Stephen McKenna PPRHA, 1939-2017 – City by the Lake. UPDATE: THIS MADE 2,600 AT HAMMER
This 2006 oil on canvas by Stephen McKenna is lot 25 at de Veres Irish art sale online until October 15. The estimate is 3,000-5,000. The sale features work by Colin Middleton, Donald Teskey, Mainie Jellett, John Shinnors, Geraldine O’Neill, Gerard Dillon, Patrick Hennessy, Camille Souter, Cecil King and many more artists. There is sculpture by Cathy Carman, Sonja Landweer, John Coen, Sandra Bell, Anna Campbell, Michael Foley and Peter Killeen. Viewing is now underway at de Veres on Kildare St. in Dublin and the catalogue is online.
ALEXANDER CALDER (1898-1976) – Cantilever. UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR £1,028,500
The London art scene moves into full throttle this week and Bonhams will feature this perfectly balanced work by Alexander Calder in its 20th/21st century evening sale on October 10. Cantilever dates to 1973 and was acquired by the present owner from Perls Gallery, New York in 1974. The work was exhibited in 2022 at a show at the Heather James Gallery, Palm Desert entitled Alexander Calder: Painting the Cosmos. It is described as one of the finest standing mobiles to come to market and estimated at £1 million – £1.5 million.
David Hockney – L’Arbois, Sainte-Maxime. UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR £13,150,000
L’Arbois, Sainte-Maxime by David Hockney is among the highlights of Sotheby’s Contemporary evening auction in London on October 9. Executed in 1968 it is part of a celebrated series inspired by the South of France which represents his first serious use of his own photographs as inspiration. The estimate is £7 million to £10 million. The sale features artworks that capture the seismic shifts that occurred in art in the latter half of the 20th century and the artists that paved a radical new mode of art-making altering the course of art history.
Andy Warhol – Eggs. UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR £1,800,000
Monumental in scale and rigorous in conceptual wit, Andy Warhol’s Eggs from 1982 is a graphically impactful and cleverly inventive expression of the artist’s perpetual experimentation within his own unique brand of imagery. The estimate is £2.2 million – £3.2 million.
A pair of mid 18th century card tables. UPDATE: THESE WERE UNSOLD
A pair of mid 18th century folding top card tables one of which was in the renowned collection of Simon Sainsbury – scion of the famous retailing family who died in 2006 – and a c1750 Irish side table will lead Adams annual Country House Collections at Townley Hall sale on October 14 and 15. Each lot is estimated at €30,000-€40,000.
With portraits, hard to come by collectible silver, beautiful furniture and collectibles this annual extravaganza of a sale abounds with rare and rich lots and is a magnet for collectors in Ireland and beyond. Two 18th century Irish School views of the Barne Estate between Clonmel and Cahir, a commanding presence to this day, carry an estimate of €10,000-€15,000. The online catalogue is brimful of items of interest. Viewing gets underway at Townley Hall near Drogheda on October 12. An online only sale with 245 lots gets underway on October 14 and there will be a live auction of 460 lots at Adams headquarters at St. Stephen’s Green in Dublin at 11 am the following day.
Two 18th century Irish School views of the Barne Estate, Co. Tipperary. UPDATE: THE PAIR MADE 9,500 AT HAMMER
The Rory Gallagher Collection headed by his legendary 1961 Fender Stratocaster guitar will be exhibited at Bonhams, New Bond St., London from October 12-17, when it will be auctioned. The incredible musical legacy of the legendary blues rock guitarist is celebrated by the release on October 11 of a new boxset of his recorded performances at the BBC.
Rory Gallagher The BBC Collection is a 20 disc set that includes 18 CD’s of radio concerts and sessions from 1971 to 1986 and two Blu Ray discs of BBC TV concerts and studio performances from 1973 to 1984. Though possibly the most recorded musician by the BBC in the 1970’s more than three quarters of the audio recordings have not been released before. Two CD and triple LP sets – The Best of Rory Gallagher at the BBC – will also be released.
Rory Gallagher’s iconic 1961 Fender Stratocaster. UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR £700,000
In Cork a crowdfunding campaign has been underway since July to bring his iconic Fender Stratocaster back home. This treasured instrument became synonymous with Gallagher and its wear and worn finish have made it one of the world’s most instantly recognisable electric guitars. It has featured in a number of landmark exhibitions, appeared on the cover of countless guitar magazines, and has been played by the likes of Johnny Marr and Joe Bonamassa.
The crowdfunder was initiated by Sheena Crowley of Crowleys Music Shop where Rory bought the guitar for £100 on an instalment plan in 1963. Sheena’s dream is that it might become the centrepiece of a new music museum on the banks of the River Lee.
Rory Gallagher’s Fender Esquire electric guitar (1959). UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR £95,650
The auction consists of guitars, amps and accessories from Rory Gallagher’s life and career. It will include a Fender Player Stratocaster HSS electric guitar donated by Fender to benefit the Music Venue Trust, a charity chosen by the Gallagher family dedicated to protecting, securing and improving grassroots music venues. This has been signed by a number of musicians who cite Rory as an influence, including David Gilmour, Johnny Marr, Ed O’Brien, Nile Rodgers and James Bay.
