Eilis O’Connell: A Family of Things, the first major survey exhibition of one of our most important contemporary artists, is at the F.E. McWilliam Gallery in Banbridge, Co. Down until September 30. It features unseen early sculptures and key examples from throughout the career of a renowned sculptor who is perhaps not celebrated enough at home. Supported by the Henry Moore Foundation the exhibition explores the development of O’Connell’s sculpture practice over almost five decades. Based in Cork O’Connell was born in Derry, studied in Cork and Boston and spent several decades working in England where she was celebrated for large scale sculptures in steel, stone and bronze. A member of Aosdana and an international Fellow of the Royal Society of Sculptors she has an extensive exhibition history at home and internationally and a founder member of the National Sculpture Factory in Cork.
Vase of Flowers by Geraldine O’Brien UPDATE: THIS MADE 550 AT HAMMER
A still life by the noted Limerick based botanical artist Geraldine M O’Brien and an arresting 1970 lithograph of Noisiu – lover of Deirdre of the Sorrows of Celtic mythology – by Louis le Brocquy are among the works at Morgan O’Driscoll’s current off the wall online Irish art auction. The evening sale on August 8 follows hard on the heels of a successful auction by Morgan O’Driscoll last Monday. This time around the offerings are more affordable. The le Brocquy is a lithograph, number 46 from an edition of 70, and is estimated at €1,500-€2,500. Though Geraldine O’Brien was a celebrated and popular artist her work remains affordable. Still Life – Vase of Flowers is estimated at just €700-€1,000. With a selection from Arthur Maderson and Graham Knuttel to Michael Hales and Annemarie Bourke this big sale has something to suit everyones taste. The catalogue is online.
Noisiu (1970) by Louis le Brocquy. UPDATE: THIS MADE 3,600 AT HAMMER
The doors to the full and fascinating world of Fredde Mercury open today at Sotheby’s in London. Every inch of Sotheby’s 16,000 square foot gallery space in New Bond Street has been given over to the vast array of costumes, hand-written lyrics, drawings, furniture, and decorative and fine art that were so much a part of Mercury’s life and with which he lived in his beautiful London home, Garden Lodge. At the heart of the exhibition will be the piano pictured here – revealed today for the first time – that was deeply precious to Mercury and a vital element in the creation of his greatest compositions: his treasured Yamaha G2 Baby Grand Piano, estimated at £2-3 million. On it he composed over a decade of hits, from Bohemian Rhapsody to Barcelona.
By 1975, the trusty old upright piano on which Freddie had composed the hits on Queen’s first three albums was no longer equal to his ever more panoramic musical ambitions. With the financial backing of music mogul Don Arden – who was unsuccessfully attempting to woo Queen to his management table – Freddie set out to find the perfect piano, with a sound that resonated with his evolving musical ambitions. After an intensive search lasting many weeks, he finally found what he was looking for: a rare baby grand with an easy keyboard action, an elegant look, and a particularly clean and clear sound, made by the Japanese manufacturer Yamaha, who had only recently started importing their instruments to England. The piano would just about fit into the small apartment he was sharing at the time with Mary Austin. As she recalls, ‘Freddie treated the Yamaha with absolute respect. He considered it to be more than an instrument, it was an extension of himself, his vehicle of creativity. He would never smoke at the piano or rest a glass on top of it and would ensure nobody else did either. The piano was always pristine.’
The new piano very soon proved its worth. In the months after its arrival, he used it to develop and hone the epic track Bohemian Rhapsody, released towards the end of that year. The London exhibition continues until September 5. On September 6, 7 and 8 Sotheby’s will hold three auctions devoted to the Freddie Mercury Collection. Meantime three online Freddie Mercury auctions running to September 11, 12 and 13 will get underway on August 11.
