:An exceptional work by J.M.W. Turner, RA (1775-1851), the most
important watercolor to appear at auction for more than 50 years
and one of the most impressive ever painted by the artist, sold
at Christie's last month for $10,987,488, the world record price
for a British work on paper.
"The Blue Rigi" is a remarkable work of art by the universally
acknowledged master of watercolor and the "precursor of
Impressionism." The auctioneer's hammer fell after a tense
ten-minute bidding battle, which was won by an anonymous bidder
on the telephone. The sale of British art on paper was the first
of five auctions to take place during British Art Week at
Christie's. Further highlights sold during the week included a
selection of paintings, watercolors, furniture and sculpture
worth in excess of $45 million and representing more than 500
years of British art, including works by Gainsborough, Hockney,
Sir Joshua Reynolds and Stubbs, as well as "The Liver Building,"
a rediscovered masterpiece by L.S. Lowry.
Between 1841 and 1844, Turner undertook annual tours to
Switzerland where he was inspired by the dramatic scenery around
Lake Lucerne and the Rigi Mountain rising from the eastern shore.
In 1842, on his return from Switzerland, Turner produced four
exemplary and highly finished watercolors, including "The Blue
Rigi," which is considered to be the superlative example, and
went with them to his agent, Thomas Griffith, in order to secure
further commissions. John Ruskin, the foremost art critic of the
Nineteenth Century, said of this series that "Turner had never
made any drawings like these before and never made any like them
again."
In April 2006, Christie's established the world record price for
Turner at auction when his masterpiece "Giudecca, La Donna della
Salute and San Giorgio" was sold in New York City for
$35,856,000.
Prices reported include buyer's premium. For information,
www.christies.com.
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