Latest News, Views & Insights

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS

Charles Eames The Iconic 20th Century Designer

Coming up in our auction of Design in January 2022, we have a collection of Eames designs that were once owned by the architect John ‘Jack’ Bonnington and used at his offices in Tyttenhanger House near St Albans. 

29 December 2021

LATEST NEWS

An Ever Growing Team

As we approach the end of another triumphant year in the face of adversity, we are exceptionally proud of our ever growing team, and are delighted to introduce the newest recruits to come on board in 2021.

27 December 2021

LATEST NEWS, FINE INTERIORS

Eleanor Dorrien-Smith Selects

We asked British-American print designer and founder of PARTIMI, Eleanor Dorrien-Smith, to select her favourite lots from our upcoming Fine Interiors sale.

10 December 2021

LATEST NEWS, LONDON

Mark Wilkinson Appointed Head of Sworders London

We are delighted to announce that Mark Wilkinson has been appointed Head of Sworders London to drive events and valuations in the heart of the West End.

8 December 2021

LATEST NEWS

Update | Coronavirus (Covid-19)

Last Updated – 29 November 2021

LATEST NEWS, FINE INTERIORS

Nathalie Farman-Farma Selects

The French-American textile designer Nathalie Farman-Farma has selected her favourite lots from our upcoming sale: ICONASTAS | Fine Russian Art & Antiques from the Renowned London Gallery.

25 November 2021

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS

The Studio Collection of Robert Johnson Washington to Sell in January

Nestled in a rural idyll of rolling woodland, there is a studio that belonged to Robert Johnson Washington (1913-1997), where the artist and potter lived and worked.  Walking into the studio today, it's almost as if he had just walked out the door, and pots, tools and the detritus of activity is everywhere...

23 November 2021

OUT OF THE ORDINARY

Is this The Real Puss in Boots?

Just in time for pantomime season, we can announce the sale of a rather unusual souvenir relating to Richard ‘Dick’ Whittington (1354-1423). While not quite the Puss-in-Boots of theatre fame, it is a mummified cat. 

17 November 2021

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS

Rare William De Morgan Stained Glass Panel to Sell in January

Sworders’ Design sale on 25-26 January 2022 includes one of only a handful of stained glass windows designed by William De Morgan (1839-1917). The 67cm wide by 97cm high panel depicting the archangel St Michael slaying a dragon, is expected to bring £80,000-120,000.

17 November 2021

LATEST NEWS, FINE INTERIORS, GLASS

The Art of Glass

Glass from the collection of the late Cambridgeshire antique dealer Peter Crofts (1924-2001) will be sold in our Fine Interiors auction on 14-15 December. The consignment includes exceptional pieces of engraved and enamelled glass ranging from the Georgian period into the post-war era.

16 November 2021

JEWELLERY & WATCHES, LATEST NEWS

Jewellery from Iconastas - The Renowned London Gallery

Our auction of Fine Jewellery and Watches on Tuesday 30 November includes items of Roman, Byzantine and Russian interest from the residual stock of Iconastas. The Piccadilly Arcade Gallery was established by Chris Martin-Zakheim and John Gaze in 1974, specialising in Russian Icons, works of art, and antiquities, until it closed its doors in 2018, having cemented a reputation as one of the industry’s leading specialists.

11 November 2021

LATEST NEWS, PAINTINGS & SCULPTURE, FINE INTERIORS

A Cane Gifted by Napoleon Bonaparte?

A jewel encrusted walking stick believed to have been a gift from Napoleon Bonaparte to a trusted general will be sold in our auction of Fine Interiors in December. It forms part of the collection of the late Peter Crofts (1924-2001), a Cambridgeshire antique dealer whose own story was extraordinary.

10 November 2021

LATEST NEWS

Welcoming William Trudgill to Sworders

We are delighted to introduce our latest recruit - William Trudgill - who joins us as a cataloguer to support our ever growing valuations office in Hertford.

9 November 2021

JEWELLERY & WATCHES, LATEST NEWS

A Metamorphic Seal of Approval

Our Fine Jewellery & Watches auction on November 30 includes a metamorphic desk seal once belonging to Lady Sophia Macnamara (nee Hare) (1836-1912). The fifth child and fourth daughter of the 1st Earl of Listowe, Lady Sophia married Arthur Macnamara at Ballyhoole, Cork in 1854 and later settled in Hertfordshire becoming a lady in waiting to Princess Louise (later Duchess of Argyll).

9 November 2021

LATEST NEWS, PAINTINGS & SCULPTURE, MODERN BRITISH ART

Peter Samuelson | An Artist Disinterested in The Art World

Peter Samuelson (1912-1996) was a painter with one commercial flaw, he was disinterested in the art world, hated dealers, and constantly tried to confuse anybody that might like to collect his work by signing ‘Pierre’ or signing back to front in mirror-writing. However, his marvellous and fantastical drawings captured the attention of friends and other admirers.

