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

A charming and dream-like depiction of Fowey in Cornwall by Joseph Southall (1861-1944) was sold for £30,000 (all figures exclude buyer’s premium) in Tennants Auctioneers’ British, European & Sporting Art Sale on 12^th July. Fowey Harbour with White Barque was offered for sale 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. 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.

A rare group of vibrant 26 British Impressionist paintings relating to the flourishing artistic communities at Staithes and Fylingdales in North Yorkshire sold for a total hammer price of £32,180. 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 included Hess’s Mother and Child in a Sun-Drenched Garden (sold for £5,500), which depicted the garden at Mark Senior’s home ‘Hillside’ in Runswick Bay on the North Yorkshire coast.

A good offering of traditional sporting art in the sale was led by Blackgame in Snow by the notable sporting artist Archibald Thorburn (1860-1935), who depicted birds with great accuracy and naturalism, which sold for £12,000. Following in the footsteps of Thorburn was John Cyril Harrison (1898-1985), and his works in the sale sold well too, far exceeding pre-sale expectations; “Marsh Harriers” sold for £1,300, and Woodcock in fern and a snowbound landscape sold for £1,300. From an earlier generation were two racehorse portraits by Harry Hall (1814-1882); “Fazzoletto”, winner of the 2000 Guineas in 1856 and owned by Lord Derby sold for £5,800, and “Songstress”, winner of the Oakes in 1852 and owned by Mr John Scott sold for £3,200.

Elsewhere in a very lively sale, a beautifully rendered work by Charles Spencelayh (1865-1958) of an elderly man entitled “Meditiation” sold for £11,000, and The Grand Canal, Venice by a follower of Canaletto sold for £19,000.

The Sale realised a total hammer price of £202,470 for the 140 lots, and an 88% sold rate.

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