Flemish School. 16th century.‘Mary as the Gateway to Heaven. Allegory of the examination of conscience to achieve a Good Death’.Oil on panel. Accompanied by an imposing carved and gilded wooden frame.92 x 70 cm.Magnificent panel depicting the final moment of a human being lying in the centre of the bottom of the composition, taking stock of his good and bad deeds, the examination of conscience of his life; a prayerful reflection on his thoughts, words and actions in the light of the Gospel to determine how he may have sinned against God and others. The artist must have been familiar with the theology of the time, as taught by St. Ignatius of Loyola in his Spiritual Exercises, which taught: ‘at the end of the day, at the time of going to rest’ ‘to make a daily peaceful reflection on all that has happened [...] to find God in all things [...] even in those where God had apparently hidden himself’. 'The human conscience imagines its life at the ‘hour of eternal rest’. The painter places Mary, the Gate of Heaven, at the centre, as the Mother of Mercy who always awaits with open hands on her heart. In Glory, the Holy Trinity awaits, God the reigning Father, the Suffering Son and the Holy Spirit who flies over everything and everyone. When contemplating this work, we see three differentiated levels, in which numbered phylacteries fly, like speech bubbles, which arrange the conversation. Above in the sky: Son (11) ‘PATER RESPICE VULNERA MEA...’ (‘Father, remember my wounds...’). And he also addresses his mother (14): ‘MATER MEA, FIAT TIBI SICUT VIS’ (‘My mother, let it be done as you will’). God the Father (12) ‘VENIT TEMPUS MISEREN DIEORUM’ (‘The hour has come for the miserable days’).The Father, who addresses the Virgin and calls her Daughter: ‘FILIA FIAT TIBI SICUT VIS’ (‘Daughter, be it done as you will’). And the third from heaven is the Dove or Holy Spirit (1) ‘SPONSA FIAT TIBI SICUT VIS’ (‘Bride, be it as thou wilt’). On the second level, horizontally speaking, and in the centre, the Virgin responds with three phylacteries (8): ‘PATER RESPICIE IN FACIEM CHRISTI’ (‘Father receive and look at the face of Christ’), (9) ‘FILI ASPICE UBERA QUAE TE LACTAVERUNT’ (‘Son, look at the breasts that suckled you’), and (10) ‘S. Se. DEUS ECCE QUOS AMAS INFIRMANTUR‘ (’God, Holy among the Saints, strengthen those you love"). The angels on the left, over which he prays: ‘PER HANC NOS AD DEUM’ (‘Through these, we go to God’), ask their Queen (7): ‘IUUA PUSILLANIMES, MARIA ANGELORUM REGINA’ (‘Mary, Queen of Angels, look upon the fainthearted youth’). On the right are saints and the Church: Saints Peter and Paul, Popes and Holy Fathers, and Saint Peter the Martyr, among others. Above them: ‘PER HANC DEUS AD NOS’ (‘Through these, God goes to us’), and they respond to their Mother: ‘SU COURE MISERIS SANCTORUM MATER’ (‘Merciful Mother of Saints, attend this tribunal with your heart’). On the earthly level, rests the conscience, lying in the form of a sick human being, who speaks to the Virgin (2): ‘MARIA, TU AB HOSTES PROTEGE ET HORA MORTIS SUSCIPE’ (‘Mary, protect yourself from the enemy and listen to the hour of death’). To which she replies from heaven (16): ‘CONFIDITE FILII, EXAUDITE EST ORATIO NOSTRA’. (‘Son of trust, hear our prayer’). And St. Michael the Archangel, who is named, brandishes his sword over the devil, and says to him (17): ‘IMPERET TIBI DEUS’ (‘God will annihilate you’). And that devil, who is leaning over the recumbent, says (1): ‘PECCAMUSTIS NON SPERETIS VENIAM’ (‘You must sin, do not expect forgiveness’). To the left of the couch, is an angel looking up and praying (5): ‘OCURRITE ANGELI DOMINI’ (‘Angels of the Lord, come’). To the left of his wing we read ‘STOS’ (‘he who remains standing’). To the right of the sick man Saint John the Evangelist (‘PROTECTOR’, behind him, above the shield) cries out: ‘SUB VENITE SANCTI DEI’ (‘Saints of God, come to him’). Two saints pray with the sick man, a Carmelite and an Augustinian, behind whom ‘death breathes, symbolised by the caravel waiting patiently with its shining dart’. The sick man communicates that he has had only one thought, of the fear of God (‘TIMOR DEI’), his whole life rests on the theological virtues, Faith, Hope and Charity (pillows), rests on his good works, thoughts and words (‘BONAE OPERA, BONAE COGITATIONIS, BONAE LOQUTIONES’), and rests on the cardinal virtues (legs of the bed) Prudence, Justice, Fortitude and Temperance. The devil, who stalks the dying man, sticks out from under his bed, which raised on a platform covered with a valance: ‘CONFUNDANTUR QUI ME PERSEQUNTUR ET NON CONFUNDAR’ (‘Those who persecute me will be confused, and they will not confuse me’); while the dying man prays and speaks to all: ‘MISEREMINI NOSTRI SALTEM VOS, AMICI NOSTRI’ (‘At least, you, our friends, have mercy on us’). All this theological life ‘has a face, an owner, a face, a family’, represented by the heraldic shield on the right of the evangelist and beloved disciple, either the person who commissioned the work or its painter. A shield in gold, gules and black with a heart surmounted by the Holy Cross of Jerusalem with initials B, E, P, O.Finally, we should note that an almost exactly similar panel, although not so dark in the background colour, with more light, with the same iconography, perhaps also by the same artist, is in the Pilgrimage Museum in Santiago de Compostela.
