GEORGE ROMNEY (1734-1802)
Portrait of Emma Hamilton as ‘Absence’
Oil on Canvas, 49 3/16 x 39 inches, 125 cm x 99 cm
This is a full-sized study for the c 1787 oil painting in the National Maritime Museum. It has been brought back to its full glory thanks to the removal of later over-paint and discoloured varnish.
http://www.masterpiecefair.com
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BROWN’S LONDON ART WEEKEND: 5th July & 6th July
Browse and Darby Gallery
HENRY MOORE (1898-1986)
Reclining Figure No.3, 1952
Conceived in 1952 and cast in an edition of 9
bronze
width: 8 inches
Provenance
Private Collection, Devon, England
A gift from the above, circa 1958, to a Private Collection, USA
I am delighted to say that the idea of Saturday morning tours followed by lunch (see my blog BROWN’S HOTEL, SATURDAY MAYFAIR ART TOURS, 17/01/2014) has proved so successful that the first Brown’s London Art Weekend is taking place on Saturday 5th July (10am – 5pm) and Sunday 6th July (12pm – 5pm). It forms part of London Art Week (4th – 11th July) in which London’s major auction houses and 80 Mayfair and St James’s galleries will present open exhibitions focusing on everything from antiquities to the latest contemporary art.
Victoria Miro
Exterior Shot
Local dealers John Martin and Johnny Messum, have spearheaded the weekend to show the depth of expertise and diversity that the art trade in Mayfair and St James’s offers. The event will feature almost 100 free walks, talks and exhibitions. It serves as an apt reminder of the cultural, educational and economic benefits that the trade brings to the area, especially when many of Mayfair’s art galleries are faced with unprecedented pressures from steeply rising rents.
Waterhouse & Dodd
Gallery view – L’Abstraction exhibition
MALLET
Interior Shot
There will also be a chance to attend the Art Brunch in HIX Mayfair, Brown’s Hotel on both days (£60 per head). To book a place at the brunch, please email info@londonartweekend. co.uk. They begin at 11am, and guests are to be seated by 11.30am. The brunch will be hosted by Jan Dalley, Arts Editor of The Financial Times, who will be in conversation with leaders of the art world over the course of the meal. Reservations are required.
HIX Mayfair
Adrian Houston
Further details and information can be found on the website.
londonartweekend.co.uk
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Edward Hurst
A highly individual George III lacquered bronze lion clock, possibly unique, c 1770, with original London movement.
http://www.masterpiecefair.com
edwardhurst.com/index.html
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A CARVED BLACK BASALT STELE OF VISHNU
North Eastern India, Pala Period, 11th or 12th Century
Measurements: 30 ¼” (77 cm) High; 35 ½” (90 cm) High with Base; 14”(36 cm) Wide; 5” (13 cm) Deep
The black basalt stele has a carved figure of Vishnu standing in samapadasana, holding a lotus, mace chakra and conch. The figure is dressed in a short striated dhoti and adorned with various necklaces, and bracelets. His face has a bow-shaped mouth and elongated eyes, and he wears a tall conical headdress.
The Pala dynasty ruled Bihar and Bengal between the 8th and 12th centuries.
http://www.masterpiecefair.com
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John Mitchell Fine Paintings
Willem van de Velde the Elder (1611-1693)
An English two-decker lying-to at sea in a moderate breeze, with boats pulling towards her
oil, pen and ink, and wash en grisaille, canvas, 22 x 25 in. (56.2 x 63.5 cm.)
signed and indistinctly dated 169(?)
From the quality of this very rare and re-discovered penschilderij (‘pen painting’) you can see why works by this seventeenth-century Dutch artist are eagerly sought after. It is not surprising that it was named Painting of the Year at the Fair.
