An unpublished recording is among a valuable Rory Gallagher archive at Whyte’s timed online Eclectic Collector sale which runs until Saturday May 13. Relating to his time with the Fontana Showband from Cork it includes a reel to reel tape by Kingsway Recording, London with tracks titled All the Time, I Want You to be Happy, Slow Down, My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean and Valley of Tears along with a CD copy. There are original passport photos taken in a booth in the early 1960’s, promotional cards, Evening Echo news cuttings, a New Spotlight magazine from June 1965, Rory’s harmonica and his sunglasses. Lot 540 is estimated at €15,000-€20,000. The sale offers historical artefacts, manuscripts, 1916 Rising medals, a bible which belonged to Michael Collins, sporting memorabilia, a 1916-1923 film archive, signed Beatles photographs and cinema posters. UPDATE: THIS WAS UNSOLD
WATCHING THE BOATS – MARKEY ROBINSON (1918-1999). UPDATE: THIS MADE 800 AT HAMMER
Watching the Boats by Markey Robinson is lot number 8 at Whyte’s Spring online art auction which runs until April 3. The catalogue is online and viewing gets underway on Molesworth St. today. This is a sales designed to encourage both first time buyers and established collectors. The painting illustrated here is estimated at €500-€700.
TWO HORSES – LIAM O’NEILL (B.1954) made €35,000 at hammer
Two Horses, an oil on canvas by Liam O’Neill made a hammer price of €35,000 over a top estimate of €7,000 at Whyte’s sale of Important Irish Art in Dublin tonight. Another work by the self taught artist Collecting Hay by the Coast, made €17,000 over a top estimate of €12,000. Liam O’Neill has developed a reputation as one of our finest portrayers of rural life, especially around West Kerry. He is a native of the Dingle Peninsula.
The top lot of the sale was Paul Henry’s Landscape, Connemara which made €135,000 at hammer. Old Houses, Pau by Dan O’Neill made €56,000, Docklands VII 2002 by Donald Teskey made €46,000, The Enthusiast by Jack B Yeats made €32,000 and Strange Days by Jim Fitzpatrick made €19,000.
NORAH MCGUINNESS HRHA(1901-1980) – NOVEMBER ON THE LIFFEY, DUBLIN, 1948. UPDATE: THIS MADE 10,500 AT HAMMER
November on the Liffey by Norah McGuinness is one of a number of works by the artist at Whyte’s sale of Important Irish Art on March 6. A major retrospective of her work took place in the Douglas Hyde Gallery, Trinity College Dublin, in 1968 and in 1973 the College awarded her an honorary doctorate. This work, with a Dawson Gallery lable on the reverse, is estimated at 8,000-12,000. The catalogue for the sale is online. The sale is on view in Molesworth St., Dublin until 4 pm on March 6.
STRANGE DAYS, 2003- JIM FITZPATRICK (B.1946). UPDATE: THIS MADE 19,000 AT HAMMER
Strange Days 2003 by Jim Fitzpatrick, which depicts singer-songwriter Sinéad O’Connor comes up as lot 89 at Whyte’s sale of Important Irish Art on March 6. Originally commissioned for Dublin nightclub, Lillie’s Bordello it was ultimately purchased by the sitter at her then husband’s insistence – he didn’t like the idea of an image of his naked wife on display in a nightclub! It references Roderic O’Conor’s Reclining Nude (NGI) – in turn a tribute to Velázquez’ Rokeby Venus. The oil on canvas is estimated at €20,000-30,000.
The view through the window shows the Pigeon House area of Dublin, an area of particular significance for O’Connor – she was living nearby at the time and it was included at her request. Jim Fitzpatrick is a Dublin born painter and graphic designer whose work draws strongly on Ireland’s Celtic mythology. For the past forty years his work has become familiar to many in the form of posters, book jacket designs and album covers. He has also written and illustrated numerous books and designed a stained-glass window for Bewley’s Café‚ in Mary Street, Dublin. He created the graphic reproduction of Alberto Korda’s photograph of Ché Guevara that has become a worldwide icon. He has long been a friend of O’Connor’s and designed the cover for her album Faith and Courage released in 2000.
Glow, a magical carpet hand tufted with pure wool and luminescent filament designed by Dorothy Cross made €19,000 at a charity sale by Whyte’s entitled Island. On offer was a series of 13 unique one off rugs or wall hangings by some of Ireland’s best known artists and designers. Each piece was hand tufted by Ceadogán Rugmakers at their studio in South East Wexford. Whyte’s conducted the timed on-line sale free of charge in order to maximise the proceeds for The McVerry Trust and For The Birds. The total hammer price for the 13 works was €156,000. Every one sold. Seán Scully’s Wall Fez which made €85,000.
Glow appears plain white in daylight but an image of a tangle of trees emanates as darkness falls. Dorothy Cross lives and works in Connemara, Ireland. Her work ranges from object to opera: working with sculpture, photography and video.
(See post on antiquesandartireland.com for January 25, 2023)
Sean Scully – WALL FEZ. UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR 85,000
Wall Fez designed by Sean Scully is a unique piece by Ceadogan mugmakers. The company invited 12 Irish artist to collaborate in creating a unique rug or wall hanging. All are now on view at Hang Tough Contemporary at Exchequer St. in Dublin. The resulting pieces, handtufted in pure wool, are to be auctioned by Whyte’s in a timed online sale which runs to February 5, with 50% of profits going to the Peter McVerry Trust. The remainder will be divided between the artists and For the Birds, a regeneration project at the site of Ceadogan’s workshops in Co. Wexford. Wall Fez is estimated at 15,000-20,000.
