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THIS sparkling diamond solitaire comes up at the Francs St., Dublin firm of O’Reilly’s 48 hour timed online only auction of jewellery, diamonds, watches and silver. It runs from 1 pm today to 1 pm on August 28. The estimated weight of the brilliant cut diamond is 5.01 carat and the ring is estimated at 42,000-48,000. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD.
AN auction celebrating the cultural impact of Hip Hop, or rap music, will. be held by Sotheby’s in New York on September 15. The first dedicated Hip Hop sale for an international audience reflects the impact of the music developed in the US by inner-city African Americans and Latino Americans in the Bronx borough of New York in the 1970s. With over 120 lots the auction is comprised of unique artifacts, contemporary art, one of a kind experiences, photography, vintage and modern fashion, historic and newly designed jewelry and luxury items, rare ephemera including flyers and posters, important publications. Highlights include the crown worn and signed by Notorious B.I.G. from the Iconic 1997 King of New York and an archive of High School love letters written by Tupac Shakur. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Queens Public Library Foundation.
THE sale of James and Marilynn Alsdorf’s private collection of Asian art is at Christie’s in New York on September 24. The connoisseurship of this Chicago couple is widely recognised. They spent their 38-year marriage building a wide-ranging collection marked by both quality and diversity. For the Alsdorfs, collecting represented the opportunity for exploration, adventure and pursuit of beauty, extending from the art-filled rooms of their Chicago residence to China and India.
They gifted and lent hundreds of works to the Art Institute of Chicago where he served as chairman from 1975-78 and she served for a time as president of the museum Women’s Board. In 1997, Mrs. Alsdorf presented the AIC with 400 works of Indian, Himalayan, and Southeast Asian art. Less than a decade later she supported the Renzo Piano-designed renovation of what are now the Alsdorf Galleries for Indian, Himalayan, and Southeast Asian Art. The collection will be sold across two sale sessions on September 24, with a complementary online auction from September 4 to 29.
This patinated gold bronze of Galatea by Rowan Gillespie comes up at Bonham’s Modern British and Irish art sale in Knightsbridge, London on September 16. Cast in 1982 it is just over 29 inches high. It is signed, numbered and dated ROWAN 2/9/1982 on the base. It is actually from an edition of three and not nine as described on the base. The original mould was destroyed after the third casting. From a private collection in Norway it is estimated at £8,000-12,000.
A bygone era in Kerry, when deals were done in smoke filled rooms at the County Kerry Club in Denny St., Tralee, is recalled in a lot coming up at Mullen’s classic and contemporary interiors online sale at Laurel Park, Bray on August 24. Established in the early 1830’s the County Kerry Club, at 9/10 Denny St., numbered Daniel O’Connell and his brother John among its members and offered both dining rooms and accommodation. Lot 458 is an inscribed silver tea service presented in 1866 by the members to Richard Chute Mason, club secretary. It is estimated at €2,500-€3,000. Among the other lots on offer is a pair of monumental sandstone garden urns, each over two metres high. Their Irish owners shipped them from their home in Beverly Hills to the grounds of their home in south Dublin when they returned to live here. They are estimated at €8,000-€12,000.
Desmond Guinness, founder of the Irish Georgian Society, has died aged 88. The Society said on their website: “We are indebted to his legacy in founding the Irish Georgian Society in 1958, together with the late Mariga Guinness. He boldly championed the cause of Ireland’s architectural heritage at a time when it faced great challenges through neglect and the threat of demolition from new development. In spite of hostility in some quarters, through his ardent campaigning, educating and working to save numerous buildings we are surrounded by a rich legacy of historic buildings saved to be celebrated as an integral part of our culture and identity. He has inspired us all and, for the thousands of members and supporters of the Irish Georgian Society in Ireland and around the world, Desmond has truly been a Conservation Hero.”
He was the second son of author and brewer Bryan Guinness, 2nd Baron Moyne, and Diana Mitford (later Lady Mosley).
THE annual Irish Art sale at Sotheby’s on September 9 carries the highest combined pre-sale value since the reintroduction of dedicated Irish art sales in London in 2015. The sale, including property from the collection of Sir Michael Smurfit, comprises 60 lots and is estimated to bring in the region of £3.2 million. There will be public exhibitions at the Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin from August 27-30 by appointment, and in London from September 4. Among the highlights from outside the 18 works from the Smurfit collection is The Dreamer by Gerard Dillon.
A pair of patinated and gilded bronze candleabra by Claude Lalanne are among the modern creations from the remarkable private collection of Prince and Princess Sadruddin Aga Khan due to come under the hammer at Christie’s Paris on October 1. Based at Bellerive Castle, Geneva, they have been the discreet patrons of many major philanthropic projects, aimed at preserving cultural and natural sites, from Egyptian temples to the Alps. The Aga Khan’s gathered an outstanding collection from a variety of cultures across the globe, reflecting their essence with this incredibly universal, yet very personal selection of fascinating objects and masterpieces. Each work of art demonstrates the collector’s open-cultural approach, representing a rich cultural history, with century-old objects, alongside works from leading artists and commissioned pieces from artists the couple maintained close friendships with.
Francois Curiel, Christie’s chairman, Europe said: “The true passion for the arts that united this couple is illustrated in their curation of the collection, and the confrontations and juxtapositions the objects impose on the surrounding objects. The 17th and 18th century furniture interact with pieces by Diego Giacometti, Claude Lalanne or Philippe Hiquily, antique paintings are in dialogue with Picasso’s oeuvre, while Orientalist pieces resonate with works by Isabelle de Borchgrave.”
THE Irish sculptor Paddy Campbell has become the first non-Italian winner of the Giotto e l’Angelico prize, awarded annually for contribution to cultural life in the Tuscan region. It was presented to the Dubliner at the original home of Renaissance painter Giotto in the town of Vicchio, renowned as one of the cradles of the Renaissance and also home to artists including Fra Angelico, Cellini, and Cimabue. Paddy Campbell has spent much the last 25 years in Florence. His striking sculpture Life and Death adorns main piazza in Vicchio. It is dedicated to the victims of war crimes committed by Fascist regimes during World War 2, notably in and around Florence and Vicchio.
A total of 341 varied lots will come under the hammer at the James Adam At Home sale in Dublin on August 23. There is silver, jewellery, watches, paintings, collectibles and antique furniture including this c1830 Irish rosewood three seater settee in the manner of Mack, Williams and Gibton. The catalogue is online and this will be a live webcast sale with online, room, telephone and absentee bidding.
