Portraits & Nudes
Ends Friday 19 June from 2PM
The Portraits & Nudes Sale explores artists’ fascination with identity, character, beauty and the human form. From historic portraiture and miniature painting to modern figure studies and expressive nudes, the catalogue offers a varied look at the ways artists have represented people across time.
Lot 6812, by Henry Scott Tuke RA, RWS, NEAC, is
a portrait of Laura Julia Johanna Lawrence, wife of Nathaniel Lawrence and daughter of the Rt. Hon. Sir James Bacon. Painted in 1892, the half-length portrait shows the sitter in an elegant black dress, with the quiet poise and sensitivity associated with Tuke’s portrait work. Known especially for his figure painting and coastal subjects, Tuke’s handling of character and atmosphere gives this work strong presence.
Estimate: £2,000 to £4,000.
Lot 6802 is a
Jacobite interest portrait miniature, traditionally identified as Prince Charles Edward Stuart, better known as Bonnie Prince Charlie. Depicted in a blue velvet coat and lace stock, the watercolour on ivory is presented under convex glass in a gold pendant mount, within a Moroccan leather fitted case. Small in scale but rich in historical association, it is a fascinating object for collectors of portrait miniatures, Jacobite material and 18th century works of art. This item has been registered for sale under Section 10 of the APHA Ivory Act.
Estimate: £2,000 to £3,000. Lot 6800, Circle of Nicolaes Maes, is The Bored Student: Portrait of a Boy Reading a Book, a mid-17th century oil on canvas. The work bears an old brass plaque attributing it to Barent Fabritius, reflecting an earlier trade attribution, but was examined by the RKD in The Hague in 1988 to 1989 and considered to be by a small, as yet unidentified master working in the circle of Nicolaes Maes, dating to circa 1650 to 1660. With its Rembrandtesque mood, scholarly subject and historic intrigue, it is one of the most atmospheric portraits in the sale. Estimate: £1,000 to £2,000