Skip to content
A cabochon ruby and diamond bangle attributed to Paul Flato, USA, 1940s, formerly owned by the Art Deco painter Tamara de Lempicka, which is priced at £47,000 ($74,620) on the stand of Twenty-First Century Jewels at the LAPADA Berkeley Square Art & Antiques Fair. Image courtesy Twenty-First Century Jewels and LAPADA.

London Eye: August 2012

Tom Hoepf
Tom Hoepf
A cabochon ruby and diamond bangle attributed to Paul Flato, USA, 1940s, formerly owned by the Art Deco painter Tamara de Lempicka, which is priced at £47,000 ($74,620) on the stand of Twenty-First Century Jewels at the LAPADA Berkeley Square Art & Antiques Fair. Image courtesy Twenty-First Century Jewels and LAPADA.
A cabochon ruby and diamond bangle attributed to Paul Flato, USA, 1940s, formerly owned by the Art Deco painter Tamara de Lempicka, which is priced at £47,000 ($74,620) on the stand of Twenty-First Century Jewels at the LAPADA Berkeley Square Art & Antiques Fair. Image courtesy Twenty-First Century Jewels and LAPADA.

With “London 2012” nearing its conclusion, the capital is braced for a return to normality. It may land with a bump. Londoners are already preparing to bid farewell to the efficient transport system magically laid on for the Games and to welcome in its place the congested, dysfunctional road and rail network to which they are accustomed.

Fortunately the more prestigious art and antiques fairs scheduled for September and October are generally patronized by the sort of high net worth clientèle that eschews public transport in favor of the black cab or private limousine. So, despite the lingering recession, the weeks ahead still hold plenty of commercial promise for the trade.

They say there’s an app for everything and you know that must be true when even a somewhat conservative trade body like the Association of Art and Antiques Dealers has developed an iPhone app for its Berkeley Square Fair that is scheduled to run from Sept. 19 to 23.

An architect’s design for the new LAPADA Art & Antiques Fair marquee in Berkeley Square, which runs Sept. 19 to 23. This year sees an expanded modern and contemporary art section and a new restaurant and terrace overlooking the square. Image courtesy LAPADA.
An architect’s design for the new LAPADA Art & Antiques Fair marquee in Berkeley Square, which runs Sept. 19 to 23. This year sees an expanded modern and contemporary art section and a new restaurant and terrace overlooking the square. Image courtesy LAPADA.
The app informs you about the fair’s exhibitors and offers directions and opening hours, plus an interactive guide to nearby galleries in Mayfair and beyond. The real bonus, however, is that it comes with a complimentary ticket admitting two people to the fair. Presumably all you need to do is flash your iPhone at the front desk and you’re in. Who said the antiques trade was stuck in the past?

The LAPADA app contains links to illustrated previews of many of the items that will be on show. Among the jewelery we spotted a Flying Swallow brooch, circa 1925, by the Parisian firm of La Cloche Frères.

This 18-karat gold Flying Swallow brooch, circa 1925, by the Parisian firm of La Cloche Frères, featuring Burma rubies, emeralds and diamonds, will be on the stand of London dealers The Gilded Lily at the LAPADA Fair. Image courtesy The Gilded Lily and LAPADA.
This 18-karat gold Flying Swallow brooch, circa 1925, by the Parisian firm of La Cloche Frères, featuring Burma rubies, emeralds and diamonds, will be on the stand of London dealers The Gilded Lily at the LAPADA Fair. Image courtesy The Gilded Lily and LAPADA.
On the stand of London dealers The Gilded Lily, this tour de force of the lapidary arts combines gold, Burma rubies, emeralds and diamonds set in 18-karat gold overlaid with platinum. In a similar taste is a 1940s cabochon ruby and diamond bangle attributed to the American jeweler Paul Flato, priced at £47,000 ($74,620) on the stand of Twenty First Century Jewels. The fact that it was once owned by the Polish Art Deco painter Tamara De Lempicka will doubtless deepen its appeal among discerning collectors.

One other object that caught our eye from LAPADA’s publicity was a Victorian Chester-hallmarked silver “nef” in the form of a galleon in full sail by the German silversmith Berthold Müller.

