News
2010-12-10
Modern & Contemporary Prints
Bloomsbury's last sale of the year for Modern & Contemporary Prints is exceptionally interesting and desirable.
Amongst the Modern British prints is an extremely rare group of four wood engravings by John Buckland-Wright of The Apocalypse of St John the Divine No I,III, IV, V. Three of these haunting images are signed and dated and they have an estimate of £1,800-2,200. The Ski-ing Class is a rare lino cut printed in colours by the Australian artist Eveline W Symes, it is numbered 1/25 and this impression is from the 1940 first state (estimate £3,000-5,000). Bloomsbury still holds world records for Lill Tschudi and the signed and richly inked impression Affaire d'Honneur of 1932is expected to fetch £6,000-8,000.
Books feature prominently in Bloomsbury's sale and amongst them is a complete set in two volumes (1948) of Marc Chagall's Les Ames Mortes comprising 96 etchings and 11 vignettes (estimate £15,000-20,000). This is a good opportunity to buy the complete portfolio of Opera Grafica (1972) by Marino Marini, the Italian sculptor known for his stylised equestrian figures; it consists of 20 etchings signed and numbered IX/XX and is offered with a pre sale estimate of £15,000-20,000. Another particularly interesting book is Miro de Jacques Dupin with a pencil and coloured crayon drawing signed by Miro on the fly-leaf with an inscription to Carlos Franqui the Cuban poet, political activist and journalist. Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity signed by Dupin, this is estimated £7,000-9,000. A charming and eye-catching book with its original fuchsia buckram boards and tissue overlays, is Andy Warhol's Wild Raspberries comprising 18 off-set lithographs with extensive hand colouring in watercolour and the lettering done by Warhol's mother Julia Warhola, this is estimated £18,000-22,000. Another unusual aspect of the sale is the group of five hand painted, signed and dated ceramic plates by Jean Cocteau, each with an estimate of £1,000-1,500.
One of the focal points in the sale is the unique Andy Warhol silkscreenDouble Mickey Mouse printed in cream with diamond dust. This rare work is one of only 25 versions each produced in a unique combination of colour and photo screens. The image was born out of the Myths series and is expected to fetch £70,000-90,000.
This sale also boasts 13 lots of Miro etchings including the joyous Danseuse Creole in scarlet and black (estimate £18,000-22,000). As one might expect, Picasso features prominently with a variety of etchings from the etchings with drypoint from the Histoire Naturelle (estimated between £2,000-4,000) and etchings of Minotaure (estimated &£7,000-12,000) to linocuts such as Avant la Pique (estimated £22,000-26,000).
The Contemporary Prints section offers a brightly coloured group of signed lithographs by Alexander Calder each expected to fetch between £600-800. No sale of contemporary prints is complete without Damien Hirst and Bloomsbury has 13 including Lavender Baby in watercolour, ink, crayon and pencil over an etched base with aquatint in colours and this carries a pre sale estimate of £14,000-16,000. The focal point of the Banksy prints is Kate Moss, a signed, dated and inscribed silkscreen printed in a unique combination of colours. In this striking image Banksy has lifted Andy Warhol's iconic portrait of Marilyn Monroe and re worked it as Kate Moss, illustrating his debt to the ground-breaking 1960s Pop Art movement with its focus on mass-produced visual commodities and popular culture. Estimated £30,000-40,000 it has been authenticated by Pest Control.
2010-11-19
The Zentner Collection of W. Somerset Maugham
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The 346 lot collection which will be sold at Bloomsbury Auctions on 25th November 2010 was put together by Fred Zentner, founder of the popular Cinema Bookshop in Great Russell Street, London which closed in 2005. Zentner’s interest in Somerset Maugham was a natural progression from his passion for film, which began in his tender years when he acquired a copy of Somerset Maugham’s Moon and Sixpence. Highlights from the sale include excellent key titles such as Liza of Lambeth, Of Human Bondage, The Painted Veil, Ashenden, Cakes and Ale and The Razor’s Edge; however the collection also offers aficionados some fascinating memorabilia relating to the many film versions of Somerset Maugham’s novels, plays and short stories (lots 160-284).
Few if any authors have had their books filmed and televised as often, and Zentner’s collection is testament to this as it incorporates a large selection of publicity stills featuring such prominent actors of the time as Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo, Bette Davis, Peter Lorre, Charles Laughton, George Sanders, Tyrone Power, Orson Welles, Kim Novak and Bill Murray. Lovers of film will be particularly excited by the film posters, film tie-in book editions and press books, many of which are virtually impossible to find today.
There are several particularly striking lots featuring the author in art and illustration. An imposing and haughty bronze bust of the author by Jacob Epstein comes from Somerset Maugham’s villa in France and is estimated £20,000-30,000 while a much more benign portrait in oil on canvas by Trevor Haddon RA, carries an estimate of £4,000-6,000. The sale also offers numerous photographic studies (with estimates ranging from £30-250) of Maugham throughout his life (lots 304-318), including portraits by Ida Kar and Mark Gerson.