Highlights include a Fender Telecaster electric guitar (1966), a 1958 Fender Stratocaster known as Rory’s backup strat, a Fender Esquire electic guitar (1959), a Martin D-35 flat top acoustic guitar (1968), a Martin mandolin (1942), a Gibson Les Paul junior electric guitar (1958), a National Triolian resonator guitar (1930) and a Gretsch Corvette electric guitar (1963).
Rory’s brother and former manager Donal commented: ““After nearly thirty years since my brother Rory’s passing, I now believe it’s time for other people to cherish Rory’s ‘orphaned’ 1961 Fender Stratocaster and the rest of his incredible instrument collection. Since 1995, I have always felt that there was a mission to be fulfilled to cement Rory’s legacy and widen the knowledge of his music”.
The live auction on October 17, now open for bidding, consists of 94 lots. A timed online sale with 91 lots with guitars, amps, pedals, instruments, flight cases and accessories runs from October 7-18.
A rare Tychobrahe Octavia 1976/77 from the Rory Gallagher collection. This is an effects pedal designed for Jimi Hendrix and made by the Tychobrahe Sound Company in California. UPDATE: THIS MADE £3,840.
VICTORIAN WALNUT TULIPWOOD AND MARQUETRY INLAID CREDENZA. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
This fine Victorian credenza comes up on day one of the James Adam annual Country House Collections sale at Townley Hall on October 14. Bidding is now open for day one of the sale, a timed online auction of 245 lots. The credenza is lot number 237 and is estimated at €3,000-€5,000. There will be a live auction with 460 lots at St. Stephen’s Green on the following day. Viewing gets underway at Townley Hall near Drogheda on October 12. The carefully curated sale is drawn from country houses right around Ireland and the vast majority of lots have been sourced from Irish private collections. This annual auction has become one of the highlights of the antique and fine arts calendar in Ireland.
Lucian Freud – Ria, Naked Portrait. Painted in 2006-2007. UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR £11,810,000
A seminal work by Lucian Freud – Ria, Naked Portrait – with an estimate of £10 million – £15 million is a highlight at Christie’s 20th/21st century evening sale in London on October 9 during Frieze Week. The painting is deeply rooted in the art historical tradition of the reclining female nude, drawing from a lineage that includes Giorgione, Titian, and Velázquez, and finds a modern culmination in Édouard Manet’s Olympia (1863), a work that Lucian Freud greatly admired.
The sitter, Ria Kirby, was an art handler whom Freud initially met at the Victoria & Albert Museum during his joint exhibition with Frank Auerbach in 2006. Ria went on to become one of his most significant sitters during the final decade of his life, with sessions totalling an intense 2,400 hours over the course of 16 months. Ria, Naked Portrait was completed in 2007 and it is the only portrait of Ria the artist realised. The painting is offered at auction for the first time.
BREON O’CASEY (1928-2011) – SEATED FIGURE (1990). UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,800 AT HAMMER
This unique brass figure by Breon O’Casey comes up as lot number 83 at Whyte’s sale of Important Irish Art in Dublin this evening. The estimate is €2,000-€3,000. A prominent member of the St. Ives School he was a versatile jewellery, weaver, painter and sculptor. O’Casey was a son of the Irish playwright Sean O’Casey. Included in the sale are major works by Jack Butler Yeats, Paul Henry, Grace Henry, William Orpen, Seán Keating, Mildred Anne Butler, William Percy French, William Conor, Mary Swanzy, Colin Middleton, Daniel O’Neill, Nano Reid, Patrick Collins, Camille Souter, Norah McGuinness, Patrick Hennessy, Donald Teskey, Rowan Gillespie, Anthony Scott, Liam O’Neill, Rita Duffy and many more.
A late 17th/early 18th century Aubusson silk and wool tapestry UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
An antique Aubusson tapestry or an Irish 18th carved giltwood mirror? The choice is yours at Victor Mee’s Escape from the Chateau sale with more than 1,900 lots on October 1, 2, 3 and 4 from 6.30 pm each day. The primary vendor is an Irish antique dealer who is moving home from his chateau in the Charente region.
With an estimate of €6,000-€12,000 the tapestry is one of the top lots from his collection which features antique, interior and decorative lots including an Irish mahogany side table (€4,000-€6,000), a Sheraton four poster bed (€3,000-€6,000), an 18th century Dublin pier mirror, a c1765 giltwood mirror with C scroll carving (€3,000-€6,000 each), Middle Eastern decorative items including coffee tables, lanterns, chargers and coffee pots (€50 to €100) and even a 19th century Dublin pawnbrokers sign from Queen St. (€600-€1,200). The auction is on view in Co. Cavan and the catalogue is online.
Irish 18th century carved giltwood pier mirror. UPDATE: THIS MADE 2,900 AT HAMMER
Red Figure, 1957 by Deborah Brown. UPDATE: THIS MADE 2,000 AT HAMMER
A timed auction of the Deborah Brown collection is underway at Adams until October 1. This is a studio collection of her work with reasonable estimates along with art by friends and contemporaries including Mainie Jellett, Evie Hone, James Humbert Craig, Alice Berger Hammerschlag, William Scott and Basil Blackshaw whose art she admired.
Largely unknown at home Deborah Brown, who died in her mid ’90’s last year, was an artist of international repute who evolved into abstraction in the 1950’s and exhibited at the New Vision Centre gallery in London, the Free Painters Group and the Arnolfini in Bristol. A retrospective at the Ulster Museum and the Hugh Lane Gallery was held in 1982 and another at the F E McWilliam gallery in 2012-13.
