LONDON.- Ewbank’s took a double-estimate £25,000 for the top three lots in their September 22 Fine Art auction.

All four pictures were by celebrated British artists, led by a still life of a vase and flowers by George Clausen (1852-1944). Dating to 1902, the signed and dated oil on canvas measured 34 x 29cm and took £12,500 including premium.

Of Danish descent, London-born Clausen was a leading landscape painter who also produced a series of captivating studies of peasants.

He was also a founding member of the New English Art Club and Professor of Painting at the Royal Academy, as well as an Official War Artist in the First World War.

Frederick Jackson (1859-1918) was a Manchester School artist and a member of the Staithes Group alongside Laura Knight. Inspired by the light and colour of the Mediterranean landscape while touring Italy during a sojourn in Paris, he brought a painterly style to his contemporary subjects, many of them scenes in nature.

Ewbank’s offered a 24 x 32cm signed oil on board of a peasant couple with a flock of geese to the foreground in a rural landscape. Completed with an Impressionistic air, the vibrant scene trounced a £500-800 estimate with a premium-inclusive bid of £10,625.

Following at £8,750 including premium was a series of 12 aquatints of views of India bound in a contemporary portfolio by the uncle and nephew duo Thomas (1749-1840) and William Daniell (1769-1837).

William acted as his uncle’s assistant in preparing drawings and sketches on this life-changing expedition that began in 1784 and finally ended with their return to London a decade later.

They set the pattern of their exploration of the sub-continent in Calcutta, where they completed a series of 12 views of the city which they then sold to European residents of the city. The success of this venture led to similar projects in other cities, including one in Sirinagur (Srinagar), an edition of which sold here at Ewbank’s.

Another still life of flowers, this time of roses, was an early work by Victor Pasmore (1908-98), much better known as a pioneer of modern abstract prints in the 1940s and ’50s.

The 14.5 x 20cm oil on board took a premium-inclusive £3,750.

Such was the appetite for 19th century art that several works went for multiple-estimate prices.

“Inspired subject matter, a deft handling of colour, consummate composition and all-round talent will always tell, said partner Andrew Ewbank. “We spend a great deal of time selecting the right works for our fine art catalogues, but it is worth it when the results pay off like this. And they show that traditional art is still very string when it has all the right elements.”