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  • Posts Tagged ‘Sir John Lavery’

    LAVERY STUDY FOR CASEMENT TRIAL PAINTING MAKES TEN TIMES ESTIMATE

    Friday, March 15th, 2024
    The Hearing of the Appeal of Sir Roger Casement, a Study, by Sir John Lavery (1856-1941)
    sold for £155,200 against an estimate of £15,000-£25,000

    A bidding battle between a telephone bidder and an online bidder saw an origin an original unseen study by Sir John Lavery of The Trial and Roger Casement sell for a hammer price of £124,000 (£155,200 with fees) at Dreweatts Modern and Contemporary art sale at Newbury in Berkshire. The final price was over ten times the original low estimate. The high-profile case against Roger Casement for treason took place in 1916 in the High Court in London and was witnessed by Lavery. The full-scale painted version of The Hearing of the Appeal of Sir Roger Casement was proposed by the presiding judge, Sir Charles Darling 1st Baron Darling, PC (1849-1936). Having commissioned the artist to paint other portraits of his family and having seen the artist’s other publicly exhibited works, he invited him to capture the court proceedings. The finished final painting of the work was produced in Lavery’s studio and completed in 1931. It remained there until the artist’s death in 1941, when he left it to the nation. It hung firstly in the Royal Courts of Justice and in 1950 at the request of Sergeant Sullivan, who had been part of Casement’s defence team, it was lent to King’s Inn, Dublin.

    Lavery’s portrait of Lieutenant John Clive Darling, 20th Hussars (1887-1933), son of the Honourable Mr Justice Charles John, 1st Baron Darling sold for £8,190 against an estimate of £7,000-£10,000. A portrait of Mary Caroline Darling, mother of Major John Clive Darling, made £5,040 against an estimate of £3,000-£5,000. A Grey Day by Lavery made  £32,700 against an estimate of £10,000-£15,000 and a study by Laver for a full length portrait of Minnie Plowden and her son Humphrey, painted in c. 1897 made £8,190 against an estimate of £7,000-£10,000.

    (See post on antiquesandartireland.com for February 14, 2024)

    LAVERY’S PAINTING OF ROGER CASEMENT’S APPEAL AT AUCTION

    Wednesday, February 14th, 2024
    Sir John Lavery (1856-1941)The Hearing of the Appeal of Sir Roger Casement, a Study. UPDATE: THIS MADE 124,000 AT HAMMER

    A  never been seen publicly before on-the-spot sketch by Sir John Lavery of The Hearing of the Appeal of Sir Roger Casement in 1916 comes up at Dreweatts Modern and Contemporary art sale in March 13 with an estimate of £15,000-£25,000. It is a study for Lavery’s grand painting of The Court of Criminal Appeal London, 1916 (Government Art Collection), which is an encapsulation of the high drama surrounding the controversial trial of Roger Casement CMG (1864-1916), hung for his participation in the Irish Nationalist revolt in Dublin in 1916. Casement was an Irish-born high-profile diplomat, working for the British Foreign Office, who became well-known for his humanitarian interests (he was nicknamed the ‘father of twentieth-century human rights investigations’.

    There was huge interest in the case, with many high-profile individuals petitioning to save him from the death penalty. It was partly the discovery of what was known as ‘the black diaries’, detailing Casement’s participation in homosexual activities, that are said to have swayed public opinion. It has never been confirmed if the diaries were fabricated by the British government to diffuse the campaign for a reprieve, or whether they were in fact genuine, but they were circulated widely. As homosexuality was against the law at the time these diary entries had an inevitable effect on public opinion.

    The full-scale painted version of The Hearing of the Appeal of Sir Roger Casement was proposed by the presiding judge, Sir Charles Darling 1st Baron Darling, PC (1849-1936). Having commissioned the artist to paint other portraits of his family and having seen the artist’s other publicly exhibited works, he invited him to capture the court proceedings. The finished final painting of the work was produced in Lavery’s studio and completed in 1931. It remained there until the artist’s death in 1941, when he left it to the nation. It hung firstly in the Royal Courts of Justice and in 1950 at the request of Sergeant Sullivan, who had been part of Casement’s defence team, it was lent to King’s Inn, Dublin. 