We found 5071 price guide item(s) matching your search
There are 5071 lots that match your search criteria. Subscribe now to get instant access to the full price guide service.
Click here to subscribe- List
- Grid
Attributed to Sebastián López de Arteaga (Seville, 1610 - Mexico, 1656).Carved, wooden "cell cross" painted in oils.61.5 x 31.5 cm. Powerful, inspiring and devotional oil painting on panel with the image of Christ Crucified at the moment when, according to the Evangelist John or Psalm 22, He says some of his seven last sayings: - to God, his Father: ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?- to all: ‘I thirst’;- to the world: ‘All is fulfilled’;- and finally to God: ‘Father, into your hands I commend my spirit’.The ‘cell cross’ is a type of devotional piece very common in Spanish and Latin-American convents and monasteries in the 17th and 18th centuries, and was placed inside each cell for the personal use and worship of each monk or nun.The cross has rectilinear sections, unadorned, and worked in an illusionist, three-dimensional manner, the amount of light is somewhere halfway between the typically Baroque tenebrist light and expression of pathos and the artificial Mannerist light, that invisible ‘cannon of light’ that makes us look at Him. Christ appears in the centre, with foreshortened and expressively deformed anatomy, which denotes the continuance of mannerism even into the 17th century. Following this Christ from top to bottom, at his feet we see a depiction of death treading on the devil. While regarding the pain and death of Jesus on the cross, the skeleton at his feet may seem to be perverse mockery, or nihilistic and macabre irony.This design of a skull (Adam's skull) with two tibias, or scattered bones, and a sitting or standing skeleton originated in the late Middle Ages as a symbol of death and especially as a ‘memento mori’, a visual reflexion on the transience of life (remember that you will die...). In this work, and on the same plane or level, death steps on the devil, on evil, as if they were saying to each other: neither you nor I have the last word, only the resurrection.And horizontally, like two ‘loving’ messages flowing from the blood of his hands, we see two birds: in his right hand, as we look at it, the Phoenix on a burning fire, a symbol of hope, poise, memory and regeneration, a miraculous bird that feels death and prepares it with care and serenity to then rise from its ashes unharmed and vigorous (an impossible dream for a human being who has no faith ...); in his left hand, as a finale, he presents a bird and its chicks, which she feeds with her own flesh and blood. The pelican, one of the symbols of Christ, of His martyrdom and death as salvation through the ultimate sacrifice and love for others. In Catholicism it is associated with the Eucharist: with the immolation of Jesus, who with His own flesh and blood nourishes and redeems humanity. A true example of love is the pelican that restores its young with its own blood. Such is the love of Christ who with His blood restores life and gives us his kingdom on the cross.The composition ends with this pelican which encloses, with a motto, the expression of love of this Christ on the cross: ‘SIC’, ‘HIS QUI DILIGUNT’ (Thus - For those who love).
Hasselblad V 503cx medium format camera body, in chrome and black finish, serial no. RE1429960, made in Sweden circa 1989, with Zeiss semi wide angle Distagon f3.5/60 T* lens, serial no. 7124097, and wide angle lens hood, waist level finder, spirit level, flash shoe, and two A12 6x6 film backs, yellow filter and spare standard focusing screenCondition Report: Serviced by Sendean cameras approx four years ago and has had very little use since then. Camera body with front and back body caps, lens has rear body cap but no front cap.
