Around 15 works by up-and-coming names on the British art scene are being sold on March 27 in London to raise funds for The House of St Barnabas.
Based in a Grade I-listed townhouse at No1 Greek Street in Soho since 1862, the charity today operates as private members club and art gallery staffed by Londoners who have been affected by homelessness.
Most of the 100-plus pieces in the collection have been donated by established and emerging contemporary artists or by the galleries who represent them. Sandra Schembri, CEO at The House of Barnabas, says the sale of a small fraction of the charity’s holdings will allow more of the permanent collection to go on public display.
“As we celebrate our fifth birthday, we have decided to refine the collection, focusing on works which in some way challenge the status quo, show the viewpoints of those disengaged from society and which are inspiring and accessible to all.”
The works chosen for sale - all previously in storage –formed part of a March 11 private view held at The House of St Barnabas headquarters in what was the former office of Sir Joseph Bazalgette, the Victorian civil engineer who designed London's sewage system. Shown against a backdrop of rococo plasterwork were the Chris Levine (b.1960) portrait of the Queen Equanimous, 2007, (estimate £2000-4000) and Harland Miller’s 2014 ’Penguin books’ giclee print, Rags to Polyester (estimate £4000-7000).
All form part of Modern Made, an auction devoted to Modern Art, Sculpture, Design & Jewellery, to be held at The Mall Galleries, London SW1 on March 27.
The sale, spotlighting art and crafts from the post-war era, includes works by European Modernists Antoni Tapies and Pablo Picasso; Modern British artists Bridget Riley, Terry Frost and Mary Fedden; ceramists Lucie Rie and Jennifer Lee; silversmiths Wendy Ramshaw and Stuart Devlin; and sculptors Michael Ayrton and Paul Mount.
It can also be viewed online at thesaleroom.com.