At the September LAPADA Art and Antiques Fair in Berkeley Square, London silver dealers Langfords will be showing this Victorian silver ‘nef’ in the form of a galleon in full sail by the German silversmith Berthold Müller, bearing import marks for Chester. Image courtesy Langfords and LAPADA.
At the September LAPADA Art and Antiques Fair in Berkeley Square, London silver dealers Langfords will be showing this Victorian silver ‘nef’ in the form of a galleon in full sail by the German silversmith Berthold Müller, bearing import marks for Chester. Image courtesy Langfords and LAPADA.
These little contraptions used to be filled with salt and were pushed around the dinner tables of noble families. It would be interesting to know where this example — which can be seen on the stand of London Silver Vaults dealers, Langfords — might end up. Finally, among the more handsome furniture items is a Regency crossbanded amboyna wood tip-top center table in the manner of George Smith, circa 1825, which Antiques Roadshow expert Lennox Cato is offering at £24,000 ($38,000).
Edenbridge furniture dealer and 'Antiques Roadshow' expert Lennox Cato will be asking £24,000 ($38,000) for this Regency crossbanded amboyna wood tip-top center table in the manner of George Smith at the LAPADA Fair. Image courtesy Lennox Cato and LAPADA.
Edenbridge furniture dealer and ‘Antiques Roadshow’ expert Lennox Cato will be asking £24,000 ($38,000) for this Regency crossbanded amboyna wood tip-top center table in the manner of George Smith at the LAPADA Fair. Image courtesy Lennox Cato and LAPADA.

Regular art market watchers will already be familiar with the virtual dominance by Asian dealers of the market for imperial Chinese porcelain in recent years. Every time a significant collection of imperial wares, jades, or traditional brush paintings comes up for auction — whether in London or the provinces — one can be sure to encounter a saleroom full of mainland Chinese or Taiwanese or Hong Kong dealers. It was thus no surprise to be told by the leading art market research companies that China has become the largest art market in the world by volume of transactions. What did come as a surprise, however, was to read the investigative journalism published by Forbes that suggested that the Chinese market may be something of a hall of mirrors. Whether, as Forbes reported, the Chinese auction sector is indeed state-controlled and subject to various kinds of nefarious activity remains a moot point. What is not in doubt, however, is the fact that some of the more expensive lots hammered down in recent years in European salerooms still remain unpaid for.

Given this background and the lingering whiff of controversy surrounding the Chinese market, it was reassuring to see that London dealers Eskenazi, surely the preeminent Western purveyors of Asian art, are to stage an exhibition devoted to Qing porcelain. This will be a chance to see some of the finest examples of the sort of wares that are currently quickening the pulses of Chinese mainland collectors. Originating from a single private collection, many of the pieces

This famille rose Qing dynasty ruby ground porcelain vase, Qianlong mark and period, 1736-1795, will be on display at Eskenazi in Clifford Street as part of Asian Art in London in November. Image courtesy Eskenazi Ltd.
This famille rose Qing dynasty ruby ground porcelain vase, Qianlong mark and period, 1736-1795, will be on display at Eskenazi in Clifford Street as part of Asian Art in London in November. Image courtesy Eskenazi Ltd.
London Asian art dealers Eskenazi’s forthcoming exhibition of Qing porcelain in November will include this pair of underglaze blue and pink enameled porcelain ewers, Qing dynasty, Qianlong marks and of the period, 1736-1795. Image courtesy Eskenazi Ltd.
London Asian art dealers Eskenazi’s forthcoming exhibition of Qing porcelain in November will include this pair of underglaze blue and pink enameled porcelain ewers, Qing dynasty, Qianlong marks and of the period, 1736-1795. Image courtesy Eskenazi Ltd.
An underglaze blue and iron-red porcelain flask, Qing dynasty, Qianlong mark and period, 1736-1795, to be shown by Eskenazi as part of Asian Art in London. Image courtesy Eskenazi Ltd.
An underglaze blue and iron-red porcelain flask, Qing dynasty, Qianlong mark and period, 1736-1795, to be shown by Eskenazi as part of Asian Art in London. Image courtesy Eskenazi Ltd.
are provenanced to earlier famous collections, such as those of J.M. Chu, T.Y. Chao and Paul and Helen Bernat.

How many of these masterpieces will ultimately find their way back to China is as yet unknown, but given the levels to which Chinese collectors are prepared to go to acquire museum-quality objects, one suspects that at least some of them will soon be heading east. Eskenazi’s exhibition at their Clifford Street premises runs Nov. 1-23 and is timed to coincide with the 15th Asian Art in London event.