    Lavery created the study for the painting in situ in court, with Casement looking straight out towards the jury box. Art historian Kenneth McConkey said: “For those two days Lavery, accompanied by his wife Hazel, sat in the witness box recording the scene in the present sketch. During the painful excursion into a legal precedent deriving from a fourteenth century statute on treason, Lavery’s concentration on the scene before him was intense. Although he made efforts to conceal his industry, the production of the present 10 x 14-inch canvas-board in an awkward space was detected by the press, as well as by the prisoner in the dock facing him.”

    It is accompanied by two portraits by Lavery from the family of Sir Charles Darling, as well as two other works from private sources, The Lieutenant John Clive Darling and a portrait of his mother, Lady Darling. Two other paintings are an atmospheric view from Lavery’s house at Tangier and a vivid oil sketch for his celebrated portrait of Mrs Roger Plowden and Humphrey of 1897.

    LAVERY ON LOCATION FOR TWO MORE WEEKS AT NATIONAL GALLERY

    Sunday, December 31st, 2023
    Sir John Lavery – Lady Lavery in an Evening Cloak courtesy National Gallery of Ireland.

    There is just two weeks left to catch up with Lavery on Location, the captivating exhibition celebrating the timeless work of John Lavery which has been running at the National Gallery of Ireland since October.  It is the first major exhibition devoted to this much loved artist in three decades, organised by the National Gallery in collaboration with National Museums, Northern Ireland and National Galleries of Scotland.

    SOME GREAT RESULTS FROM WHYTE’S IRISH ART SALE

    Monday, December 4th, 2023
    SIR JOHN LAVERY RA RSA RHA (1856-1941) – SWITZERLAND [HAZEL AND ALICE], 1913 SOLD FOR €230,000 AT HAMMER

    Switzerland, Hazel and Alice by Sir John Lavery made a hammer price of €230,000 over a top estimate of €220,000 at Whyte’s sale of Important Irish Art in Dublin this evening. Dooega, Achill Island, Co. Mayo by Paul Henry made €155,000 on the hammer. London Hospital, 1914 by Lavery made €64,000, The Goose Girl by Sean Keating made €62,000 over a top estimate of €35,000, On the Beach by Gerard Dillon made €34,000 over a top estimate of €30,000, Abstract Composition c1929 by Mainie Jellett made €27,000 over a top estimate of €15,000, The Desert Charge by Aloyosius O’Kelly made €16,000 at hammer over a top estimate of €15,000, a 19th century Irish school painting of The Ruins of the Royal Arcade, Dublin made €12,000 over a top estimate of €8,000, Wicklow Mountains by Peter Collis made €7,000 over a top estimate of €5,000, Coming Home by Mark O’Neill made €8,500 over a top estimate of €8,000, The Club by Graham Knuttel made €9,000 over a top estimate of €7,000, Aquainted with Grief by Leo Whelan made €4,600 over a top estimate of €2,000 and Tonight we Dance by William Conor made €5,200 over a top estimate of €2,000.

    SEÁN KEATING PRHA HRA HRSA (1889-1977) – THE GOOSE GIRL, 1917 made €62,000 at hammer.

    IMPORTANT IRISH ART SALES AT WHYTE’S AND ADAMS

    Monday, November 27th, 2023
    Switzerland (Hazel and Alice) by Sir John Lavery at Whyte’s. UPDATE: THIS MADE 230,000 AT HAMMER

    Art by Lavery, Yeats, Paul Henry and Sean Keating will lead upcoming sales of Irish art at Whytes on December 4 and James Adam on December 6.  Lavery’s Switzerland (Hazel and Alice) at Whyte’s is estimated at €180,000-€220,000.  The top lot at Adams is The Captain by Yeats with an estimate of €100,000-€150,000 .Given the Lavery exhibition now on at the National Gallery in Dublin the auction of a major Lavery is timely. The catalogue cover lot was painted in Wengen, Switzerland early in 1913 at a time of intense painterly activity for the artist. The tranquility of the work belies the fact that In 1913 the world was on the brink of war. In sharp contrast is Lavery’s London Hospital, 1914 (€60,000-€80,000) at Whyte’s, which depicts early casualties of the First World War. After that one people fantasised about it being the war to end all wars.

