Submitted by aarAdmin on Tue, 05/31/2022 - 00:00
If Décor brand inventor Brian Davis were still alive he no doubt would have been delighted with the sale results of his collection through Melbourne-based Leski Auctions on May 29.
The top selling item was Frederick McCubbin’s (1855-1917) painting entitled Towards Richmond, from Kensington Road, South Yarra (lot 153) which changed hands for $59,750 including buyer’s premium.
Brian, who died last year aged 91, brought world-class design, creativity and innovation to Australian homewares as a result of his efforts and achieved strong international recognition for many of his product inventions including the two bottle BYO wine chiller.
A great supporter of the arts and charities, his collection was both interesting and diverse.
The second placed item was an antique French wine cooler (lot 84) that sold for $35,850 followed by Ray Crooke’s (1922-2015) Afternoon shade, Thursday Island (lot 168) for $33,460.
A painting entitled Veules, 1887 (lot 150) by an unknown artist (the signature is indistinct) was a real surprise as it returned $28,680 on a $3000-$5000 estimate – the same price as that paid for Norman Lindsay’s (1879-1969) Portrait of Rita as ‘Carmen’ (lot 160), one of three paintings he had among the top 10 results.
The other two were his watercolour work entitled Water Nymphs (lot 159) for $26,290 and Summer (or Summertime) (lot 156) for $20,315 – both selling above their catalogue estimates.
Another work Fruits in Season by Sam Fullbrook (1922-2004) (lot 167) achieved the pleasing result of $21,510 on an $8000-$12,000 listing, while a stunning pair of circa 1764 George III sterling silver Chippendale pagoda shaped tea caddies (lot 4) brought $19,210 – five times the catalogue estimate.
An antique Irish circa 1770 George III mahogany standing cellarette (lot 109) also performed well with a $17,925 return – the same price as that achieved for Clifton Pugh’s (1924-1990) painting Two Cows Bulling (lot 163).
