: Bonhams & Butterfields brought its multiyear tradition of
hosting an auction dedicated to dogs in art to San Francisco on
March 30.
The auction comprised 150 lots of paintings, drawings, sculpture
and collectibles, and included bidders from across the United
States, Hong Kong, Australia and the United Kingdom, setting
several record prices. The auction totaled $678,151, with strong
prices seen throughout.
Two paintings of hounds from The Percy Hunt in Northumberland by
Henry Frederick Lucas-Lucas each sold for record prices. Both
oils were estimated at $12/18,000, and were signed and inscribed
on the reverse with the names of the hounds. Painted for The
Master of the Percy Hunt, these pictures had remained in the
family ever since. Each painting sold for $44,063, setting new
records for works by the artist.
"An English Setter in a Landscape," John Boultbee, oil on
canvas, $28,200.
Two additional lots of Lucas-Lucas works also sold. One
comprising a pair of hounds brought more than three times its
estimate to sell for $22,325, while a lot of three pictures of
hounds, each 11 by 14-inches, realized $4,994.
An interesting lot that saw highly competitive bidding was a
Tiffany & Co Revere-style sterling silver Westminster Kennel
Club "Best in Show" cup with engravings from 1996. Estimated at
$7/900, the 13-inch-diameter bowl sold for $19,975. Several cold
painted bronzes sold, as did a 20-inch-tall patinated bronze of
Champion Marco with its expressive face and curly mane. The Marco
bronze sold for $4,994.
The auction opened with drawings, many of which sold for twice or
three times the presale estimates. An Abraham Cooper, RA, oil on
canvas of three sporting dogs belonging to Lord Charles Vere
Ferrers Townshend, which may have been exhibited at The Royal
Academy in London in 1851, sold over estimate for $17,925, while
John Boultbee's oil, "An English Setter in a Landscape," brought
$28,200.
Tiffany & Co. sterling silver Westminster Kennel Club 1966
"Best in Show" cup, $19,975.
A John Emms painting of an attentive Jack Russell terrier
Hester Sorrel reached $23,500, nearly three times the estimate, and
a lovely oil on canvas by a follower of Sir Edwin Henry Landseer,
RA, featuring a pair of brown and white spaniels, brought $35,250.
Another highlight was a picture of terriers working by Arthur
Wardle. Painted in 1934, this picture sold just above its
estimate for $37,600. A poodle-loving bidder paid $12,925 for a
delightful portrait of a poodle called "Dan" by Edwin Frederick
Holt. Dan was born in 1878 and shown in the 1879 Kennel Club
Exhibition in Brighton.
This was the first Dogs in Art sale by Bonhams from the West
Coast, and the first by Bonhams & Butterfields.
Prices reported include buyer's premium.