(See post on antiquesandartireland.com for April 26, 2023)
HENRY MORGAN (B.1952)- Crashing Wave, Blackhead (2023). UPDATE: THIS MADE 3,200 AT HAMMER
This oil on canvas by Henry Morgan is lot 11 at Morgan O’Driscoll’s current off the wall online art auction. The estimate is €700-€1,000. Viewing for the auction gets underway today in Skibbereen and the catalogue is online. Bidding ends on the evening of August 8. There is a wide variety of art and artists from Banksy to Bono, Christo to Sheppard Fairey, Harry Kernoff to Louis le Brocquy and many more.
A watercolour by Nano Reid, Sailing on the Boyne, made a hammer price of €48,000 at Morgan O’Driscoll’s online Irish art sale on July 31. Kilcummin Head, Co. Mayo by Donald Teskey made €36,000, Atlantic Famine Ship by John Behan made €25,000 and Bar-B-Que by Graham Knuttel made €8,000.
René Magritte – La Valse Hésitation (1955). UPDATE: THIS MADE €11,177,000
René Magritte’s Masked Apples will make their auction debut at Sotheby’s in Paris on October 19 with an estimate of €10-15 million. This is the highest ever estimate for a work of art at Sotheby’s in France. La Valse hésitation depicts two masked apples shrouded in night-time shadows, against the backdrop of a bright blue sky peppered with Magritte’s characteristic clouds. The motif was conceived in the early 1950s, at the same moment as his most important series – L’Empire des Lumières – was similarly seeking to capture the paradox of day meeting night.
The painting has not been seen in public since 1979, where it was the subject of an exhibition at the Galerie Isy Brachot, and has since been treasured in three private collections in the artist’s homeland of Belgium. It is coming to the open market for the first time. The apple is central to Magritte’s oeuvre – and the countless iterations he inspired in popular culture. Here, the apple – an intimate object familiar from the centuries-old artistic tradition of the still life and harking back to the Garden of Eden – is transformed into a mysterious, anthropomorphic character. With the addition of a simple mask, without any facial features, Magritte opens to the door to countless possibilities.
Sotheby’s Paris Modernités auction on 19 October will present works by artists from the emergence of the European avant-garde to the Post-War period, showcasing the modernist movements across Europe and the overlapping dialogues within this rich artistic moment.
An Irish George IV secretaire, possibly Cork, at Fonsie Mealy. UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,400 AT HAMMER
A unique collection of bog oak artefacts, a rare complete set of 1791 Views of the City of Dublin after James Malton, an 18th century Chinoiserie lacquered two door cabinet on stand, a George II giltwood wall mirror and an important pair of percussion duelling pistols by H.W. Mortimer, London are among the top lots at Fonsie Mealys three day sale in Castlecomer on August 1, 2 and 3. This auction is brimful of interest and offers a diverse and eclectic selection of 1,292 lots of antiques and collectibles.
Rainbow No. 5 by Patrick Scott, woven by V’soske Joyce UPDATE: THIS MADE 3,000 AT HAMMER
There is antique furniture, paintings, Irish and international art, silver, plate, militaria from a private collection in Northern Ireland, jewellery, ceramics, clocks, glassware, carpets, garden furniture, advertising signs and other collectibles. Among them is an Irish George IV mahogany breakfront secretaire, possibly made in Cork, which came from the Presentation Order at Blackrock, Cork. The estimate is €2,000-€3,000. Rainbow No. 5 is the title of a Patrick Scott tapestry with V’soske Joyce label commissioned for the Kilkenny Design Centre. It is one of two tapestries by the late artist in the sale commissioned by Kilkenny Design. Each is estimated at €1,500-€2,000.
One of the more unusual lots is a collection of 108 rare Irish bog oak artefacts by Cornelius Goggin (1850-1914) and other carvers. There is a jewellery casket, a two panel tea caddy, a book slide, candlesticks, an Irish round tower, boxes, photograph frames and harps all profusely carved. The lot is estimated at €8,000-€12,000, as is the Chinoiserie cabinet and the George II mirror mentioned above. The most expensively estimated lot is the complete set of 24 engraved plates of Dublin views after James Malton (€10,000-€15,000). A selection of signed prints by L.S. Lowery, Paul Henry and James Humbert Craig will be available at more affordable estimates.