ARDBEG SUPERNOVA SN2019 COMMITTEE RELEASE ISLAY SINGLE MALT 53.8% ABV / 70cl Located on the island’s rugged south coast, Ardbeg distillery represents the peatier end of the Islay spectrum. While it has endured some tough times, spending several years mothballed, the distillery has undergone a bit of a renaissance since being bought over by Glenmorangie and is now on a stable footing.While it still retains its signature sooty spirit, Ardbeg has also adopted its new parent company’s fondness for experimental cask finishes, arguably increasing its appeal. Fill level lower neck. No visible condition issues. Please see additional images
GLENMORANGIE 1971 CULLODEN VINTAGE HIGHLAND SINGLE MALT Distilled: 1971Bottled: 25/10/1995Bottle Number: 108243% ABV / 70cl Famous for their unique stills, each as tall as an adult giraffe, and their passion for innovation, Glenmorangie remains one of the best-selling single malts in the world. They were one of the first distilleries to experiment with cask finishing; the process of transferring spirit from one cask type to another in order to impart additional characteristics and flavours. To further this agenda of innovation, in September of 2021 Glenmorangie began production at their new “Lighthouse” facility, a futuristic R&D department protruding from the heart of their traditional distillery complex like a monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey. Off limits to the public, it is home to a “sensory lab” as well as two of Glenmorangie’s signature stills, each of which plays host to several classified modifications. Only time will tell what exciting innovations will filter down to the rest of the industry. Fill level is in mid shoulder. The wax seal is completely intact. The cardboard sleeve has become unstuck along its seam, but this could be easily repaired. Please see additional pictures.
ALCOHOL, Eighteen Bottles of Whisky, Wine & Spirit, comprising one bottle of JOHN HAIG & CO. 'DIMPLE' Old Blended Scotch Whisky, 70% proof, 26.2/3 fl.oz, fill level high shoulder, seal intact, one bottle of BELL'S Original Blended Scotch Whisky, Help for Heroes bottling, 40% vol. 70cl, fill level mid-neck, seal intact, two bottles of DRAMBUIE (one 50cl) one bottle of SOUTHERN COMFORT, one bottle of DISARONO, seven bottles of White Wine including MONBAZILLAC and GRENIER and five bottles of assorted Liqueurs (18)
TWENTY-SEVEN BOTTLES OF WINE, WHISKY & SPIRIT comprising 1 x ISLE OF JURA Single Malt Scotch Whisky, aged 10 Years, 40% vol. 70cl, fill level high shoulder, seal intact, boxed, 1 x BUFFALO TRACE Kentucky Straight Bourbon, 45% vol. 70cl, fill level bottom neck, seal intact, 1 x BLANDY'S 'RAINWATER' MADEIRA, 18% vol. 75cl, fill level mid-neck, seal intact, sixteen assorted bottles of assorted red and white wine to include 1 x CHAREAU TALBOT Saint Julien 1988 Grand Cru Classe, seal removed, cork intact, 1 x SAINT EMILION GRAND CRU 2011, other wines are from France, Italy, Spain, Chile, Australia and New Zealand other spirits include Gin, Liqueurs and Beer (some small bottles) (27)
ALCOHOL, Nine Bottles of Whisky, Wine & Spirit comprising one bottle of Highland Park Single Malt, 40% vol. 700ml, fill level mid-shoulder, seal intact, three Wade decanters of Bell's Scotch Whisky, 26.2/3 fl.oz. (cork seal broken) 2 x 13.1/3 fl.oz. (one decanter empty), two bottles of Whisky Liqueur (Scotsmac and Cyprus Comfort), one bottle of Irish Cream, one bottle of Commanaria and one bottle of Sainsbury's Sauvignon Blanc (9)
ALCOHOL, Six Bottles of Cognac, Brandy & Spirit comprising 1 x 1 Litre bottle of HENNESSEY Very Special Cognac, 40% vol. 1L, fill level bottom neck, boxed, 1 x 1 Litre bottle of DUROC Napoleon VSOP Brandy, 40% vol. 1L, fill level mid-neck, 1 x THREE BARRELS VSOP Rare Old French Brandy, 40% vol. 68cl, fill level mid-shoulder, 1 x GILBEY'S Special Dry Gin, 37.5% vol. 70cl, fill level high shoulder, 1 x SOUTHERN COMFORT, 26.4 fl.oz. 87.7% Proof, fill level low neck and 1 x 1 Litre bottle of TIA MARIA LIQUEUR, 31.5% vol. 1L, fill level low neck, boxed, all bottles seals intact (6)
ALCOHOL, Five Bottles of Spirit comprising one bottle of JOHN HAIG 'DIMPLE' Old Blended Scotch Whisky, 70% Proof, 26.2/3 fl.oz, fill level upper shoulder, one 1 Litre bottle of REMY MARTIN VSOP Fine Champagne Cognac, 40% GL, 100cl, fil level mid-shoulder, one 1 Litre bottle of D.O.M. BENEDICTINE, 40% vol. fill level bottom neck, one bottle of COINTREAU, 40% GL, fill level top shoulder and one 18cl bottle of D.O.M. Benedictine, seal broken, all other seals intact, all other bottles boxed (5)