Founded in 1988, the 20/21 British Art Fair remains one of the most popular fairs in the London art market calendar. This year the fair marks its 25th anniversary and so one supposes there will be a celebratory atmosphere at the galleries of the Royal College of Art from Sept. 12-16. What makes the fair so enduring and popular is its unwavering focus on Modern British art. This is a sector of the market whose fortunes have fluctuated greatly in contrast with other more international categories, and yet it continues to build a passionate collecting base and prices are now rising. Among the potentially more sought-after works on sale this year is a signed lithograph, Paper Pools, by David Hockney — arguably the Royal College’s most famous alumnus — on the stand of Dominic Guerrini,

David Hockney’s 'Paper Pools,' a signed lithograph from an edition of 1,000, on the stand of London dealer Dominic Guerrini at the 20/21 British Art Fair at the Royal College of Art. Image courtesy Dominic Guerrini and 20/21 British Art Fair.
David Hockney’s ‘Paper Pools,’ a signed lithograph from an edition of 1,000, on the stand of London dealer Dominic Guerrini at the 20/21 British Art Fair at the Royal College of Art. Image courtesy Dominic Guerrini and 20/21 British Art Fair.
while Agnew’s will be a showing a superb example of the work of the late Keith Vaughan (1912-1978) — Man Gathering Fruit of 1948.
London dealers Agnews will be showing this oil on canvas by Keith Vaughan (1912-1977) 'Man Gathering Fruit,' 1948, at the 20/21 British Art Fair at the Royal College of Art from Sept. 12-16. Image courtesy Agnew’s and 20/21 British Art Fair.
London dealers Agnews will be showing this oil on canvas by Keith Vaughan (1912-1977) ‘Man Gathering Fruit,’ 1948, at the 20/21 British Art Fair at the Royal College of Art from Sept. 12-16. Image courtesy Agnew’s and 20/21 British Art Fair.
Cheek-by-jowl with these giants of British art is a screenprint titled No Ball Games of 2009 by the much hyped street artist Banksy, also on the stand of Dominic Guerrini.
Street artist Banksy’s 'No Ball Games,' a signed screenprint of 2009, on sale with Dominic Guerrini at the 20/21 British Art Fair. Image courtesy Dominic Guerrini and 20/21 British Art Fair.
Street artist Banksy’s ‘No Ball Games,’ a signed screenprint of 2009, on sale with Dominic Guerrini at the 20/21 British Art Fair. Image courtesy Dominic Guerrini and 20/21 British Art Fair.

September is always a busy month in the UK arts calendar as everyone returns from holiday to confront life’s rain-sodden realities and takes a deep breath in readiness for the Frieze onslaught. October will be even more intense this year as Frieze sits alongside its new Old Master equivalent — Frieze Masters. London Eye will be on hand to report the inaugural instalment of this groundbreaking addition to the annual fairs calendar.

Away from the capital, we always like to give a brief mention to the exhibitions staged by the Jerram Gallery in Sherborne, Dorset, chiefly on account of their unerring ability to discover lesser-known but gifted British artists. Their next exhibition, titled “The Mind’s Eye,” features new landscape and still life paintings by David Brayne and Vivienne Williams and runs from Sept. 22 to Oct. 12. The two works we illustrate here — David Brayne’s landscape titled Silver Hare,

Somerset-based painter David Brayne will be showing this landscape, 'Silver Hare,' at an exhibition entitled ‘The Mind’s Eye’ at the Jerram Gallery in Sherborne, Dorset from Sept. 22-Oct. 12. Image courtesy David Brayne and Jerram Gallery.
Somerset-based painter David Brayne will be showing this landscape, ‘Silver Hare,’ at an exhibition entitled ‘The Mind’s Eye’ at the Jerram Gallery in Sherborne, Dorset from Sept. 22-Oct. 12. Image courtesy David Brayne and Jerram Gallery.
and Vivienne Williams’s still life, Jug with Pears and Beans,
This still life, 'Jug with Pears and Beans,' by Vivienne Williams will be included in ‘The Mind’s Eye’ exhibition. Image courtesy Vivienne Williams and Jerram Gallery.
This still life, ‘Jug with Pears and Beans,’ by Vivienne Williams will be included in ‘The Mind’s Eye’ exhibition. Image courtesy Vivienne Williams and Jerram Gallery.
demonstrate how well matched are their individual visions and painterly techniques.

Finally, we are happy to hear from Sotheby’s spokeswoman Mitzi Mina that Sotheby’s director and star auctioneer Henry Wyndham is “currently on track for a full and rapid recovery” after sustaining injuries to his face while out shooting on the grouse moor. We wish Mr. Wyndham a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing back on the rostrum in the near future.