Local scenes are in the frame at auction
GOOD WINTER ART SALE NEXT WEEK
TWO interesting Lincolnshire paintings and a trio of seascapes by one of the finest of the marine artists who blossomed on the banks of the Humber in the Victorian period are amongst the entries in a good Winter Art Sale next week.
The Lincolnshire picture that is expected to attract the most attention is a watercolour of Boston Stump by Paul Marny, a renowned 19th century French-English artist. Born in Paris in 1829, Marny worked for a time at the Sevres porcelain factory before crossing the channel, settling in Scarborough in 1860.
Marny was prolific but the Boston Stump picture is something of a rarity in that the vast majority of his pictures were inspired by the landscapes/townscapes of France or Yorkshire. He did make the occasional painting expedition to other parts the country but he was not a regular cross-Humber traveller.
Marny achieved considerable critical success, having work accepted for the Paris Salon and the Royal Academy. His pictures also sold well, indeed at one stage the art dealer John Linn agreed an exclusive deal that involved paying Marny £5 a week for everything he could produce. It doesn’t sound a lot – until you realise that at the time the average working chap was lucky to get a pound a week, a parson was paid £2.50, and even the Governor of the Bank of England’s salary amounted to less than £8 a week.
Today, Marny’s work is to be found in public gallery and museum collections around the country and indeed even further afield, as well as having a strong private following. That said he was prolific and his watercolours remain surprisingly affordable. The Boston Stump goes into next Friday’s auction with a pre-sale estimate of £200-£300.Three other Marnys (Rouen, Aulnay Calvados and Staithes Waterfront) are expected to make similar amounts.
The second Lincolnshire watercolour, a view of Lincoln Cathedral, is not signed, which is a pity given that it is a striking, well detailed, picture by an artist of some talent. Dating from the mid-19th century, possibly even a little earlier, the viewpoint is west south west of the cathedral looking over rural cottages to the great West Front. Why would someone not sign such a fine piece of work? We’ll likely never know. The fact that it is unsigned inevitably impacts on value but it is still expected to make £120-£180.
Noteworthy lots in the sale include three paintings by Henry Redmore of Hull (1820-1887), one of Britain’s greatest marine painters. They are an 1879 canvas depicting fishing boats and sail
ing vessels on a shoreline (£2,000£3,000), an 1887 oil on board showing a sailing barge leaving port (£1,200£1,800) and a smaller oil on panel depicting a sailing boat and shipping off Northumberland’s Dunstanburgh Castle (£400-£600).
However, the star of the show is expected to be ‘The Primrose Gatherers’, one of the finest pictures by the Staithes Group artist Rowland Henry Hill ever to come on to the market. It was painted in 1910 and has been in the same family ownership for at least the last ninety years. The pre-sale estimate is £5,000-£8,000, slightly more than a spectacular view of fishing boats in Whitby Harbour by William Edward Webb (1862-1903) that we rate at £3,000-£5,000.
The catalogue is available on the internet (davidduggleby.com).
Viewing will be taking place at the Vine Street Saleroom in Scarborough throughout the week including from 9am until the start of the auction at 11am on Friday.
It is to be webcast with online bidding through DD Live and thesaleroom.com.