ALCOHOL, Seven Bottles of Cognac, Brandy & Spirit comprising 1 x REMY MARTIN VSOP Cognac, 1970's bottling, 50cl, fill levelmid-shoulder, 1 x 1 Litre bottle of DUROC Napoleon VSOP Brandy, 40% vol. 1L, fill level mid-low neck, 1 x 1 Litre bottle of RAYNAL Napoleon French Brandy, 40% vol. 1L, fill level high shoulder, 1 x LAMB'S Navy Rum, 40% vol. 750ml, fill level mid-neck, 1 x SMIRNOFF Vodka, 37.5% vol. 70cl, fill level low neck, 1 x 150cl bottle of MARTINI EXTRA DRY, 15% vol. fill level mid-neck and 1 x GLAYVA Scotch Liqueur, 13 1/3 fl. oz. 70% Proof, fill level upper shoulder, all bottles seals intact
A Jaeger-le-Coultre model 528 Atmos clock - the glazed gilt-brass case with canted corners and inset spirit level to base, the circular white chapter ring with gilt batons and Arabic numerals at the quarters, the movement wound by atmospherics, stamped 'Le Coultre Atmos 415069', 9¼ inch (23.7 cm) high, horse racing prize plaque to front of base, inscribed 'Divine King - The Johnnie Walker Handicap Stakes - 3.35 pm Friday 9th May, 1975 - Lingfield Park', with instruction book.
Irma Stern (South African, 1894-1966)Zululand signed and dated 'Irma Stern 1935' (upper left)oil on canvas82.7 x 98cm (32 9/16 x 38 9/16in).Footnotes:ProvenanceThe collection of Basil Robinson;Acquired by the current owner's family;By descent to the current owner;A private collection.ExhibitedLondon, Grosvenor Gallery, Irma Stern Memorial Exhibition: Paintings of Europe and the African Continent, 1914-1965, 14 March - 15 April 1967, no. 29Cape Town, South African National Gallery, Homage to Irma Stern, 1968, no. 22.LiteratureNeville Dubow, Irma Stern (Cape Town & Johannesburg: C. Struik Publishers, 1974), p. 58 (illustrated)Irma Stern: Expressions of a Journey, exh. cat., Standard Bank Gallery, Johannesburg, 25 September-29 November 2003, p. 158 (illustrated)Brushing up on Stern: featuring works from the permanent collection of the Iziko South African National Gallery, exh. cat., Iziko South African National Gallery, Cape Town, 23 July-1 November 2015, p. 31 (illustrated)Sean O'Toole, Irma Stern: African in Europe European in Africa (Munich, London & New York: Prestel, 2020), pp. 52 & 54 (illustrated)Irma Stern Nudes, 1916-1965, exh. cat., Irma Stern Museum, Cape Town; Sanlam Art Gallery, Bellville, May-September 2021 (illustrated, front and back cover).Zululand was painted at a critical time for Irma Stern's painting of Black African peoples. In an interview conducted in 1933, she recognised that the traditional cultural and social practices of diverse Black communities in South Africa were disappearing (The Cape Argus, 5 July 1933). Soon after, on a visit to Durban in July 1935, Stern wrote to her friends Richard and Freda Feldman in Johannesburg: 'I am trying to find out which places in Zululand would still be okay [to encounter these traditional practices]. It looks to me this is my last trip trying to find things that are dying out, thanks to ourselves' (quoted in Klopper, 2017: p. 50).In the same letter to the Feldmans, Stern noted that she would soon attend 'a large native dance' that was being organised for tourists by the Durban Municipality. Ironically, taking into consideration the anthropological impetus behind her work, it seems that many of her drawings of young women in ceremonial dress were made on this occasion, rather than in the Reserve areas. Moreover, the paintings she composed in her studio after her return to Cape Town, such as The Water Carriers, were assembled from sketches and memories of this occasion. In comparison with the languorous works from Swaziland and elsewhere of the 1920s, these Zululand paintings exhibit a new vigour with their bright colour and forceful modelling. It seems that Stern could not bring herself to record the transformation of African society she was lamenting in her writing and, instead, insisted on the reality of her romanticised Black African idyll in paint. Stern's buying public continued to support her African work, especially her drawings, but voices were being raised against this 'highly idealised image' (see Feldman, 1935). To avoid this criticism, and to continue to discover 'the spirit of Africa at its happiest and most colourful' (quoted in The Cape Argus, 3 April 1926), Stern abandoned Southern Africa, at least for a time, and travelled elsewhere on the continent.The composition of Zululand, which was made at this critical juncture in Stern's career, suggests that the artist changed her conception of the work as she progressed with the work. Stern has chosen the horizontal or landscape format, which is unusual in her depiction of Black African people, to accommodate the collection of four apparently independent head-and-shoulder figures. There appears to be no narrative here nor, unlike The Water