A pair of early 19th century Cork water jugs. UPDATE: THESE MADE 850 AT HAMMER
A fine pair of early 19th century Cork water jugs by The Terrace Glassworks which operated more than 200 years at South Terrace in the city centre have a hobnailed centre panel and partially serrated edges. The estimate is €250-€350. A c1689 portrait of Sir Maurice Eustace, Lord Chancellor of Ireland after the Restoration of Charles II who gave his name to Eustace St. in Dublin city centre, is from the circle of James Gandy and estimated at €4,000-€6,000. A rarity of a different sort is a polychrome mask from Papua, New Guinea, probably Sepik River (€200-€300). This is one of a number of lots of ethnographic art.
A polychrome mask from Papua, New Guinea. UPDATE: THIS MADE 110 AT HAMMER
The militaria section includes pistols, swords of various types, spears, daggers, pikeheads, bayonets, sabres and even a percussion pocket knife pistol. The top lot is the cased pair of duelling pistols by Mortimer (€6,000-€8,000). There is a selection of clocks, garnitures and longcase clocks, lot 726 is a six tier Delft tulipiere of pyramid form (€800-€1,200) and the sale offers a collection of Chinese cloisonne ware.Among numerous lots of interest is a solid silver limited edition Christ of St. John of the Cross by Salvador Dali (€3,000-€5,000), a 16th century Spanish School carved polychrome and parcel gilt of St. Michael and the Devil (€4,000-€6,000), an Irish sofa table by Williams and Gibton with lion paw feet (€800-€1,500), a set of 24 19th century dining chairs from the Presentation Order, Blackrock, Cork (€2,500-€3,200) and a massive composition sandstone urn (€1,500-€2,500). The catalogue is online and the auction will be on view in Castlecomer from 1 pm to 6 pm tomorrow (July 30) and from 10.30 am to 6 pm next Monday.
PETER CURLING (B.1955) – July Course Study, Newmarket. UPDATE: THIS MADE 7,000 AT HAMMER
July Course Study, Newmarket, an oil on canvas by Peter Curling, comes up as lot 15 at Morgan O’Driscoll’s Irish art online auction which runs until the evening of July 31. The estimate is 8,000-12,000. There is art by Jack Butler Yeats, John Behan, May Guinness, Brian Ballard, Orla de Bri and many other artists on offer. The sale is now on view in Skibbereen and the catalogue is online.
Salvador Dali, Spanish (1904-1989) – Cristo de San Juan de la Cruz. UPDATE: THIS MADE 5,500 AT HAMMER
Among numerous unusual and highly collectible lots at Fonsie Mealy’s three days sale in Castlecomer on August 1, 2 and 3 is this limited edition solid silver piece by Salvador Dali (lot 882). Christ of St. John of the Cross is in its original presentation case and is about nine inches high. The signed piece dates to around 1974 and is number 103 from an edition of 250. The estimate is €3,000-5,000. The catalogue for this sale of 1,292 lots is online and it will be on view in Castlecomer on July 30 and 31.
Christ of St John of the Cross by Salvador Dalí at the Kelvingrove Gallery in Glasgow is one of the best-loved works in Glasgow Museums’ entire collection, for both tourists and Glaswegians alike.
DONALD TESKEY (B.1956) – Kilcummin Head, Co. Mayo (2020). UPDATE: THIS MADE 36,000 AT HAMMER
This 2020 work by Donald Teskey comes up as lot 6 at Morgan O’Driscoll’s current online Irish art auction. The online catalogue features work by Evie Hone, John Behan, Jack Butler Yeats, Nano Reid, Orla de Bri, Cecil King, Sir William Orpen and many other Irish artists. The sale runs until the evening of Monday, July 31 and will be on view in Skibbereen, west Cork from July 27. Kilcummin Head by Teskey is estimated at €15,000-€25,000.
