Contemporary & Post-War Art

GRAYSON PERRY '100% Art' plate - 2020

Lyon & Turnbull‘s Contemporary & Post-War Art / Prints & Multiples sale is this week’s Auction Alert highlight. The auction takes place on Wednesday 19th January 2022, from 10am (lots: 1 to 184). After a recess, lots 185 to 317 go under the hammer from 2pm.

The majority of the lots for sale are by British (especially Scottish) artists. There’s a showing of ‘Young British Artists‘ (YBAs) including examples from Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin. There’s a wonderful plate by ‘National Treasure’, Grayson Perry (pictured above) and a couple of thought-provoking artworks by Banksy. There are works by a few artists from across the pond, such as Keith Haring, Andy Warhol and Nan Goldin.

There’s a buyer’s premium of 25% on the hammer price of each lot (up to £300,000) then 20% thereafter (exclusive of VAT). Bidding live via the Lyon & Turnbull website and app doesn’t incur extra fees. They offer a shipping service and also provide details of other companies that they recommend.

PETER HOWSON O.B.E. (SCOTTISH 1958-) 'UNTITLED'

Lot 31: PETER HOWSON O.B.E. (SCOTTISH 1958-) ‘UNTITLED’
Signed lower left, oil on canvas. 30cm x 26cm (11.75in x 10.25in)
Estimate: £1,000 – £1,500

JACK VETTRIANO O.B.E., 'LOOKING DOWN FROM ABOVE'

Lot 99: JACK VETTRIANO O.B.E. (SCOTTISH 1951-) ‘LOOKING DOWN FROM ABOVE’
Signed lower right, oil on canvas board. 50cm x 39.5cm (19.75in x 15.5in). Exhibited: The Atholl Gallery, Dunkeld
Estimate: £10,000 – £15,000

WILLIAM SENIOR, 'STILL LIFE WITH GRAPES AND GLASS' - 1958

Lot 146: WILLIAM SENIOR (BRITISH FL.1940-60) ‘STILL LIFE WITH GRAPES AND GLASS’ – 1958
Signed and dated lower left, gouache on paper. 18.5cm x 36cm (7.25in x 14in)
Estimate: £300 – £500

BANKSY, 'WELCOME MAT' - 2020

Lot 186: BANKSY (BRITISH 1974-) ‘WELCOME MAT’ – 2020
Hand-stitched mat, in fabric repurposed from life vests abandoned on Mediterranean beaches, , numbered to fabric label, fabricated at Greek refugee camps in collaboration with Love Welcomes, London, produced by Gross Domestic Product, London, in original packaging. 45cm x 61cm (17.75in x 24in), unframed
Estimate: £700 – £900

YAYOI KUSAMA, 'RED PUMPKIN NAOSHIMA'

Lot 189: YAYOI KUSAMA (JAPANESE 1929-) ‘RED PUMPKIN NAOSHIMA’
Cast resin multiple, 2019, with the artist’s stamped signature and title on the underside, from an open edition, published by Benesse Holdings, Inc., Naoshima, in the original box. 9.5cm x 14cm x 14cm (3.75in x 5.5in x 5.5in)
Estimate: £800 – £1,200

LAURENCE STEPHEN LOWRY, 'AN INDUSTRIAL TOWN'

Lot 200: LAURENCE STEPHEN LOWRY (BRITISH 1887-1976) ‘AN INDUSTRIAL TOWN’
Off-set lithograph, 134/500, signed and numbered in pencil to margin. Image size 43.5cm x 59cm (17in x 23.25in)
Estimate: £1,000 – £1,500

GRAYSON PERRY '100% Art' plate - 2020

Lot 204: GRAYSON PERRY C.B.E., R.A. (BRITISH 1960-) ‘100% ART’ PLATE – 2020
Ceramic plate, from the first edition, developed for the Holburne Museum, in collaboration with Kit Grover, to celebrate the exhibition, ‘The Pre-Therapy Years’. 21cm (8.25in) diameter
Estimate: £300 – £500

EDWARD BAWDEN C.B.E., R.A., 'THE QUEEN'S GARDEN' - 1986

Lot 207: EDWARD BAWDEN C.B.E., R.A. (BRITISH 1903-1989) ‘THE QUEEN’S GARDEN’ – 1986
Lithograph, 72/160, signed, titled and numbered in pencil to margin. The sheet 63cm x 76.5cm (24.75in x 30in), unframed
Estimate: £400 – £600

ANDY WARHOL AND KEITH HARING, ‘20TH MONTREUX JAZZ FESTIVAL’ - 1986

Lot 233: ANDY WARHOL (AMERICAN 1928-1987) AND KEITH HARING (AMERICAN 1958-1990) ‘MONTREUX JAZZ FESTIVAL’ – 1986
Screenprint. The sheet 100cm x 70cm (39.25in x 27.5in), unframed
Estimate: £400 – £600

DAMIEN HIRST, 'AUROUS IODIDE' - 2009

Lot 271: DAMIEN HIRST (BRITISH 1965-) ‘AUROUS IODIDE’ – 2009
Screenprint with gold glitter, 34/150, signed, numbered and dedicated, ‘For Franco, Big it Up!’ with a pencil drawing of a heart and xxx, published by Other Criteria, London. The sheet 98cm x 75cm (38.5in x 29.5in)
Estimate: £8,000 – £12,000

KEITH HARING, 'MONTREUX JAZZ POSTER' (GREEN) - 1983

Lot 315: KEITH HARING (AMERICAN 1958-1990) ‘MONTREUX JAZZ POSTER’ (GREEN) – 1983
Screenprint. The sheet 100cm x 70cm (39.5in x 27.5in), unframed
Estimate: £300 – £500

Designer Desire: Richard Koppe

Mosaic of Richard Koppe artwork | H is for Home

Richard Koppe (1916-1973) was an American modernist artist, designer and educator. In the late 1930s, Koppe attended the New Bauhaus in Chicago where he was taught by László Moholy-Nagy. You can really see the tutor’s influence on the pupil’s style.

For ages we’ve hankered after a menu he designed in 1948 for Well of the Sea restaurant located in the basement of Hotel Sherman, Chicago. Examples appear on eBay occasionally – but they are never cheap!

He produced other designs for the restaurant including 5 impressive ‘glow in the dark’ wall murals, coloured recessed back-lighting and kinetic mobiles. A range of crockery was produced for the restaurant by Shenango in 1953 using his designs. Someone on Zazzle is currently producing exact replicas of this restaurant-ware; putting it to china, melamine and textile home accessories.

We have an illustration painted by Cal Dunn of one of Koppe’s Well of the Sea murals in one of our vintage cookbooks, ‘The Ford Treasury of Favourite Recipes from Famous Eating Places‘. We’ve also found a couple of  contemporary black & white photographs of the restaurant here and here.

Richard Koppe exhibited widely at international institutions such as the Whitney Museum of American Art, the National Academy in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh, the Pennsylvania Academy in Philadelphia, the Royal Academy of Art in London, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

He also taught for many years as Head of Visual Design and Fine Arts at the Institute of Design (ID) at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) and later as Professor of Art at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Portrait of Richard Koppecredit

Additional image credits:

Art in America magazine | Corbett vs Dempsey | Elmhurst Art Museum | Invaluable | Flickr