JACK BUTLER YEATS RHA (1871-1957) – GLORY TO THE BRAVE SINGER, 1950 UPDATE: THIS MADE 290,000 AT HAMMER
Glory to the Brave Singer by Jack B. Yeats will lead Whyte’s sale of Irish and International Art in Dublin on May 29. It depicts a woman reclining in the landscape. She raises herself from the ground and extends her right arm in an exaggerated manner pointing towards a songbird which stands on the topmost branch of a tree, its neck extended and its beak open skywards as it fills the air with its music. Her closed eyes convey an expression of complete rapture as she listens to the singing of the thrush. The estimate is €300,000-€400,000. Included in the sale are major works by Jack Butler Yeats, Paul Henry, Roderic O’Conor, Camille Souter, Mary Swanzy, George (Æ) Russell, Louis le Brocquy, Francis Bacon, Patrick Collins, Sir Sidney Robert Nolan, Arthur Armstrong, Evie Hone and others. ?Viewing is underway at Molesworth St. and the catalogue is online.
Come on the dawn by Jack B. Yeats. UPDATE: THIS MADE €241,300
What could be better. Springtime in Paris is again enlivened this year with a feast of Irish art at Sotheby’s. Come on the dawn, a 1951 work by Jack B. Yeats (€200,000-€300,000) leads a sale supported by a global marketing campaign with Sotheby’s displaying Irish art to Paris and the world. This second edition celebrating cultural links between Ireland and France follows on from the success of an inaugural sale in 2022 which saw strong international bidding and a new world record for a work on paper by Mainie Jellett. Artists from the 19th century to the present day feature in the 2023 selection which includes Irish painters abroad and contemporary artworks. Paintings by Roderic O’Conor, Sir William Orpen and Sir John Lavery are on view alongside art and sculpture by Sean Scully, Louis le Brocquy, Rowan Gillespie, Orla de Bri, Peter Curling, Maser, Melissa O’Flaherty, Richard Hearns and Jack Coulter. The catalogue, with 50 lots, is online. The sale, now on view at Sotheby’s Paris headquarters on the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore, takes place on May 10.
Feeling the grass by Peter Curling. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
How Did You Get there? He Asked in Amazement by Jack B Yeats. UPDATE: THIS MADE 9,000 AT HAMMER
There is nothing new about celebrity donkeys in Irish fiction. Long before Jenny the Donkey from The Banshees of Inisherin stole the show at this years Golden Globes in Hollywood The Turf Cutter’s Donkey was a favourite of generations of Irish children. Written by Patricia Lynch (1898-1972) and first published in 1934 The Turf Cutter’s Donkey came complete with lovingly evoked illustrations of the Irish landscape by Jack B Yeats. Lot 15 at Morgan O’Driscoll’s sizzling online sale of Irish art which runs until January 30 is an illustration by Yeats of the Turf Cutter’s Donkey which has never before been on the auction market. The sale boasts no less than five watercolours by Yeats, three of them from the tale of mystery and adventure by Patricia Lynch. It follows the exploits of Seamus and Eileen, turf cutters children from a whitewashed cottage befriended by a donkey who leads them into a series of extraordinary adventures. Leading the three illustrations from the work is The Turf Cutter’s Donkey, estimated at €15,000-€25,000. How did you get there? He asked in amazement is estimated at €5,000-€7,000 and Look at the Showdown by the Red Rock is estimated at €8,000-€12,000. Other works by Yeats, The Derelict (1910) and The Pannier Market (1906) are estimated respectively at €10,000-€15,000 and €15,000-€25,000.
There will be much interest in Two Pears, a 1977 oil on canvas by William Scott estimated at €50,000-€70,000. Scott remains the most internationally celebrated Ulster painter of the 20th century and a work of this calibre is likely to generate significant competitive bidding. Among the other artists with a strong following featured in this sale are Donald Teskey, John Shinnors, Hughie O’Donoghue, Mainie Jellett and James Arthur O’Connor. The catalogue is online and viewing gets underway in Skibbereen on January 26.
(See post on antiquesandartireland.com for January 12, 2023)
William Scott OBE RA (1913-1989) – Two Pears (1977). UPDATE: THIS MADE 60,000 AT HAMMER
A 1977 oil on canvas by William Scott – Two Pears – is among a very strong offering of art at Morgan O’Driscoll’s online art auction which runs until January 30. There will be no less than five watercolour works by Jack B. Yeats, three of them featured in The Turf Cutter’s Donkey by Patricia Lynch with illustrations by Yeats. Lot 15, The Turf Cutter’s Donkey, has never been on the auction market before. Estimates for these range from 5,000-25,000. Among other artists featured are Donald Teskey, John Shinnors, Hughie O’Donoghue, Mainie Jellett and James Arthur O’Connor. The William Scott is estimated at 50,000-70,000. The catalogue will go live on January 18.
