Colnaghi open in New York
Old Master dealer Colnaghi is opening a gallery in New York and will expand into ancient art with the hiring of a new director from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Carlos Picón, who is currently a curator of Greek and Roman art at the Met, will join to run the US gallery. It will open by Christmas at 38 East 70th Street in New York’s Upper East Side and is by appointment only.
Picón said: “While I’m ready to retire from my role at the Met, I know I still have time for another adventure in my career and it feels perfect that this should be working with Colnaghi’s Jorge Coll and Nicolas Cortés.”
2000 pieces of silver stolen in Kent
A dealer is calling on the trade to be aware of stolen silver items from his shop in Tenterden in Kent. Richard Brunger’s Re-Memories Antiques was broken into last week and more than 2000 items of silver were taken including carriage clocks, jewellery, dishes and cutlery.
Some of the pieces stolen can be viewed on the ATG website. Anyone with information should contact Kent Police with crime reference number 26-0245.
Tate spends £27.4m on acquisitions
The Tate acquired more than 1000 works last year according to its latest annual report. They ranged from Old Masters to contemporary art and had a value of £27.4m.
The Tate’s annual report for 2016-17 showed a notable increase in the number of works that entered the collection via the Cultural Gifts Scheme – a relatively new scheme that began five years ago. It allows donors to receive tax reductions during their lifetimes (as opposed to the Acceptance in Lieu scheme which allows the value of donated works to offset the tax due on inherited estates).
The report also put Tate’s visitor numbers at a record level with 8.4m visits made in total across its four sites.
Most read
The most clicked-on stories for week September 21-27 on antiquestradegazette.com
1 Dealer Bendor Grosvenor uncovers Rubens in Glasgow
2 SJ Phillips to offer collection at Sotheby’s after downsizing
3 A treasure of the Elizabethan Silk Road – Chinese bowl with 17th century English mounts
4 Rare oak coffer boosts Bonhams’ sale
5 Maori artefacts come to auction in Surrey
Rubens identified in Glasgow estate
Dealer and TV presenter Bendor Grosvenor has identified a work by Flemish artist Sir Peter Paul Rubens in Pollok House, a National Trust property in Glasgow.
The c.1625 head study of George Villiers, the first Duke of Buckingham (1592-1628), featured in the first episode of the new series of Britain’s Lost Masterpieces which was aired on BBC4 last week.
Director of the Rubenshuis confirmed the attribution to Rubens. He said: “The Head Study of the Duke of Buckingham is a rare addition to Rubens’s portrait oeuvre showing how he approached the genre.”
Ishy Antiques on the move
Dealer Ismael Khan of Ishy Antiques and jeweller Gaetano Chiavetta have opened a new office on Baldwin’s Gardens near London’s Hatton Garden.
Ishy Antiques specialises in antique and jewellery and started online in 2014. Previously based in Farnham, Khan said that it was the “right time” to move his business to a more central location.
The new space will also see Khan and Chiavetta to continue collaborating on restoration and repairs.
Five-figure sales at Tribal Art London
An Ivory Coast Ligbi mask, measuring 30cm (12in) tall, carved in wood with pigments, cloth and fibres. It was sold by Mark Eglinton at 'Tribal Art London'.
An Ivory Coast Ligbi mask was among the highlight sales at the recent edition of Tribal Art London. It was sold by first time exhibitor Mark Eglinton, who is based in New York, and had an asking price in the region of $16,000.
Tribal Art London ran at the Mall Galleries from September 6-9 with 23 exhibitors. Well-known visitors this year included David Attenborough, actress Julie Christie and UK designer Ross Lovegrove.
Nick Hall moves south to Bentleys
Nick Hall, previously of Wright Marshall Auctioneers in Cheshire, has joined Bentleys Fine Art Auctioneers in Kent. He has relocated to his native Sussex, and joins fellow BBC TV antiques expert Raj Bisram and Mark Foster at the firm in Cranbrook.
As principal auctioneer and valuer he will help develop its monthly sales and add regular specialist events to the sales calendar.
US museums share Sotheby’s prize
Two US museums have received $125,000 each as part of Sotheby’s new exhibition prize.
The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago and the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, North Carolina were voted winners of the competition. The award is designed to encourage museums to break new ground. Three runners-up will receive $10,000 each.
In Numbers
6.88m
The combined total (including premium) of last week’s two media-friendly auctions celebrating Hollywood stars.
First up was Sotheby’s September 26 sale of 321 lots from the estate of Vivien Leigh which raised £2.24m with premium.
The following day, Christie’s generated £4.64m from 246 lots from the Audrey Hepburn collection. Both sales were ‘white’ glove events.
