Drogheda offers a fitting backdrop this weekend for viewing the annual James Adam country house collections sale. Irish Georgian furniture is a strong point of this auction along with classical Irish art, silver and collectibles like a 19th century cold painted model of a tiger by Bergman of Vienna. Fine English furniture including a pair of giltwood console tables in the manner of William Kent will also feature strongly in this sale.Ahead of a busy upcoming week of auctions there is viewing at Townley today and tomorrow. If you can’t make it to Townley Hall the catalogue is online. Adams sale is online from Dublin on Monday and Tuesday.
An Egyptian Pony, ‘Whisperer’ with Two Irish Terriers and a Goat by a Stream in an Irish Landscape at Adams. UPDATE: THIS MADE 38,000 AT HAMMER
The sale of Irish art and design at de Veres on October 20 – highlighted by an iconic egg chair by Arne Jacobsen from 1958 – caters to a different taste. No matter. The eclectic style now in vogue allows much mixing and matching in any interior. Classical pieces from different eras sit comfortably side by side in many stylish contemporary homes. At de Veres there are chairs by Jacobsen, Mies van der Rohe, le Corbusier and the Norwegian Sigurd Ressell and a gilt metal table identical to one at Chanel’s apartment at 31 Rue Cambon. There are some highly collectible art pieces headed by Donald Teskey’s Cork Landscape (€20,000-€30,000) with work by Louis le Brocquy, Sean McSweeney, Martin Gales and 30 works from the studio of Reginald Grey, a portrait artist who was best man at Brendan Behan’s wedding.