Carriers, any occasion on which these people might have been grouped together in real life. They seem, instead, to have been made as four independent studies. Moreover, in another comparison with The Water Carriers, the beadwork and other ethnographic detail is quite summarily rendered. At some point, Stern decided to integrate the composition without, however, developing a high level of finish. She introduced a background of paw-paws and other vegetation to suggest a unitary space; and she tied the figures together in this space by, on the one hand, having the hand of the figure on the right appear to rest on the right shoulder of the figure in front of her; and, on the other, by making a frond of vegetation from the background appear to overlap the left shoulder of the same central figure. These devices explain the work intellectually, but the painting derives its power by rendering the broadly treated figures large in the format of the original shallow pictorial space.Zululand is shown hanging on the back wall of the studio in a photograph of Irma Stern working on her sculpture of a Kneeling Mother and Child that was published in The Cape Times on 29 January 1936: sadly the article accompanying the photograph makes no reference to the painting and there is no critical commentary on the work at this time. In fact, it is unclear whether the work was exhibited during Stern's lifetime, unless it was under the title of Group of Zulu Women which was shown in exhibitions in Cape Town, Johannesburg, and London in 1936 and 1937. It was, however, shown posthumously with the current title at the Irma Stern Memorial Exhibition at the Grosvenor Gallery, London, in March and April 1967. This exhibition included loaned works and works from the artist's estate that were intended for sale by her executors. Those that were not sold were to be consigned for auction at Ashbey's and Lezard's the following year. Zululand (included as work number 29) is priced in an annotated copy of the catalogue at 550 guineas and, since it is not listed as from any other collection, may be presumed to have been sent for sale by the Irma Stern Trust. No purchaser is recorded but the painting is next shown in the Homage to Irma Stern exhibition at the South African National Gallery (1968) – although not included in the subsequent Rand Easter Show iteration of the exhibition – and recorded as in the collection of Basil Robinson. Robinson was the owner of Ashbey's, Stern's original gallery in Cape Town but by that time the city's leading auction house. Robinson appears to have retained the work in his own possession for a while because it is not listed in the catalogue of Ashbey's auction of Irma Stern's estate in April 1968. However, in due course Robinson seems to have sold the painting to the present owner's family.We are grateful to Michael Godby for the compilation of the above footnote. We would also like to extend our thanks to Kathy Wheeler and Mike Bosazza of the Irma Stern Trust for their assistance in our research of the work.BibliographyRichard Feldman, 'Idylls of the Black: An Appreciation of the Work of Irma Stern', The South African Opinion, 17 May 1935 Sandra Klopper, Irma Stern: Are You Still Alive? Stern's Life and Art Seen Through her Letters to Richard and Freda Feldman, 1934-1966 (Cape Town: Orisha Publishing, 2017).For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
A mixed lot to include a J. Rabone and Sons vintage spirit level (Glass has broke on right hand side). Eight 2004 England Football Club coins. A boxed H and M Victor Transformer Rectifier Unit, 2 x football programmes, and similar. Items appear mostly good with some boxes and card having storage wear. (This does not constitute a guarantee) (M)
The remaining tools, stock items and sundries at the workshop - Nothing relating to Lots 1-14 to be included but comprises of Makita Router, Makita sander, Draper belt sander, Titan grinder, large quantity of clamps, small compressor, Erbauer biscuit jointer in box, Bosch GBH 2-26 drill, Makita buffer, two Einhell cordless drills, Black and Decker cordless drill, Spirit level, quantity of screws, drill bits, Pneumatic nail gun attachments, Triton spindle sander, various locks and components, planes, part clamps, paste, polish, two aluminium ladders. All parts in used condition. CONDITION REPORT: This is a large lot but would fit in a small transit van. The stock is not boxed, buyers must remove all parts of this lot. It would fit into approximately 20 large plastic storage crates. Please refer to important saleroom information regarding the location of the items and collection details. This sale is off-site and collection is from NE29.