    Aran Harbour by Sean Keating at Adams. UPDATE: THIS MADE 75,000 AT HAMMER

    A deceptively idyllic 1940’s painting of Aran Harbour by Sean Keating (€80,000-€100,000) at Adams is in fact an antidote to the horrors of the Second World War then raging. It shows two women, one looking out to sea, the other peering at the viewer, with a focus on peace and quiet in a world yet again gone mad. Plus ca change.Sea captains feature in many Yeats paintings. The Captain at Adams dates to 1948 and harks back to his youth on the quays in Sligo where his grandfather had a shipping business. 
    There are rich pickings for collectors available at each sale.  A painting of Dooega, Achill Island by Paul Henry at Whyte’s is estimated at €150,000-€200,000. Among 133 works on the catalogue at Whyte’s is a wide ranging selection from Mary Swanzy to Rita Duffy, Gerard Dillon to Felim Egan and sculptors John Behan to Michael Warren.  Notable works by Aloysius O’Kelly, William Leech, Tony O’Malley, Patrick Scott and Pauline Bewick sit alongside small collections by Nathaniel Hone,  Letitia Hamilton and Patrick Hennessy.  The selection includes auction favourites like Arthur Maderson, Kenneth Webb, Mark O’Neill, Graham Knuttel and Markey Robinson.

    Black and Green Scarecrow, Maidstone Bridge by John Shinnors at Adams. UPDATE: THIS MADE 14,000 AT HAMMER

    Top lots at Adams include three classical Paul Henry paintings Near Leenane (1935-38) (€80,000-€120,000), Keem Bay (c1911) (€60,000-€80,000) and Paysage Sinistre (1914-15) (€50,000-€70,000).  The sale features many of Ireland’s finest 19th and 20th century artists including three works on paper by Harry Clarke at a time when there is talk of a Dublin museum dedicated to the artist.The Modernist School is represented with works by Edward McGuire, Patrick Hennessy, Colin Middleton, John Doherty, John Shinnors, Basil Blackshaw and Dan O’Neill. A 19th century painting by James Arthur O’Connor, Clearing in the forest with figures (€30,000-€40,000), was recently discovered in a French private collection.

    IRISH ART MAKES WAVES AT SOTHEBY’S IN LONDON TODAY

    Tuesday, November 21st, 2023
    JACK B YEATS – THE DONKEY SHOW

    Two artworks by Sir John Lavery and one by Jack B Yeats each made £381,000 (€437,520) at Sotheby’s Modern British and Irish art sale in London today. The Donkey Show by Yeats and A Moorish Harem and Ariadne, both by Lavery, all sold above their low estimate of £300,000. The Trotter by Yeats made £88,900 over an estimate of £80,000-£120,000 but Woodhenge by F. E. McWilliam failed to find a buyer. The Modern British and Irish day auction at Sotheby’s takes place tomorrow.

    Sir John Lavery – A Moorish Harem

    IRISH ART AT SOTHEBY’S TO BE SHOWN IN DUBLIN

    Thursday, November 2nd, 2023
    Jack B. Yeats’ – The Trotter. UPDATE: THIS MADE £88,900

    Sotheby’s annual Irish Art sale in London on November 21 and 22 will be part of a newly created flagship sales series of Modern British & Irish Art. Evening and Day sales will comprise 54 lots of Irish art and feature the most beloved and esteemed names of the genre with works from the descendants of Sir John Lavery along with art by Jack Butler Yeats, F.E. McWilliam and Gerard Dillon. Together, they are estimated to bring in the region of £2 million. The sales will headline Sotheby’s British & Irish Art week – a dedicated week celebrating the artistic landscape of Britain and Ireland from the 19th to the 21st century.

    Two works by Lavery, a Moorish Hareem and Ariadne, are each estimated at £300,000-500,000 / €343,830-573,050. They are from direct descendants of the artist. The Donkey Show and The Trotter by Yeats are estimated respectively at £400,000-600,000 / €458,440-687,660 and £80,000- 120,000 / €91,688 – 137,532.

    The Day sale will comprise a dedicated 49 lot portion of Irish art, featuring classical Irish artists like Yeats and Dillon as well as a strong selection of works by contemporary artists including Hughie O’Donoghue, Linda Brunker, Orla de Bri, Richard Hearns, Melissa O’Donnell, Jack Coulter, Rowan Gillespie and Nick Miller.  Works will be on view at Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin between November 9-12 and in Sotheby’s New Bond Street galleries in London from November 17- 21.