Jack Butler Yeats RHA(1871-1957) The Turf Cutters Donkey watercolour and ink on paper. UPDATE: THIS MADE 27,000 AT HAMMER
Going to the Races by Jack B. Yeats. UPDATE: THIS MADE £226,800
A feast of Irish art will be celebrated at Sotheby’s this month. Jack B Yeats and Gerard Dillon will headline the Irish side of the Modern British and Irish art sale in London on November 23. An online sale of Irish art at Sotheby’s from next Wednesday will run until Tuesday, November 22 and a selection from these sales is on view at the RHA in Dublin this weekend. The introduction of relatively unknown artists to the world and important rediscoveries like The Fisherman’s Cottage by Gerard Dillon combine to offer Irish art an important shot in the arm. The global reach of Sotheby’s, the Irish diaspora, the fact that art lovers everywhere will find these sales relatively affordable compared to the stratospheric prices now achieved at the top, the presence in the catalogue of feted British artists like Barbara Hepworth, L.S. Lowry and William Nicholson and the support of an international marketing campaign make this November a very good month indeed for Irish art and artists.
There is much more than a sense of onwards and upwards at play. The two atmospheric early Yeats oils Going to the Races, 1917 and Sunday Morning, 1921 and the fantastic rediscovery of The Fisherman’s Cottage, a c1950 Dillon from a private collection, have a combined value of £430,000-£670,000 (€495,000-€772,000). Dillon’s first encounter with Connemara in 1939 was a revelatory moment and this painting, set on Inishlacken looking across to Roundstone, ranks among the finest examples of his portrayals of the west of Ireland.
The Settlers by Rowan Gillespie at Sotheby’s online sale. UPDATE: THIS MADE £47,880
It is impossible not to be enthusiastic about the 74 diverse lots in an online sale with a range of paintings, drawings and sculpture from the 19th century to the present day. The combined estimate is €816,500-€1,231,600. There is a Gerard Dillon – Village on the Hill, a lively Paul Henry – The Entrance to Killary Bay – John Lavery’s last painting – Gypsies in Ireland and Last Bastion of the Old Theatre Royal by Harry Kernoff. This second Theatre Royal closed its doors in 1934 and was demolished soon after. There are 18 works from the collection of the late Irish American Brian P Burns, who amassed one of the greatest collections of Irish art in private hands. Contemporary artists and sculptors represented include Rowan Gillespie, Linda Brunker, John Behan, Patrick O’Reilly, Maser, Joy Gerrard, Diana Copperwhite, Richard Hearn, Blaise Smith and Melissa O’Flaherty and there are early works by Erskine Nicol and James Arthur O’Connor. There will be artists talks at the RHA at noon today by John Behan, Melissa O’Flaherty and Maser and at noon tomorrow by Diana Copperwhite, Richard Hearn and Blaise Smith.
Glengariff from the Kenmare Road, Evening, 1862 by William McEvoy from the Brian P Burns Collection at Sotheby’s. UPDATE: THIS MADE £6,300
PAUL HENRY RHA (1876-1958) – Village by the Marsh (1934-1935) MADE 210,000 AT HAMMER
Village by the Marsh by Paul Henry made a hammer price of 210,000 at Morgan O’Driscoll’s Irish and International art online sale this evening. The oil on canvas, measuring 18.1 inches x 22.1 inches, had been estimated at 200,000-300,000. Through the Woods to the Sea by Jack B. Yeats made a hammer price of 115,000 over a top estimate of 70,000 and My River by Yeats made 80,000 at hammer, which was the top estimate.
Among the other hammer prices were: Composition by Mainie Jellett (46,000); The Tain, Deer Among Dolmens by Louis le Brocquy (38,000); Atlantic Famine Ship by John Behan (36,000); Blue and Brown Still Life with Knife by William Scott (34,000); Glendalough by Sir John Lavery (34,000); Seascape, Large Frigate off Haulbowline, Cork Harbour by George Mounsey Wheatley Atkinson (32,000); The Big Tree, Bantry Bay by Letitia M Hamilton (23,000); Composition by Mainie Jellett (25,000); Circus goes to the Island by John Shinnors (20,000); Leaving for Achill by William Henry Bartlett (18,000); Jessie’s Hearted Scarecrow and Moon by John Shinnors (18,000); Achill Sound by Markey Robinson (18,000); Under Lismore Bridge by Arthur Maderson (14,000), Exercising on a Cloudy Morning by Peter Curling (11,500); Sleep by Christopher le Brun (11,000) and Swollen Water by Hughie O’Donoghue (10,500).
