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Art and antiques news from 2015

It was all change at the top in 2015 with Tad Smith replacing Bill Ruprecht as CEO of Sotheby's, Patricia Barbizet taking over from Stephen P Murphy as CEO of Christie's and Matthew Girling moving up to the role of global CEO at Bonhams.

Stephan Ludwig and Ian Goldbart, creators of the group of businesses that include Dreweatts, Baldwin's and Mallett, suddenly departed in the early autumn of 2015.

Dealer association BADA brought in an industry outsider as its new CEO - Marco Forgione, former head of events industry trade body EVCOM.

In other news, dealer Richard Green made his debut at Masterpiece in London, cementing the fair's place as a major event in the annual calendar.

The antiques industry waited nervously to see whether the newly elected Conservative government would carry out its manifesto pledge to "press for a total ban on ivory sales".

Architects of Dreweatts group to leave

05 October 2015

Stephan Ludwig and Ian Goldbart, creators of the group of businesses that includes Dreweatts, Baldwin’s and Mallett, are understood to have left parent company Stanley Gibbons.

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Ascot Cup shines at Felix Dennis collection sale

05 October 2015

The 1864 Ascot Cup, an impressive Victorian silver racing trophy by Garrard, led proceedings at the three-day sale of the Felix Dennis (1947-2014) collection. It sold at £67,000.

Sir Norman Rosenthal on the trade

05 October 2015

Sir Norman Rosenthal, one of the art world’s best known historians and curators, has described the trade side of the business as “a huge mechanism for preserving knowledge and value”.

Trust drop plan for market building at ‘Portobello Village’

02 October 2015

The charity behind the vision to revamp the ‘vintage market’ end of Portobello Road has amended its designs in the face of opposition to a key proposal.

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Grand Tour model brings corking result

02 October 2015

A Grand Tour cork model of the Temple of Zeus at Paestum has sold for £44,000 at Hampstead Auctions in north London.

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Pioneering Aborigine sportsmen who toured with cricket bats as well as boomerangs

01 October 2015

An embossed brass belt buckle discovered in the back garden of an old English cottage is a reminder that the very first Australian side to tour England was one made up entirely of Aborigines.

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Pelham collection pulls all the right strings in Derby

30 September 2015

Bimbo The Giant Clown was the beaming white face of Pelham Puppets for decades.

Grey areas emerge in new consumer act

30 September 2015

A new law giving online auction buyers additional consumer protection rights has been criticised for throwing dealers and auction houses into a legal grey area.

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The shirt of original All Blacks legend

30 September 2015

Timing is everything in sport and at auction. With New Zealand firm favourites to retain the Webb Ellis Cup on October 31, this is surely the moment to sell the jersey of a legendary All Black.

BidSquare and the-saleroom strike online partnership deal

29 September 2015

Two leading online bidding platforms with a combined monthly audience of more than 800,000 have forged a partnership targeting fine art auctioneers and buyers on both sides of the Atlantic.

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LAPADA rewards excellence at Berkeley Square showpiece

29 September 2015

Antiquities dealers ArtAncient were the winners of the best stand award at the 2015 LAPADA Art & Antiques Fair.

Auctionata buy ValueMyStuff

28 September 2015

Online auction house Auctionata have acquired the London-based online valuation company ValueMyStuff.

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Six-year sentence for Honiton robbery

28 September 2015

The perpetrator of a chilling raid on an antiques shop in Honiton more than a year ago has been jailed.

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Sotheby's are the football tournament Invincibles

23 September 2015

The sports writers will have turned their attention to the rugby world cup by the time you read this, but at ATG we are focusing on differently shaped balls.

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First issue of the Beano sets auction record

23 September 2015

Fans of Lord Snooty and his Pals, Big Eggo, Morgyn the Mighty and dear Contrary Mary were drawn to the Comic Book Auctions sale of September 13 by the appearance of a good copy of the very first issue of the Beano.

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LAPADA to relaunch website to boost dealers

23 September 2015

LAPADA (the Association of Art & Antiques Dealers) is to relaunch its website as a subscription-based online marketplace in a bid to boost the digital presence of its 600-plus members.

The curious case of the paint spattered carpet artwork

21 September 2015

A bizarre story of an artist who claimed her old studio sold pieces of paint spattered carpet as her original work has appeared in the press recently, drawing attention to the thorny issue of copyright and false attribution.

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Rare Boccaccio manuscript at Florence Biennale

18 September 2015

Florence’s longstanding Antiques Fair, the ‘Biennale Internationale dell’ Antiquariato di Firenze’, opens next week in the city’s 17th century Palazzo Corsini, running from September 26 to October 4.

Bruno sells as 1stdibs raise new funding

17 September 2015

Online dealer marketplace 1stdibs has raised between $50m and $60m from venture capitalists Insight Venture Partners, Fortune magazine reports.

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Panels push Lewes casket to £27,000

17 September 2015

Estimated at £2000-3000 in the printed catalogue, this Italian casket drew such pre-sale interest that it was quickly upgraded in the online catalogue to £5000-7000.