Preview: British, European & Sporting Art Sale 12th July

A charming and dream-like depiction of Fowey in Cornwall by Joseph Southall (1861-1944) is being sold by Ackworth School in Pontefract, the artist’s alma mater, to benefit and enhance the experience of pupils at the school with special educational needs. The painting had been given to the school by Eleanor Crosland, a fellow scholar, who had studied there at the end of the 19^th century. Fowey Harbour with White Barque will be sold with an estimate of £8,000-12,000 (all figures exclude buyer’s premium), in Tennants Auctioneers’ British, European & Sporting Art Sale on 12^th July. Southall was a devoted Quaker and vocal pacifist, who vigorously campaigned for peace throughout the First World War. Post-war, he and his wife travelled widely in Europe and along the South Coast, inspiring his engaging paintings. Having studied at Birmingham School of Art, he was part of the Birmingham Group of artists who were inspired by the ethos of Arts and Crafts luminaries John Ruskin and William Morris.

From other vendors in the sale is a very fine example of the work of the notable sporting artist Archibald Thorburn (1860-1935), who depicted birds with great accuracy and naturalism. Blackgame in Snow, signed and dated 1929, is being sold from a private collection in Buckinghamshire, and is offered with an estimate of £8,000-12,000. Amongst a good selection of 19^th century British and Continental paintings are “Meditation” by Charles Spencelayh (1865-1958) from a private collection in North Yorkshire (estimate: £7,000-10,000), and A Venetian Vegetable Seller by Sir Samuel Luke Fildes (1843-1927), which is sold with provenance from the Sale of Wiganthorpe Hall, York in the early 1950s with an estimate of £3,000-5,000.

With good provenance, too, are a selection of works being sold from the Estate of the Late Lord Lloyd of Berwick (1929-2024); notable works in the collection include “Allegories of the Arts and Sciences” by a Follower of Jacob de Wit (1695-1754) (estimate: £3,000-4,000). The grisaille trompe l’oeil is thought to have been part of the collection of HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother when she was Duchess of York, before being sold by Leggatt Brothers of London in 1976.

A rare group of vibrant British Impressionist paintings relating to the flourishing artistic communities at Staithes and Fylingdales in North Yorkshire are amongst a good selection of Yorkshire pictures in the sale. Having been in the hands of the same family since their execution, the collection comprises works by renowned artists Florence Hess and her mentor Mark Senior. Highlights of the collection include Hess’s Picnic by the Sea (estimate: £7,000-10,000), and Mother and Child in a Sun-Drenched Garden (estimate: £4,000-6,000), and the latter depicts the garden at Mark Senior’s home ‘Hillside’ in Runswick Bay on the North Yorkshire coast. Also on offer in the sale is a selection of Yorkshire works from the collection of Alfred A Haley of Walton, Wakefield, which have been passed down through his descendants. Highlights of the collection include “October Fair, Leyburn” by Fred Lawson (1888-1968) (estimate: £500-800).

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