Posters at auction provide chance to get a New Year skiing 'hit'
11 January 2021 For the many keen skiers who make an annual pilgrimage to the Alps in the winter months this season promises to be something of a disappointment.
'Toggenburg' by Hans Looser, estimate £800-1200 at Lyon & Turnbull.
However, one way to get something of the skiing ‘hit’ in the New Year is to peruse The Ski Sale to be held by auction house Lyon & Turnbull in Edinburgh on January 20.
The sale features a fine selection of original lithographed posters focused on winter sports and travel assembled by former Christie’s vintage poster specialists Nicolette Tomkinson and Sophie Churcher. The pair first teamed up with Lyon & Turnbull to launch dedicated poster sales in 2018.
Many posters reflect the attractions of resorts in Switzerland, France, Austria and Norway – all of them in colourful and striking designs redolent of the eras for which they were made. Most have already been professionally conserved and backed on linen and are thus ready for framing.
'The Brunig Line' by Otto Baumberger, estimate £700-900 at Lyon & Turnbull.
This 3ft 3in x 2ft 1in (1m x 63cm) lithographic poster titled The Brunig Line Switzerland promotes the narrow gauge railway line that links Lucerne with Interlaken via the Brunig Pass.
One of 200 posters designed by Otto Baumberger (1889-1961), it is expected to bring £700-900.
View the catalogue entry for this ski poster on thesaleroom.com.
'Club Alpin Français' by Samivel, estimate £2000-3000 at Lyon & Turnbull.
Paul Gayet-Tancrède, (1907-1992) known as Samivel, was himself an explorer and conservationist. His life-long fascination with high mountains was reflected in book illustrations and a series of lithographic posters of the French Alps.
This striking 2ft 8in x 21in (82cm x 55cm) Club Alpin Français poster from 1920 is guided at £2000-3000.
View the catalogue entry for this ski poster on thesaleroom.com.
'St Moritz' by Franco Barberis, estimate £600-800 at Lyon & Turnbull.
This 1948 image promoting the merits of a sunny post-war St Moritz by Franco Barberis (1905-1992) is expected to bring £600-800.
The Italian-Swiss artist first worked as a graphic designer for the shoe brand Bally before becoming freelance illustrator and cartoonist for Swiss newspapers and numerous children’s books.
View the catalogue entry for this ski poster on thesaleroom.com.
'Montana, Vermala' by Sagal, estimate £400-600 at Lyon & Turnbull.
The Russian-born artist Wladimir ‘Sagal’ Sagalowitz (1898-1969) is perhaps best known for a series of pictures he created while interned at Saint-Sulpice-la-Pointe near Toulouse in 1941.
In 1943 he managed to escape and reach Switzerland where he later enjoyed a successful career as a commercial artist. This image of a skier titled Montana, Vermala, 3ft 3in x 2ft 1in (99cm x 65cm), is estimated at £400-600.
View the catalogue entry for this ski poster on thesaleroom.com.
