KEY POINTS:
As the year winds down, there is no sign of slackening around the salerooms. Catalogues already out, and indications of what is pending, suggest buyers will have plenty to choose from - in quality as well as quantity.
The past month has seen some spirited action, with good turnouts at the International Art Centre and at Webb's A2 sale, devoted to the remarkable collection of Aucklanders Jean and the late Neil Smith.
Neither sale had works in the spectacular $200,000-plus class but both incorporated many interesting, attractive works.
The International Art Centre sale saw records set for four artists. A curious painting of a Maori chief on a pearl shell, by John Philemon Backhouse (1845-1908), surprised by reaching $9700 ($11,000, with buyers premium of 12 per cent and GST).
The previous highest price for Backhouse was just under $5000, but don't expect this sale to boost interest in his works. Colonial art, even by much better artists than Backhouse, is not particularly buoyant, compared with the heady years of a decade or so ago - which could mean buyers investing in Blomfields, Gullys, Barrauds and so on might just be on to a shrewd thing.
The other records were for Freda Simmonds (1912-1989), $4100; Richard Wallwork (1882-1955), $11,500; and photographer George H. Swan of Napier ($3000 for a photograph taken around 1870 of two of the most interesting characters of the East Coast wars, Major Rapata Wahawaha and Major Thomas William Porter).
Porter was Rapata's second-in-command in his pursuit of Te Kooti through the Ureweras and had a distinguished later military career, including commanding the 7th New Zealand contingent of Mounted Rifles in South Africa.
Such military subjects are commanding increasing interest, with an ink sketch of Gallipoli by Australian war artist Horace Moore-Jones going for $8000. His water-colour of the same subject sold in the same house in July for a mind-boggling $56,750.
At Webb's, the Smith collection - including art catalogues, magazines, books and posters - virtually sold out, with many works exceeding the upper estimate.
A Robin White screenprint of Mangaweka, shown on the catalogue cover, went for $7600 ($8668, with 12.5 per cent premium and GST), against a top estimate of $6000; a Don Binney painting from his Te Henga series for $44,000 ($50,186), over the top estimate of $40,000; and Tony Fomison's portrait of Te Rauparaha, which had a top estimate of $30,000, went for $32,000 ($36,500).
Even a rather untypical poster from 1972 by Pat Hanly, urging "Keep Ngataringa Bay natural", exceeded its top estimate of $1000, selling for $1150.
One of the few works not to do as well as expected was Ans Westra's celebrated Maori series of photographs. Sold subject on the night, it went for the bid of $10,000, against an estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. But other photographs sold well.
This writer was particularly delighted by the spirited bidding for two photographs of Dame Whina Cooper, including the iconic shot of her setting off on her land march hand-in-hand with a youngster.
They went for $650, against a top estimate of $200. And the photographer? Not in the art books but none other than the Herald's Michael Tubberty, now retired but by any standards one of this country's finest photographers.
Coming up:
November 9: Webb's, Jim Fraser collection; recent New Zealand art.
November 20/21: Cordy's, fine and applied art.
November 19/20/21: Dunbar Sloane, Auckland; ceramics (including more of the van Hessen Clarice Cliff collection), New Zealand historical, fine art, militaria, artefacts.
November 22: International Art Centre, an uncatalogued sale of more than 250 works.
December 5/6/7: Webb's, final big sale.
