The 23 pictures have come from two sources, one of which is the John Ady collection which has yielded seven Blackburn paintings as well as works by other artists.
Ady had left the works to Kettle’s Yard when he died in 2019 – he met Jim Ede, creator of Kettle’s Yard, in 1958 and the pair enjoyed a lifelong friendship. They are now being sold at Cheffins on behalf of the Cambridge gallery and, overall, the 36 lots from the collection are estimated to raise around £35,000.
Having been a collector of Abstract art throughout his life, Ady formed close friendships with many artists including Blackburn. Among the works on offer at Cheffins is a large mixed media on board titled The Small Cream Square which Ady had acquired from Lemon Street Gallery in Cornwall. Dating from 2010 (reworked in 2012), it measures 4ft x 22in (1.22m x 56cm) and is estimated at £2000-3000.
The Ady lots also include a Paul Feiler (1918-2013) abstract oil on canvas, Horizontal Yellow from 1964, which is estimated at £12,000-18,000.
The other Blackburn pictures at the Cheffins sale have come from London-based collector Peter Simpson. Among them is White L on Black, a 4ft (1.22m) square oil on board from the mid-1960s which Simpson acquired directly from the artist. It has an estimate of £2000-3000.
