Described in the past as “an international art fair with a British accent”, Masterpiece London, the summer’s leading international cross-collecting fair for art, antiques and design, returns for its sixth edition this Thursday at the Royal Hospital Chelsea. Here’s a sneak preview of the exceptional British works offered for sale, from a late great watercolour by J.M.W Turner to the only bed ever to be exhibited at Masterpiece London by Rose Uniacke
This year looks set to be a vintage year for the Brits at Masterpiece London, with an exceptional array of important British works offered for sale, from galleries such as Richard Green, which will offer a superb collection of 13 works by Laurence Stephen Lowry, to Offer Waterman & Co, which is exhibiting works by the sculptor Barbara Hepworth, timed to coincide with the opening of the solo show at Tate Britain, alongside a monumental feminine form by William Turnbull, which will be presented in one of the public spaces within the Fair.
Thomas Gibson Fine Art, meanwhile, will offer the exceptional ‘Sighs from Hell’ by R. B. Kitaj, a skilled draughtsman who draws comparisons with Degas, which comes from the esteemed Bergman collection in Chicago; Lowell Libson Ltd will offer a great late watercolour by J.M.W. Turner, ‘A view over the val d’Aosta’, painted in 1836, while Piano Nobile will offer works from 20th-century British artists, including ‘The Grey Shawl’ by William Nicholson, which comes from the private collection at Harewood House, and ‘KA IV’, by Bridget Riley, created in 1980.
Important British works will also include ‘The Tom Scott Collection of Clocks’, offered for sale by Carter Marsh & Co, which is the finest private collection of clocks to come on to the market in living memory and includes the 1696 ‘Medici Tompion’. British furniture highlights include a diverse selection of antique tables, such as a George II carved side table attributed to William Linnell, a magnificent table with a rectangular Medicis Breccia marble top, to be offered by Apter-Fredericks.
Other highlights include a Louis-Alexandre Bellangé desk, created in a Renaissance style c.1840 in Paris, with ebony and tortoiseshell inlay on an oak structure, mahogany drawers and gilt bronze mounts, presented by Didier Aaron. The Hinton House Strong Box, a rare William and Mary brass bound ebonised strong box on a giltwood stand, created c. 1690, will be presented by Ronald Phillips, while Rolleston will present an exceptional Charles II olive oyster-veneered and floral marquetry cabinet.
Meanwhile, award-winning interior designer and antique dealer Rose Uniacke will make her fourth appearance at Masterpiece with a skilfully curated collection of fine pieces, including a PH-4/3 table lamp in brass and opal glass (1927) and an original PH 6/5 Lantern in copper (1928), as well as a stunning silvered pressed metal and parcel gilt four poster bed, circa 1860, by R.W. Winfield & Co – one of the only beds to have ever been exhibited at the Fair.
A Gerald Summers armchair constructed from a single piece of bent plywood, which is also the first chair to be formed in a mould, will be presented by Peter Petrou.
Masterpiece has long heralded the discipline of design and designer-makers as central to the Fair, and this year an already strong line-up of design specialist galleries will be bolstered by the addition of David Gill Gallery, which will offer some ground-breaking works by Mattia Bonetti, as well as pieces from Zaha Hadid, and the return of design studio Based Upon (above), which will showcase the breadth of their capabilities and in particular their innovative material ‘tramazite’. Finally, British design house Linley will unveil ‘LIGHTSCAPE’, a collection of three pieces that celebrate the changing light in the city and how it transforms architecture.
Masterpiece London takes place at the Royal Hospital Chelsea, London, from 25 June – 1 July 2015 (preview on 24 June).
Main image: Rose Uniacke
The post Masterpiece London showcases cream of the British crop appeared first on Beyond Bespoke.