Latest News Articles by Jonathan Franks
Bust stands proud in saleroom
25 March 2019Early 20th century Italian sculpture attracts six-figure result in German auction house.
Mirror on offer in Stuttgart is looking good in ornate gilt frame
11 February 2019Among the many decorative works of art in Nagel’s sale in Stuttgart on February 27-28 is this 3ft 8in (1.12m) high mirror in an ornately carved gilt frame.
Ron Arad Rover seats roar into Munich saleroom
11 February 2019In the early 1980s the London-based designer Ron Arad experimented with new forms of industrial design, incorporating materials that would otherwise have been discarded.
Sigmund Freud portrait to be analysed by Vienna auction bidders
11 February 2019Among the prominent sitters for the Austrian artist Wilhelm Viktor Krausz (1878-1959) was Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis.
Thonet furniture takes mixed response at Cologne auction
11 February 2019Comprehensive collection amassed over 30 years attracts very choosy buyers at auction.
Expressionist work by Kirchner tops list at Berlin auction
07 January 2019Topping the results list at a recent sale at Grisebach (30/25/20% buyer’s premium) in Berlin was a work by the German Expressionist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner that was created on island in the Baltic.
Price of Robert Capa’s 'Falling Soldier' photograph rises high
07 January 2019One of the most iconic photographic images of war came under the hammer at a recent Westlicht (20% buyer’s premium) auction in Vienna.
Eight bidders show flower power
07 January 2019Eight determined bidders were on hand when Karl & Faber (25% buyer’s premium) sold a floral still-life by Nicolaes van Veerendael (1640-91) at auction in Munich.
Baron Cohen porcelain draws interest in Berlin
07 January 2019Since 1994, the New York businessman Richard Baron Cohen has been a welcome guest at international auctions, fairs and dealers.
Thonet furniture from international expert's collection emerges in Cologne auction
07 January 2019Since the early 1990s Wolfgang Thillmann, a German and philosophy teacher, has devoted himself to collecting Thonet bentwood furniture and become an internationally acknowledged expert in the process.
Art Deco stand-out sculpture at Munich sale delivers at top level
21 December 2018For 30 years the London lawyer David Cooper and his wife Marie devoted themselves to building a collection of Art Deco sculpture.
Export clock at Frankfurt auction ticks Chinese taste
21 December 2018Chinese bidders were the driving force at this autumn’s German and Austrian auctions of Asian art.
Auction highlights from Germany, Austria and Switzerland including ornate watch selling in Hamburg
19 November 2018The London watchmaker John Ilbery, active from 1780-1839, is credited with the invention of the ‘montre chinoise’, highly ornate goldenamel watches made for the Chinese market.
Two fairs in Munich lead a spotlight on the art and antiques scene in Germany
08 October 2018Autumn in the Bavarian capital Munich is traditionally fair time. Shortly after the Oktoberfest closes, exhibitors at two art and antique fairs are hoping for masses of equally enthusiastic visitors.
Paul Storr silver tureen offered at Cologne auction
08 October 2018From the very beginning of his career as an independent silversmith in the late 18th century, the London craftsman Paul Storr received numerous noble and royal commissions. He was the foremost artisan in his field from the early 1790s until the late 1830s and supplied most of the silverware purchased by the royal household during this period.
Habsburg royal memorabilia leads selection of Central European hammer highlights
06 August 2018Imperial souvenirs, Expressionist portraits and metalware from Augsburg and Iran were among the recent highlights at sales in Austria, Germany and Switzerland.
Bamberg boom time as visitors flock to German festival
23 July 2018Over 20 years ago, leading art and antiques dealers in the picturesque Bavarian city of Bamberg came up with the idea of holding a coordinated summer sales exhibition.
A Chinese chair to make bidders sit up
02 July 2018Stuttgart auction house Nagel (33% buyer’s premium) held its summer sale of Asian art in Salzburg having acquired an impressive array of quality pieces from European and other collections.
Auctions in Germany that explode into life
25 June 2018Germany’s most expensive painting sold at auction, an unusual early firearm and a fin de siècle snake charmer are among the highlights featured here from recent auctions in Munich, Berlin and Cologne.
Max Beckmann heads to new height for a German auction record
25 June 2018It took less than five minutes for a work by Max Beckmann (1884-1950) to become the most expensive painting ever sold at a German auction.