A Thought for Lunch by Conor Harrington at Whyte’s. UPDATE: THIS MADE 11,000 AT HAMMER
The Irish art sale season continues on its merry winter way on November 28 and 29. The sale of Important Irish Art at Whyte’s in Dublin next Monday evening offers significant works in contrasting styles by artists as diverse as Paul Henry and James Brenan to Louis le Brocquy and William Scott. A classical Henry landscape, Turf Stacks in the West, is estimated at €120,000-€180,000, as is an image of W B Yeats by Louis le Brocquy. There are two oils on canvas dated 2004 by Conor Harrington, the renowned Cork street artist and painter, A Thought for Lunch (€10,000-€15,000) and Lost in Space (€8,000-€12,000). The auction is on view at Molesworth St., Dublin this weekend and until 4 pm on Monday.
There will be viewing in Skibbereen on November 28 and 29 for Morgan O’Driscoll’s online evening Irish art sale with 242 lots which gets underway on Tuesday. The selection offers works by Kenneth Webb, Mainie Jellett, Cecil Maguire, Norah McGuinness, Arthur Maderson, Cecil Maguire, Louis le Brocquy and many other artists.
Sweet Pea by Kenneth Webb at Morgan O’Driscoll. UPDATE: THIS MADE 4,200 AT HAMMER
Morning Prayer, Cottage Interior, Co. Cork, 1901 by James Brenan at Whyte’s. UPDATE: THIS MADE 9,500 AT HAMMER
Collectors of Irish art have an array of choice across all price levels in the run up to Christmas. The fun gets underway on Tuesday as timed online Irish art sales at Sotheby’s and de Veres get underway with artists and sculptors from F.E. McWilliam, Rowan Gillespie, Roderic O’Conor, Patrick Scott and William Crozier at Sotheby’s to Tony O’Malley, John Shinnors, Donald Teskey, Sir John Lavery and Colin Middleton at de Veres.
Still Life and Window by Tony O’Malley at de Veres. UPDATE: THIS MADE 44,000 AT HAMMER
The selection at de Veres includes a collection of Irish 18th century landscapes and Irish Georgian tables from a private Cork collection as well as oils by Paul Henry, Jack Yeats, Roderic O’Conor and many eminent artists.The online sale at Sotheby’s will introduce a strong representation of contemporary Irish artists and sculptors to worldwide clients.
Irish highlights at Sotheby’s sale of Modern British and Irish art in London next Wednesday include two early oils by Yeats, Going to the Races, 1917 (€230,400-€345,600) and Sunday Morning, 1921 (€172,800-€288,000) and The Fisherman’s Cottage c1950 by Gerard Dillon (€92,170-€138,300).
Woman of Kinsale by Patrick Hennessy at Sotheby’s. UPDATE: THIS MADE £7,560
Viewing for Whyte’s evening sale of Important Irish Art on November 28 gets underway in Dublin next Wednesday. There are major works by Paul Henry, Louis le Brocquy, Mainie Jellett, Walter Osborne, Sean Keating, Mary Swanzy and Roderic O’Conor. Morning Prayer, Cottage Interior, County Cork, 1901 by James Brenan (1837-1907), headmaster at the Cork School of Art in the 1860’s, is the only known oil painting to show a canopy bed with a boarded, canted roof. The art historian Dr. Claudia Kinmonth reports that these highly functional beds endured throughout Ireland well into the 20th century as they enabled poor families to huddle together and stay warm. At a time when TB was rampant they were condemned by medics. Lot 6 is estimated at €10,000-€15,000.
Currachs Returning, Moonlight, Connemara Coast by Ciaran Clear at Morgan O’Driscoll. UPDATE: THIS MADE 6,600 AT HAMMER
Artists from Kenneth Webb and Norah McGuinness to Sean Scully and Mainie Jellett will feature among the highlights at Morgan O’Driscoll’s current online sale of Irish art. This continues until November 29 and like all the sales mentioned in this piece, the catalogue is online. The appetising selection includes work by Ciaran Clear, Martin Gale, Charles Harper, George Campbell and Arthur Maderson.
The autumn/winter art selling season will draw to a close with an evening sale of important Irish Art at James Adam in Dublin on December 7. There are 144 lots in total with two works by Yeats and an important triptych by John Shinnors entitled Line. This is a response by the Limerick artist to a painting by the British post impressionist Frank Bramley entitled Domino at the Crawford Gallery in Cork.
FALE AND PASSION FRUIT, 1991 – POPPY MELIA (B.1966). UPDATE: THIS MADE 2,200 AT HAMMER
Fale and Passion Fruit by Poppy Melia comes up art Whyte’s autumn timed online only art auction which runs until the evening of October 17. Many well known Irish artists are represented with affordable works in a sale designed for seasoned collectors and those who would like to dip their toes into the art auction world. The choice is wide ranging and there are 288 lots on the catalogue. Viewing for this sale gets underway in Molesworth St. in Dublin today and the catalogue is online.
