The inside of a c.1770 George III padouk and yew-wood cabinet-on-stand which was offered for £125,000 by James Graham-Stewart at Frieze Masters.
Among the early sales was a George III padouk and yew-wood cabinet-on-stand, 1.74m (5ft 9in) high, attributed to Mayhew and Ince, c.1770. It was mounted with Qianlong carved soapstone panels depicting garden scenes with figures and pavilions.
It was offered for £125,000, by James Graham-Stewart, who is new to the fair this year, and was purchased by a European client.
Running from October 11-15 in Regent’s Park alongside the Contemporary giant Frieze London, Frieze Masters focuses on 20th century and older offerings. It has always emphasised fine art, but this year there has been a shift with specialists in new areas joining the event. Graham-Stewart told ATG: “Furniture isn’t what visitors are coming to see but the response so far has been good.”
A c.1770 George III padouk and yew-wood cabinet-on-stand, which was offered for £125,000 by James Graham-Stewart at Frieze Masters.
His presentation was part of the Stand Out section, curated by Luke Syson of the Fitzwilliam Museum for the third year in a row, along with other newcomers to the fair such as established dealers Ronald Phillips and Koopman Rare Art.
Nathan Clements-Gillespie, director of Frieze Masters, told ATG: “It’s very important to keep expanding the breadth of art history that we show to advisers and collectors.” He added that Syson “spoke convincingly” about the need to expand into areas such as furniture and silver.
Frieze Masters also welcomed more Old Masters dealers this year in a bid to “embrace some of the renewed energy in that market right now”, according to another representative of the fair. Dealers included Johnny van Haeften, Salomon Lilian, and Didier Aaron.
Among the other early sales were a sculpture by Louise Bourgeois that went for £3m from Hauser & Wirth, which also reported parting with a work by Jack Whitten ($950,000) and two by Philip Guston ($200,000 and $600,000).
Elsewhere at the fair, Kasmin Gallery found new homes for works by Lee Krasner ($675,000), Max Ernst ($400,000) and Wassily Kandinsky ($210,000).
Three photographs by Cy Twombly went for £50,000 from Bastian, while two works by Man Ray went from Larkin Erdmann for €50,000 each. Meanwhile, Elliott Fine Art sold eight works in the first two days including two pictures, one by Françoise Gilot (1921- 2023), each for five-figure sums.
Portrait of Inès Sassier by Françoise Gilot (1921-2023), sold by Elliott Fine Art for a five-figure sum.
One of the focal points of the fair was a juvenile T-rex fossil, ‘Chomper’, offered by David Aaron. Though unsold at the time of writing, the gallery’s Nanosaurus skeleton was on reserve by an institution and a giant Green River turtle found in Wyoming had sold for £280,000.
A giant Green River turtle fossil found in Wyoming, £280,000 at David Aaron.
The gallery’s Salomon Aaron said the early days reflected “a strong fair” with “solid sales” that continued steadily.
