Autumn Leaves Sell For £61,000

AUTUMN LEAVES SELL FOR £61,000
Category: 20TH CENTURY DECORATIVE ART AND DESIGN
The third and final outing this year of the successful 20th Century Decorative Art and Design sale at Sworders delivered some outstanding results. The sale was split into three distinct sections amalgamating works of art, design, jewellery and ceramics with furniture to bring together Arts and Crafts, Art Deco and Post-War and Modern Design that suited buyers in all styles and with all tastes.

An amethyst and blister pearl necklace led the impressive jewellery section and epitomised the work of the Art and Crafts husband and wife designers selling for £1,500. Two clocks by the celebrated Manx designer Archibald Knox sold for £3,200 and £3,100, the first of plainer and bolder architectural design to the second that had an exquisite enamelled dial.

The furniture was led by a dresser designed by Sir Ambrose Heal, a private commission in 1914 – which sold for £5,600 – and a second that he designed for the Letchworth Garden suburb Exhibition in 1908, which fetched £1,850.

The Art Deco style section was led by a £3,500 bid for a burr-maple dining suite re-upholstered in cream leather and ready-to-go condition. The colourful costume design by Sonia Delaunay exceeded our expectations by selling for £4,100. Filled with affordable furniture and objects we had a good selection that showed the appetite continues for this period.

The American photographer Irving Penn’s ‘Gingko Leaves’ generated the highest bid in the sale by selling to a New York buyer for £61,000 which was closely followed by the £20,000 total for the collection of furniture, musical instruments and tribal masks that were entered on behalf of the estate of Alan Davie (1920-2014) the ‘enfant terrible’ of British post-war art - a fantastic snap-shot of his inspirations for his art - jazz and tribal art.

Esmeralda, Picasso’s pet goat surprised us all. With her good looks, she helped a Madoura charger made in 1952, broken and stuck back together make £4,100! British design also played a large part in the furniture section with David Booth’s ‘Helix’ sideboard £820; Robert Heritage’s ‘Hamilton’ sideboard £240; Ernest Race’s DA1 armchairs £520 and ‘Antelope’ armchairs selling for £240.

The sales highlights can be viewed on our website or our Pinterest page.

Our next sale will be on Tuesday 2nd February, with the closing entries the first week of January.

If you would like to consign items or need valuation advice please contact John Black johnblack@sworder.co.uk 01279 817778