LONDON.- The 20th century in Britain was a period of great change, upheaval and innovation. ‘Made in Britain’ tells the story of how this energy reverberated throughout the art scene – capturing and celebrating the cutting-edge pieces that shaped the course of popular culture. Intertwining relationships between artists, makers and media run through the exhibition, with something for every collector to covet whatever their price point, and with estimates starting from only £100. The exhibition goes on view to the public on Friday 16 March – Monday 19 March, ahead of an auction on Tuesday 20 March.
BREAKING THE MOULD
Marcus Lyon, Rambert III - 4 Elements, 2015, pigment print, flush-mounted to aluminium, edition 5/7 (est. £8,000-12,000)
Born out of a collaboration between one of the world’s foremost contemporary dance companies and photographer Marcus Lyon, Rambert III – 4 Elements visualises a whole dance within a single frame. The final artwork draws heavily on a mix of the real and the imagined as the images weave patterns of movement across the setting of the stage.
Chris Levine, Banksy, lenticular print on lightbox, edition AP from 1+1AP (est. £30,000 – 50,000)
One of the leading lights of photography in Britain, Chris Levine has photographed some of the most well-known faces, from the Queen to Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss. Here, he turns his lens towards the anonymous Banksy – unmasking the myth of one of Britain’s most controversial and sought-after artists, and challenging the way we traditionally perceive portraiture.
Banksy, Pulp Fiction, screenprint in colours, 2004 (est. £12,000 – 18,000)
One of five works by Banksy included in the sale, the artist looks towards the ‘cult’ status of director Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction.
THE ENDURING INFLUENCE OF KETTLE’S YARD
Recently reopened after a period of renovation and expansion, Kettle’s Yard, the former home of Jim Ede in Cambridge, is a haven for Modern British Art and March’s Made In Britain sale celebrates the influence that Ede had over generations of artists and collectors. Ede’s collection at Kettle’s Yard shows us all that the passion to collect knows no bounds and really is open to everybody.
George Kennethson, Spirit of Weston, Purbeck stone, circa 1960s (est. £15,000 – 25,000)
Featured on the front cover of the catalogue, this rare modernist stone carving by Kennethson expresses his desire to convey the common thread of human experience across boundaries of geography and time.
Winifred Nicholson, Kate at Alerta, oil on canvas, circa 1936 (est. £25,000-35,000)
Former wife of the artist Ben Nicholson this painting by Winifred Nicholson is appearing at auction for the very first time and depicts her young daughter Kate picking flowers in a Mediterranean meadow. It encapsulates the artist’s skill with a beautifully crisp and subtle colour palette.
POTTERS IN PARALLEL
Creating beautiful, original and intriguing works of art from the earth’s most basic material, British studio ceramics are now celebrated the world over, with the recent exhibition Things of Beauty Growing, at the Yale Centre for British Art set to open at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge later this year. They are rightly recognised as some of the most accomplished and skilled artists of the past century.
Dame Lucie Rie, Emerald Green Bowl with Bronzed Rim, 1987 (est. £20,000-30,000)
Dame Lucie Rie paved the way for a new generation of ceramicists, potters and makers who continue to this day to shape the international ceramics scene. Made towards the end of her career her Emerald Green Bowl with Bronzed Rim celebrates her mastery of glazes, with beautiful finesse.
Jennifer Lee, Olive, Dark Haloes, Speckled and Amber Bands, Tilted Rim, 1991 (est. £12,000-16,000)
Recently announced as a finalist for the 2018 LOWEVE Craft Prize, Jennifer Lee is one of the most sought-after contemporary ceramicists working today. Each of Lee’s pieces is carefully hand built in a lengthy process that sees only a handful of works produced each year. Her works exude a stylish elegance, and this sale offers one of the largest works by the artist to ever appear at auction.
Edmund de Waal, Pair of Porcelain Beakers (est. £600 - £800)
With the sale featuring works at every price level, these Edmund de Waal beakers offer the chance to own a work by one of the leading contemporary British artists working today.
CAPTURING THE QUINTESSENTIALLY BRITISH SCENE
The sale features works by some of Britain’s most popular and beloved artists, including L.S. Lowry, Norman Parkinson, Stanley Spencer and Edward Burra, all of whom were acute observers of the world around them, and captured a Britain now largely lost.
Sir Winston Churchill, Lake Emerald, Canada, oil on canvas (est. £6,000-8,000)
In 1929, Churchill travelled across North America with his son Randolph, his brother Jack and his nephew Jonny. During a trip through the Canadian Rocky Mountains, Churchill painted at Lake Louise, Alberta and Lake Emerald in British Columbia. This work comes from the collection of Churchill’s last bodyguard Sergeant Edmund Murray.
THE COLLECTION OF ANN JELLICOE & ROGER MAYNE
Roger Mayne and Ann Jellicoe were leading figures in their respective worlds of photography and theatre, emerging as individuals who in their own unique ways influenced a Post-War generation of photographers and theatre directors. It was a visit to St Ives and the resulting friendship with artists such as Patrick Heron, Terry Frost and Roger Hilton that was to have an enormous impact on Mayne’s photographic style. Several of the pieces in the auction were given directly to the photographer by the artists either as gifts or as payment for photographing their work.
FRANCIS BACON & THE SCHOOL OF LONDON
In 1976 the artist R.B. Kitaj coined the term ‘School of London’ to describe a group of artists working in London who pursued forms of figurative painting in the face of the ever-growing strength of avant-garde and abstract movements. At its heart stood Frank Auerbach, Leon Kossoff, Francis Bacon, Michael Andrews and Lucian Freud.
Francis Bacon, Screaming Pope Fragment, oil on unstreched canvas, circa 1953-54 (est. £7,000-10,000)
Artist Lewis Todd was given discarded canvases from Francis Bacon’s studio by Cambridge gallery-owner John Kesterton after World War II, on the understanding that the aspiring artist would practice his own paintings on the reverse. This fragment provides the opportunity to acquire a piece of Bacon history, featuring a glimpse of one of his haunting Pope portraits.