Blain|Southern
The Masterpiece, Tim Noble & Sue Webster, 2014
Sterling silver, metal stand, light projector
This new shadow work is being especially unveiled at the fair and is a unique work made up of mummified animals, which have been cast in solid silver. It won the prize for Object of the Year.
http://www.masterpiecefair.com
Cecil Beaton at Wilton, until 14th September, 2014
East Front of Wilton House
©Wilton House Trust
This exhibition is a celebration of Cecil Beaton’s friendship with the Pembroke family whose ancestral home is Wilton House. From attending his first ball there in 1927 (he was thrown in the river) to a birthday lunch in January, 1980, just three days before his death, he photographed and recorded the lives of three generations of the family. Beaton lived nearby firstly at Ashcombe and then at Reddish.
Cecil Beaton in “All the Vogue”, Cambridge, 1925
© The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive
The photographs from Sotheby’s Cecil Beaton Studio Archive reveal a world of pageants, costume balls and country house parties and show Beaton’s flair for creating fancy dress and mis-en-scène. So it is no wonder that as well as being a celebrated photographer for Vogue and Vanity Fair, he would win Oscars in the cinema and Tony awards in theatre for his designs.
Alice von Hofmannsthal, Ashcombe,1937, in her Costume for “The Gardener’s Daughter” for “The Anti Dud Ball” at the Dorchester Hotel, 13 July 1937
© The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive
He was fortunate in that he was able to combine his personal life with his artistic pursuits and so we in our turn can enjoy it in this new exhibition space at Wilton. The stylish show is designed and curated by Jasper Conran.
Wilton House Cecil Beaton
© The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive
The Countess of Pembroke in her Robes for the Coronation of George VI, 1937
© The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive
Lord Pembroke says: “There is a strong family connection with Cecil Beaton and although I was too young to remember him, my mother and older sisters certainly have very fond memories of him here at Wilton.
The images that have been chosen are fascinating both as social history and also for their technical brilliance. Beaton was a genius when it came to studio photography, but he also excelled at capturing spontaneous shots of pure joy.
Lady Plunket (Dorothé) and Mr Maurice, 1937
© The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive
I hope that the exhibition gives as much pleasure and inspiration to visitors as it has to us.”
Rex Whistler, 1927
© The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive
Palladian Bridge at Wilton House
©Wilton House Trust
Apter Fredericks
This exceptional pair of Chinoiserie Display Cabinets is firmly attributed to the Royal cabinet makers Vile and Cobb but what is not yet known is who commissioned them.
Given their detailed design it would indicate that it was a very wealthy patron. The exotic woods used – purple padouk and yellow manchineel – may have been chosen to compliment the decorative scheme of a particular Georgian interior. Research is ongoing.
http://www.masterpiecefair.com
http://www.apter-fredericks.com
Lluis Barba_
The Studio of the Painter Pierre Subleyras, 2011,
edition of 6, c-type print
The Cynthia Corbett Gallery is celebrating its tenth anniversary with a major group show this week. It is a real celebration of the artists she has shown both in New York and London and at various international contemporary art fairs. Congratulations to all!
Klari Reis
Amber and Ashes, 2014,
mixed media and epoxy polymer in large sized petri dish
Venue:
The Gallery in Cork Street, 28 Cork Street, Mayfair W1; 23rd – 28th June 2014
Lottie Davies
Waterloo Station, Anthony and Joy 1975, 2013,
edition of 6
http://www.thecynthiacorbettgallery.com
No you are not seeing things when you walk past the junction of Oxford Street and Old Quebec Street. It is a fifteen foot high Kodiak bear called‘Indomitable’ and the good news is that it is a bronze sculpture by the noted wildlife sculptor Nick Bibby, so it won’t bite or hug!
As Councillor Robert Davis of Westminster City Council explains ‘Having a life-size Kodiak bear seemingly stomping down the street will certainly turn heads. But that’s what our City of Sculpture initiative is all about – bringing debate, culture and wonder to our streets.’
You can see more of Nick Bibby’s animal bronzes, large and small, at Sladmore Contemporary.
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Tim Forrest's E & A 