Murnau mit Kirche II by Wassily Kandinsky, estimated in the region of $45m at Sotheby’s.
Restituted work by Kandinsky on offer
One of the most important works by Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944) ever to emerge on the market will be offered at Sotheby’s in London next month after being restituted to the family of its original Jewish owners.
Murnau mit Kirche II, a large abstract from 1910, was acquired soon after it was painted by Berlin textile magnates Johanna Margarete Stern (née Lippmann) and Siegbert Samuel Stern (1864- 1935). Together they built an impressive art collection consisting of well over 100 paintings and drawings.
While Siegbert died of natural causes in 1935, Johanna Margarete was eventually forced to flee Germany, ending up in the Netherlands. Forced to sell many of her family’s artworks to survive, she went into hiding in 1942 but was later captured by the Nazis and deported to Auschwitz, where she was murdered in May 1944.
The Kandinsky painting, which hung in the Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven, was identified 10 years ago but has only recently been restituted to the descendants of the Stern family whose 13 surviving members will share the proceeds of the Sotheby’s sale.
Sotheby’s said the picture will have an estimate ‘in the region of $45m’ on March 1.
Prime opportunity for Chequers relic
A Charles X gilt bronze sculptural clock in the form of a sunflower, estimated at £2000-3000 at Bonhams.
An auction of items from the ‘attic’ of Chequers, the country house retreat of British prime ministers since 1921, is coming to auction.
The Buckinghamshire house dates back to the 16th century. The Grade I home is owned and administered by the Chequers Trust and the trustees have decided to dispose of some of its unused items.
Among the lots are a collection of silver desk accessories including a silver and shargreen double inkwell with an estimate of £400-600; two 19th century copper bed pans, estimated at £100-200, alongside other 19th century household items; and a ceramic inkwell from 1914-5 decorated with the Allied flags of France, Belgium, Russia and the UK, guided at £150-250.
The items will be offered as part of Bonhams’ Collections sale in London on March 21.
Dawsons offers Scarborough fare
Berkshire auction house Dawsons has agreed a deal with Yorkshire painter Joe Scarborough (b.1938) to sell some of his artworks.
Born in Sheffield, he worked as a miner and labourer before becoming an artist and living on a narrowboat. He began his artistic career by painting ships and developed into a maritime artist before widening his repertoire and is now known for his colourful and humorous scenes of Sheffield life.
Dawsons ’ paintings specialist Matthew Coles is working with Scarborough on selecting pictures to sell in future auctions.
UK auctioneers goes under the hammer
Online auction platform UKauctioneers will be put up for sale. UKauctioneers is in the process of being placed into liquidation and AMS Auctions will be hired to sell the company.
Founded in 1994, it had around 45 auction house clients. Among its assets is its software and the domain names ukauctioneers.com and ukauctioneers.co.uk.
Silver auctions to start in Somerset
Frome auction house Dore & Rees is launching specialist si lver sales headed by consultant Duncan Campbell.
An antique silver specialist for over 30 years, and today a silver expert on the BBC’s Antiques Roadshow, Campbell has recently shuttered his shop in Bath to work for private clients.
Two sales a year are planned in Somerset (the first in June) focusing on collectors’ silver that remains the most buoyant aspect of the market. Campbell plans to provide “a sale you don’t need to view with the cataloguing, images and detailed condition reports that will inspire confidence”.
Last year Dore & Rees, owned since 2021 by Lee Young, established a similar ‘strategic partnership’ with Susan Rumfitt, the Harrogate jewellery dealer who produces two boutique auctions a year while continuing her core business.
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In Numbers
28
The number of paintings by Johannes Vermeer (1632-75) on display in a special exhibition at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam that opened last week. According to the museum, the total number of known works by the Dutch artist is just 37.