4 November 2021

LATEST NEWS, PAINTINGS & SCULPTURE, MODERN BRITISH ART

The Works of Sylvia Bergin Rowley

Eleven works by the artist Sylvia Bergin Rowley will feature in our Modern & Contemporary Art timed auction from 5 - 21 November. Rowley dedicated her life to painting. She began her art education at the age of sixteen when she dropped out of school and started at St Martins School of Art. A popular student there, she was voted by her class to be Lady Godiva and rode a white horse into the Chelsea Arts Ball.

4 November 2021

LATEST NEWS, PAINTINGS & SCULPTURE, MODERN BRITISH ART

The Raymond Bradshaw Studio Collection

An exciting studio collection of paintings and drawings by the artist Raymond Bradshaw (1918-1997) will go on sale in our Modern & Contemporary Art Timed Auction that will run from Friday 5 to Sunday 21 November.

4 November 2021

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS

Are You Sitting on a Small Fortune?

An important example of Vienna Secession furniture, bought earlier this year for just £5, is expected to make between £2,000-3,000 in our auction of Design in the New Year. The elm and wicker highback chair, designed by Koloman Moser (1868-1918) in 1902, has been consigned to our 25 January sale.

3 November 2021

JEWELLERY & WATCHES, LATEST NEWS

Scottish Brooches | A Royal Souvenir

Traditional Scottish jewellery has captivated collectors for centuries, though recognition soared in the 19^th century after it became a popular souvenir of Queen Victoria following her much loved trips to the Highlands.

2 November 2021

LATEST NEWS, PAINTINGS & SCULPTURE, FINE INTERIORS

Miniature Painter with a Big Talent

A rare work by the extraordinary Sarah Biffin (1784-1850), an early 19th century artist born without limbs, will go under the hammer in our Fine Interiors auction this December.

26 October 2021

LATEST NEWS, ASIAN ART, SILVER

Chinese Export Silver from the Paris of the East

A collection of Chinese silver assembled by a family who lived in Shanghai in the early 20th century comes for sale at Sworders in November. The group of typical ‘export’ wares owned by the vendor’s grandparents who lived in ‘the Paris of the East’ had been stored in a trunk since the end of The Second World War.

19 October 2021

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS

The Life and Work of Carlo Bugatti (1856-1940)

Next week's auction of Design offers two archetypal side chairs from a truly unique Italian designer - Carlo Bugatti - whose life was filled with talent and tragedy.

14 October 2021

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS

Paperback Writer

Book Signed by The Beatles Comes For Sale

An autograph book with a story so evocative of the British music scene in the early 1960s comes for sale in our Design auction this month. The notebook includes the signatures of three of The Beatles, together with those of Gerry & The Pacemakers, The Dave Clark Five, Cliff Richard, and Helen Shapiro.

5 October 2021

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS

Robert Prenzel Carvings At Sworders

Robert Prenzel was born in 1866 in the Prussian town of Kittliztreben, in present-day Poland. After a four-year apprenticeship, further studies at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, and another four years of work experience around Europe, he emigrated to Australia at the age of 22. Trained in the classical European styles, he arrived in Melbourne in 1888, where he came to define Australian craft and design throughout the first quarter of the 20^th century.

30 September 2021

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS, PAINTINGS & SCULPTURE

John Maltby | A Legacy of British Art Pottery

Sworders' Design department is thrilled to present three distinct sculptures by John Maltby in the upcoming two day sale on the 19 and 20 October. Featuring several members of Maltby’s recurring cast, from the humble raven to the monolithic king, these are expected to fetch £1,000-1,500 each.

29 September 2021

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS

Who’s Been Sitting In My Chair?

Hans Wegner and the Pursuit of the Ideal

'The ideal chair does not exist’, Hans J. Wegner, one of the most iconic names in Design history once said. Perhaps he was right? Wegner spent his entire life in pursuit of the unattainable ideal, which would see him reinventing the chair again and again for almost half a century in over 500 different ways.

28 September 2021

MODERN & CONTEMPORARY PRINTS, LATEST NEWS, MODERN BRITISH ART

A 'How To' Guide to Identifying and Buying Prints

Buying prints at auction is a great way to start an art collection. Prints are typically from limited editions, making them more affordable than one-off pieces such as oil paintings. Yet, the printmaking process is highly skilled, each plate onto which the artist creates an image needs to be perfect in order to achieve the desired finish. Eleanor Garthwaite tells us more...

23 September 2021

LATEST NEWS, MODERN BRITISH ART

"A Catastrophe I Didn’t Want to Avoid"

Exploring the life of Marie Françoise Gilot

Nearing her one hundredth birthday on 26^th November this year, Marie Françoise Gilot has lived a remarkable life from her decade-long love affair with Picasso in her early twenties, to becoming the talented painter and writer celebrated today.

23 September 2021

PAINTINGS & SCULPTURE, MODERN BRITISH ART

Pictures Donated to Dog Welfare Charity Come to Auction

Sworders are to sell two artworks benefitting The Dogs Trust as part of the Modern and Contemporary sale on October 5

23 September 2021

20TH CENTURY ART & DESIGN, LATEST NEWS

Venini's Patchwork of Light

The Pezzato vase, one of the most iconic designs that Fulvio Bianconi created for Venini, comes to sale in our Design auction on 19-20 October

22 September 2021