    Sir John Lavery –  A Moorish Hareem. UPDATE: THIS MADE £381,000

    LAVERY ON LOCATION AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF IRELAND

    Saturday, October 7th, 2023
    Sir John Lavery (1856-1941) – The Greyhound (Sir Reginald Lister and Eileen Lavery, The last British Minister, the Drawing Room, British Legation, Tangier 1910.  Courtesy NI Ulster Museum Collection.

    Lavery on Location opens in Dublin today as the highlight of the autumn programme at the National Gallery. Organised in collaboration with National Museums, Northern Ireland and National Galleries, Scotland, the focus of the show is on key destinations in Lavery’s art.  These range from Scotland to Palm Springs, France and Tangier.  There are studies from Switzerland, Spain, Ireland and Italy and depictions of cities from Glasgow to London, Venice, Cannes and New York. The not to be missed exhibition at the National Gallery runs until January 14 next.


    Sir John Lavery, (1856-1941) – Lady Lavery in an Evening Cloak. Image, National Gallery of Ireland

    OUTSTANDING IRISH ART AT DE VERES TODAY

    Tuesday, November 22nd, 2022
    Dublin Horse Show 1928 by Sir John Lavery. UPDATE: THIS MADE 105,000 AT HAMMER

    This 1928 painting of the Dublin Horse Show by Sir John Lavery was once gifted by Hazel Lavery to the Irish playwright Lennox Robinson. It is among the highlights at de Veres timed online auction of Outstanding Irish Art which begins to close from 6 pm today. The auction features a collection of Irish 18th Century Landscape paintings including works by Sir William Ashford, George Barrett, James Arthur O’Connor and Natahaniel Grogan as well as five Irish side tables from a private collection in Cork.

    UPDATE: It was a successful evening at de Veres. Among the top hammer prices were: Paul Henry – Cottages by the Lake (€75,000); Roderic O’Conor – Landscape with a view to the sea (€70,0000; Jack B Yeats – The train through the woods (€60,000); William Ashford – Rocky River Landscape (€55,000); William Scott – Deep Blues (€50,000); Sean Keating – Unloading the turf (€50,000) and landscapes by George Barrett, James Arthur O’Connor and James Coy each made €40,000.

    LAVINIA FONTANA, SIR JOHN LAVERY AND ST. DYMPHNA AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY

    Monday, November 21st, 2022
    Panel 3.  Goossen Van der Weyden, (1455–1543)  Dymphna and her Companions about to Emabark, ca 1505
    © The Phoebus Foundation, Antwerp

    The 2023 exhibitions programme announced today at the National Gallery of Ireland includes major new shows by Lavinia Fontana and Sir John Lavery. Lavinia Fontana Trailblazer Rule Breaker will run from May 6 to August 27. Fontana is widely considered to be the first female artist to achieve professional success beyond the confines of a court or a convent and was the first woman to manager her own workshop.

    Lavery On Location from October 7, 2023 to January 14, 2024 will focus on some of the key destinations depicted in Lavery’s art from Scotland to Palm Springs. Special features will be the works produced at Grez-sur-Loing – his ‘happiest days’ – and in Tangier. There are also studies from Switzerland, Spain, Ireland and Italy, and depictions of cities from Glasgow to London, Venice, Cannes and New York.

    In 2016, the Phoebus Foundation in Belgium undertook a large-scale restoration project focusing on an altarpiece triptych in their collection by Goossen van der Weyden (1455-1543). St Dymphna, The Tragedy of an Irish Princess from January 28 to May 28 at the National Gallery features the altarpiece, the only work of its kind to focus on the life of an Irish saint. Dymphna – a legendary 6th or 7th century Irish saint – was the daughter of a Celtic king. When Dymphna grew to resemble her mother, her widowed father decided to marry her. To escape his incestuous intentions, Dymphna fled Ireland for Geel in Belgium, with her confessor Gerebernus. Dymphna’s father pursued and killed them, and their bodies were buried on the spot by angels. The Church of St Dymphna in Geel, consecrated in 1247, still holds relics associated with the saint.