LONDON.- Harry Moore-Gwyn: British and Continental pictures online auction of about 140 lots which closed on the 8th July included many good quality works of art by well-known artists such as Sir Kyffin Williams OBE RA, Sir Stanley Spencer, and Eric Gill as well as attractive sketches by Sir Cecil Beaton, John Armstrong and Oliver Messel. Bidders were prepared to pay high prices online, such as for the Sir Stanley Spencer drawing ‘Studies for domestic scenes’ which sold for £3,600 and ‘Costume Designs for Cleopatra’ for the film Caesar and Cleopatra, 1945, by Oliver Messel which sold for £2,160, both including buyers’ premium. There was also interest in the smaller and less well known artists’ watercolours and oils with an increase in buyers prepared to buy for an artist’s talent rather than ‘name’. See for example Alfred Aaron Wolmark’s oil painting of ‘Still Life with fruit, vegetables, flowers and bottles’, which sold for £600 including premium (estimate: £500 - £700).

This first online pictures auction curated by Harry Moore-Gwyn saw an increase in the number of lots, online views and bids, showing great promise for the future development in this discipline.

Cartoons also sold well, particularly those by Ronald Searle, one of the highlights being Steffan Kiss-Szabo, The Blind Brushmaker selling for £1,140 (estimate £600 - £800).

George Duckett said ‘“We were delighted that one of Sir Stanley Spencer’s important works sold. With Harry’s involvement we had more vendors and more lots than we have had in any other sale before.” Harry Moore-Gwyn comments… “In future years it is quite likely that curated internet sales of this nature will dominate the lower to middle part of the picture market. This auction represents an exciting start in this pioneering field with the rare and the unusual (as always with pictures) eliciting the greatest interest and demand."