Latest News Articles by Anne Crane
Artcurial pass Christie’s in French auctions as Sotheby’s lead the field
03 February 2015Strong sales of Modern and Contemporary art plus the Félix Marcilhac decorative arts collection helped propel Sotheby’s to the highest auction total in France in 2014, with sales figures of €213m.
Major collection of baroque paintings comes to auction
21 January 2015What has been billed as the most significant sale of French 17th and 18th century paintings for 20 years was announced earlier this month.
Brussels Art Fair: the exhibitor’s view
13 January 2015Now celebrating 60 years as a Belgian art and antiques fair, the Brussels Art Fair (BRAFA) obviously has staying power and many exhibitors make the return year on year to stand here. ATG’s Anne Crane asked one longstanding exhibitor, Francis Maere of Francis Maere Fine Arts from Brussels, why the event ticks all the boxes for him.
World beater: de Vries at $24.75m
24 December 2014More than half the receipts from Christie’s inaugural Exceptional sale in New York came from a single lot. And it was one with quite a history.
New Paris fair aims to plug ‘quality gap’
12 December 2014The French National Antique Dealers’ Association (Syndicat National des Antiquaires), organisers of the long-running Paris ‘Biennale des Antiquaires’, have decided to mount an additional new annual fair for the French capital – the first to be held next spring.
Where did you get that €1.5m hat?
26 November 2014Arguably the most famous historic figure in French history and a princely provenance proved an irresistible combination earlier this month in France when a collection of Napoleonic memorabilia formed by the Grimaldi dynasty of Monaco went under the hammer.
Claudel launches new home for Paris étude
12 November 2014Piasa are not the only Paris étude to have moved to new premises this autumn. Cornette de Saint Cyr have now opened their new saleroom in a 19th century hôtel particulier on the avenue Hoche near the Parc Monceau.
Christie’s revamp Asian art sales across London and Paris
24 October 2014Christie’s have reorganised the sale schedule for their future auctions of Chinese works of Art in Europe making some significant changes.
Sarah Percy-Davis takes over reins at Asian Art In London
20 October 2014Asian Art in London, the organisation that runs the annual focus on the Capital’s expertise and wealth in this field, have appointed a new chairman.
Frum beats the tribal drum alongside the Parcours
24 September 2014ALL 49 lots from the Murray Frum collection of Oceanic art found a buyer on September 16 at Sotheby’s (25/20/12% buyer’s premium) in Paris. The hammer total was €6.24m (£5.2m).
Boston outshines New York with $22m vase
22 September 2014The US staged a raft of dedicated Asian auctions in New York salerooms and beyond last week. Top lot as ATG went to press was this 2ft 10½in (88cm) high fencai vase from the Qianlong period with a six-character turquoise Qianlong mark to the base when it sold for $22m (£14.2m) hammer at Skinner (23/20/12% buyer’s premium) in Boston on September 17.
Piasa’s new Paris premises
15 September 2014As Paris moved into top gear last week with the opening of the ‘Biennale des Antiquaires’ fair at the Grand Palais and the ‘Parcours des Mondes’ tribal art trail, the auction firm Piasa chose this as the moment to unveil their new headquarters at number 118 on the fashionable rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, set midway between Sotheby’s and Christie’s Paris rooms.
Heads up for two tribal gatherings
26 August 2014As the summer break ends, next month sees a rush of activity in the art world with a flurry of events not least in the Tribal Art category.
How a distinctive British style developed in the post-War era
22 August 2014Britain may not have the same high-profile post-War design tradition as countries like Italy or Denmark (and its products do not command such high prices in the marketplace) but the period was a fertile and creative one which saw a number of talented designers and manufacturers produce a distinctive look.
Fashion dolls flaunt the 1867 look
08 August 2014There may have been no internet or TV in the third quarter of the 19th century, but it was possible to find out what the fashionistas of 1867 were wearing at the time.
Treasures made for China see explosion in value
25 July 2014For some years now, Far Eastern buyers have been demonstrating their fascination with so-called ‘sing-songs’ – the elaborate 18th century automaton table clocks made for the Chinese market by paying ever-increasing sums to secure them.
Timekeeper from Darwin’s Beagle voyage makes £60,000
18 July 2014The most historically interesting entry in Bonhams’ clock sale held in their New Bond Street rooms came from the ten-lot section devoted to marine chronometers.
English cameo glass stars at $260,000 in Kansas
23 June 2014English cameo glass was the star of the show at Woody Auction’s second dispersal from the collection of Dr Ernest and Karin Rieger held in Wichita, Kansas.
Earliest dated Vermeer expected to fetch £6m-8m
17 June 2014The earliest dated picture by the 17th century Dutch master Johannes Vermeer (1632-75), one of only two works by the artist left in private hands, will be a highlight of Christie’s Old Masters auction in London next month.
€900,000 – the price on emperor’s head
20 May 2014An ancient Roman marble bust of the Emperor Hadrian that had been in the same private collection for over half a century was the runaway highlight in a recent sale held by Tessier Sarrou & Associés at Drouot in Paris.