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Esteemed Prussian-born woodcarver and cabinetmaker Robert Prenzel (1866-1941), who migrated to Melbourne in November 1888 and was widely renowned for his Australian flora and fauna carvings, has stolen the limelight at Melbourne-based Leski Auctions Australian & Historical sale on November 28-29, that paid tribute to enthusiastic collector and antique dealer the late Marvin Hurnall with 165 items from his collection on offer.
A spectacularly carved mirror by the...
Brett Whiteley created a new Australian art record on Thursday November 26 when his Henri’s Armchair 1974-75 sold for $6.125 million including buyer’s premium and GST at Menzies single lot auction in Sydney.
Well-known leading Sydney barrister the late Clive Evatt QC purchased the painting directly from the artist and kept it at his Turramurra home until his death in 2018, loaning it to various institutions during that time.
The painting eclipses...
The almost 12-month global COVID-19 pandemic and its associated lockdowns in Australia does not appear to have dampened buyer enthusiasm for art on the secondary market.
Deutscher and Hackett’s recent mid-November Melbourne sale where 88 per cent of paintings sold and Smith & Singer’s Sydney similar result by value at auction on November 18 augur well for a strong recovery from any potential long-term damage to the Australian art industry caused by the virulent...
Quirky contrasts can be quite stark when it comes to professional football – and none more so than for St Kilda Football Club which, after 124 years as a foundation member of the Victorian Football League which in 1990 became the Australian Football League competition, still has only one premiership to its credit.
Yet, any sporting memorabilia to do with the club is often enormously popular with auction goers – and so it proved at Leski Auctions Sporting Memorabilia...
Perhaps some art lovers might have been a little disappointed that a new milestone was not achieved – but at the end of the day Russell Drysdale’s Going to the Pictures, 1941 (lot 12) $2.4 million hammer price did equal the artist’s previous record for one of his works, set in 2017 for Grandma’s Sunday Walk, when Deutscher and Hackett finished its Melbourne sale and final auction for the year on Wednesday November 11.
With all bidding still over the...
Gibson’s Auctions is delighted with the results of its Australian, Maritime & Exploration sale on Sunday November 8 when 75 per cent of items sold realising 138 per cent of catalogue estimate value.
Even more telling was the fact that 94 per cent of the late Bob Munro’s maritime collection, which comprised the auction’s first 217 lots, realised 258 per cent of the estimated value – a positive portend for his forthcoming warehouse online auction on Sunday November...
An elaborate and flamboyantly designed Carlo Bugatti (1856-1940) lectern (lot 708) made circa 1880-1895 and exhibited at the National Gallery of Victoria was the top selling item ($17,925 including buyer’s premium) at Leski Auctions two-day Melbourne sale on October 31 and November 1.
Constructed from ebonised wood, brass, ivory, pewter, vallum, cord and bone, the lectern was made in his Milan workshop, established in 1888, from where his eccentric designs found a ready market. In the...
While Melbourne’s lengthy Stage 4 lockdown response to the coronavirus pandemic has taken a severe toll on business and residents alike, online decorative arts and art auctions have performed better than expected for many auction houses.
Gibson’s Auctions Australian & International Art auction on October 25 prompted mixed reactions from buyers with 56 per cent of the 224 paintings selling – some above catalogue estimates – and many well-known artists ignored....
Despite the inability of buyers to physically attend Gibson’s Auctions Melbourne sale on Sunday October 11 due to current coronavirus lockdown restrictions, 82 per cent of the Interiors Private Collections online only offerings were snapped up with a 148 per cent return by value.
The three private collections involved belonged to antiques trade veteran Edward (Ed) Clark Antiques, diamond merchant the late Bjarne Nielsen and Antiques Selection’s Robyn Allen....
For some Melbourne-based businesses, COVID-19 is having unexpected impacts – and none more so than in the art and decorative arts auction industry.
While others have been struggling for months with harsh coronavirus lockdown restrictions, auction houses that have been able to move their sales online have often achieved surprising results.
So it was for Leski Auctions latest two-day sale on September 26 and 27 when the comprehensive eclectic collection of...
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