In this week's issue of the Auction Room Report – your insider guide to the auction world – our expert Kayleigh Davies selects her current favourite auctions. |
In this week's issue of the Auction Room Report – your insider guide to the auction world – our expert Kayleigh Davies selects her current favourite auctions. |
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PERIDOT & DIAMOND RING
Estimate: 650 GBP |
| THE DOORS
Estimate: 100 – 200 GBP |
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TV TEXTURED GLASS VASE
Estimate: 120 GBP |
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British glass doesn’t get more iconic than the pieces designed by Geoffrey Baxter for Whitefriars. His Textured Glass range, launched in 1967, included many distinctive vases like Drunken Bricklayer, Bark and this TV design, so called for its form reminiscent of an old television set. This piece perfectly encapsulates the mid-century modern aesthetic, with its organic lines and abstract textured design. The pewter colour makes it versatile, fitting into the modern ‘greige’ home better than some of the bolder colourways like Tangerine.
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PROFESSOR NGUYEN THU
Estimate: 300 GBP |
| CRYSTAL ASHTRAY
Estimate: 150 GBP |
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Léa Stein: where fashion and science collide! You’ll sometimes find her jewellery dated incorrectly, as the Art Deco style suggests 1920s – but the plastic used was an innovation of the 1960s. The French designer began working in the fashion industry in the 1950s but after a decade developed an interest in plastic. She worked with her chemist husband to perfect a method of laminating cellulose acetate to give depth and vibrancy to colours. She used this plastic in her line of playful brooches, which came in many forms, but her foxes and cats are some of the most recognisable pieces.
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| FOX BROOCH
Estimate: 50 GBP |
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CHEST OF DRAWERS
Estimate: 400 – 600 GBP |
| SWORD
Estimate: 4 000 – 6 000 GBP |
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A Deep Dive with Kayleigh Davies | |
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4365180. A HAND PAINTED AUSTIN ADVERTISING SIGN. |
I love art, of course, but there’s something about advertising art that is especially engaging. It is designed for mass appeal, presenting an idealised vision of life, and once time has gone by it triggers nostalgia for the brands of our childhood. I was thrilled to see the collection of hand-painted advertising signs at Bishop & Miller, offering a window into 1930s and 1940s Britain and an era of advertising when commercial art was a handcrafted endeavour. These pieces from James Haworth Advertising printers of Southgate, London reflect the popular culture and consumer habits of their day.
The collection boasts an impressive roster of iconic brands, including Ryvita, Exide, and GWR. One of the standout pieces for me is an Austin advertising sign. Austin is of course a name synonymous with British motoring heritage, and the bold image of the car and the declaration of its Britishness couldn’t be more perfect. While the car is the most prominent image on the sign, the background is Corfe Castle, Dorset, clearly labelled. If you’re selling a car, you need to sell a place to go in the car.
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The vehicle on the sign appears to be a 1937 Goodwood Saloon, and this date makes it all the more interesting to me. Still a couple of years away from World War II, the interwar period had seen growing disposable income and paid leave for workers, leading to a growing interest in British tourism. Most people would travel using public transport, but car ownership was rapidly growing, for the lucky people that could afford that luxury. Access to cars allowed a new kind of freedom, with the ability to explore places ill-served by buses and trains. It’s rather sobering to think that just around the corner petrol rationing and wartime restrictions like removal of signposts and coastal restrictions would make these days seem like an impossible dream.
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– Kayleigh Davies, toys and art glass expert |
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A Deep Dive
with Kayleigh Davies |
4365180. A HAND PAINTED AUSTIN ADVERTISING SIGN. |
|
|
I love art, of course, but there’s something about advertising art that is especially engaging. It is designed for mass appeal, presenting an idealised vision of life, and once time has gone by it triggers nostalgia for the brands of our childhood. I was thrilled to see the collection of hand-painted advertising signs at Bishop & Miller, offering a window into 1930s and 1940s Britain and an era of advertising when commercial art was a handcrafted endeavour. These pieces from James Haworth Advertising printers of Southgate, London reflect the popular culture and consumer habits of their day.
The collection boasts an impressive roster of iconic brands, including Ryvita, Exide, and GWR. One of the standout pieces for me is an Austin advertising sign. Austin is of course a name synonymous with British motoring heritage, and the bold image of the car and the declaration of its Britishness couldn’t be more perfect. While the car is the most prominent image on the sign, the background is Corfe Castle, Dorset, clearly labelled. If you’re selling a car, you need to sell a place to go in the car.
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The vehicle on the sign appears to be a 1937 Goodwood Saloon, and this date makes it all the more interesting to me. Still a couple of years away from World War II, the interwar period had seen growing disposable income and paid leave for workers, leading to a growing interest in British tourism. Most people would travel using public transport, but car ownership was rapidly growing, for the lucky people that could afford that luxury. Access to cars allowed a new kind of freedom, with the ability to explore places ill-served by buses and trains. It’s rather sobering to think that just around the corner petrol rationing and wartime restrictions like removal of signposts and coastal restrictions would make these days seem like an impossible dream.
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– Kayleigh Davies, toys and art glass expert |
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