RIVER MOUTH, 1946 – JACK BUTLER YEATS RHA (1871-1957). UPDATE: THIS MADE 180,000 AT HAMMER
The Changing Dawn and Rivermouth by Jack B Yeats were the top lots at Whyte’s evening auction in in Dublin on September 26. They made hammer prices of €220,000 and €180,000 respectively. William Scott’s Chinese Orange III made €110,000. Other top hammer prices were: The Lady Parmoor by Sir John Lavery (€58,000); Portrait of Daniel O’Connell by Sir Martin Archer Shee (€34,000); The Bridge by Sir John Lavery (€30,000); Composition with Steps, Dun Laoghaire and Monkstown by Donald Teskey (€29,000) The Good Stuff by Sean Keating (€28,000) and Black and White She Scarecrow by John Shinnors (€25,000).
The auction grossed €1.65 million with 83% of lots sold on the night.
The Changing Dawn by Jack B Yeats at Whyte’s. UPDATE: THIS MADE 220,000 AT HAMMER
The autumn selling season is underway with a vengeance. Art auctions, fairs and large sales of antiques and collectibles will keep many people busy next week. The choice confronting auction goers and collectors in Ireland right now is nothing short of dizzying. Collectors of art can sharpen their focus as viewings are underway in Dublin for sales of Important Irish Art by Whyte’s on September 26 and at James Adam on September 28. A trip to Dublin this weekend also creates an opportunity to drop in to Timeless, the Irish Antique Dealers Fair which continues at the RDS today and tomorrow.
The capital is exerting a strong pull but an online sale of affordable Irish art by Morgan O’Driscoll until Tuesday (September 27) offers opportunities to view in Skibbereen and a number of important sales around the country are on view too.Against a background where the Irish art market is growing year on year Whyte’s will offer two 1946 works by Yeats, The Changing Dawn (€250,0000-€350,000) and River Mouth (€200,000-€300,000). Among the artworks of a completely contrasting styles on the catalogue of 150 lots are William Scott’s Chinese Orange III (€40,000-€60,000), Black and White She Scarecrow by John Shinnors (€25,000-€35,000) and Stephen McKenna’s Interior Scene (€8,000-€10,000).
Chinese Orange III by William Scott at Whyte’s. UPDATE: THIS MADE 110,000 AT HAMMER
The choice at James Adam ranges from the late 19th century to the present day. A c1891 portrait by Roderic O’Conor, Le Marin Barbu (€60,000-€80,000) and a self portrait by Gerard Dillon titled Man on a chair (€50,000-€80,000) are the most expensively estimated lots. Fisherman with Lobster c1937 (€15,000-€20,000) by Charles Lamb which depicts Padraic Ghrealis of Rinn, Connemara was once a key work on the wall of Lambs Restaurant at the Seagoe Hotel in Portadown, hometown of the artist.Two paintings in the unmistakable Modern style of Norah McGuinness, Waterweeds and Day’s End, Dublin Bay – each estimated at €30,000-€40,000 – once adorned the walls of Ballymascanlon House Hotel near Carlingford in Co. Louth. A panoramic view of Clifden on a grand scale by Maurice MacGonigal comes with an estimate of €15,000-€20,000, as does Portrait of a Young Woman by Dan O’Neill.
Clown Dreaming by Gerard Dillon at Adams. UPDATE: THIS MADE 20,000 AT HAMMER
Sir John Lavery – Sketch for ‘Pro-Cathedral, Dublin 1922’ (The Requiem Mass for Michael Collins)
Sir John Lavery’s oil on canvas sketch for the funeral of Michael Collins is a highlight of the Mary and Ben Dunne Collection to be sold later this year. Singing My Dark Rosaleen by Yeat’s is another highlight. The former supermarket tycoon and his wife are downsizing and selling part of their personal collection which includes works by some of Ireland’s most celebrated painters. Works by Frank McKelvey, Dan O’Neill, Gerard Dillon, James Arthur O’Connor, Jack B. Yeats, Mary Swanzy, Roderic O’Conor, Walter Osborne, William John Leech and Sir Wiliam Orpen are among the 39 paintings to be sold. A selling exhibition of these paintings will be held at Gormley’s Dublin galleries from September 8-24 before moving to Belfast for two weeks.
JOHN BUTLER YEATS (1839-1922) – Study of Jack B. Yeats. UPDATE: THIS MADE 700 AT HAMMER
This pencil drawing study of the artist Jack B Yeats by his father the artist John Butler Yeats is lot 4 at Morgan O’Driscoll’s current online art auction which ends on June 27. Originally from the Yeats family collection, then in a private collection, it is estimated at 700-1,000. The catalogue for the sale is online.