FERNANDO BOTERO (1932-2023)Maternidad signed, stamped with the foundry mark and numbered 'Botero E-A 1/2' (on the back of the chair)bronze with brown patina47 x 19.5 x 32cm (18 1/2 x 7 11/16 x 12 5/8in).Conceived in 1955, this work is from an edition of 6, plus 2 artist's proofs.Footnotes:ProvenanceFoundation Veranneman, Belgium.Private collection, Madrid (acquired from the above in 2000).Thence by descent to the present owner. LiteratureJ.C. Lambert & B. Villegas (eds.), Botero Sculptures, Colombia, 1998 (illustrated p. 205 and n.p.)Renowned for his distinctive style of voluptuous and exaggerated forms, the Columbian artist Fernando Botero has left an indelible mark on the history of art. Acclaimed globally for his instantly recognisable paintings, Botero's venture into sculpture has further enriched his artistic repertoire over course of his career. Under the tutelage of Robert Longhi, a distinguished specialist on Italian Renaissance and Baroque art, Botero obtained a remarkable art historical knowledge of Western Classicism that permeates much of his oeuvre. The canon of art history, especially the European one served as a rich source of inspiration, yet he shifts classical art historical topics into the realm of the everyday and the trivial, infusing them with his own personal experiences and the essence of his native Colombia. Today, Fernando Botero is recognised as one of the most important Colombian modern artists and his works are held in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museo Botero in Bogota. In 1958 and 1992, Botero also participated in the Venice Biennale and represented Colombia in the 5th São Paulo Biennial, Brazil. Inspired by the great classical masters, from Raphael, Peter Paul Rubens and Titian, to Giotto and Paolo Uccello, Fernando Botero's style is a modern interpretation of the ever-evolving thread of form. After moving to New York in 1990, he continued to develop his trademark style of bulbous and exaggerated figures and animals, drawing inspiration from Rubens' full-figured representations of female beauty. Often profoundly satirical, Botero asserts that his now iconic style - aptly termed 'Boterismo' - allowed him to explore mass and the sensuality of form, as well as to stress notable features in an almost caricature-like manner. 'Sculpture was a natural experience in my evolution because of the obvious sculptural element in my paintings,' Botero acknowledges. 'This was a return to simplicity, to growing indifference to details and to a more geometric awareness of shape.' (the artist quoted in: Botero: Aquarelles, Dessins, Sculptures, Basel: Galerie Beyeler, 1980).Botero first began experimenting with sculpture in 1972, eventually expanding his métier from wood and clay to bronze, the medium in which has best translated the pillowy volumes of his paintings into three dimensions. Since the early 1980s, his summer were dedicated to sculpture, working from a studio in Pietrasanta, a small town on the Tuscan coast that has attracted many famed artist-residents from Michelangelo to Isamu Noguchi and Henry Moore. Botero's sculptures are characterised by the same aesthetic principles that define his paintings – exaggerated volumes, harmonious proportions, and a playful approach to form. Transitioning from canvas to the three-dimensional, Botero has given his iconic subjects a tangible and interactive presence, encouraging viewers to engage on a more physical level. Whilst humour and irony are present in his work, the magnified proportions of Botero's figures can be interpreted as an endearing nod to the pleasure of the tactility of life and beauty explored through the female form.This smooth sensuality and the fertile lyricism of the curvaceous form is palpable in Maternidad. The medium highlights the monumentality of the sculpture and accentuates the enduring timeless quality and solidity of the work. Botero himself recognised the significance of his sculpture within his canon, and the sensorial potential it has on viewers. 'Certainly, in a painting you give the illusion of truth, but with sculpture, you can touch its reality. . . If I paint a knife in my pictures, it's imaginary, but if I sculpt it, then the sensation of having it in your hand is real— it's an object from your spirit, it's a sensual experience even in its execution. It brings a special joy to touch the material with your hands.' (the artist quoted in: 'Botero: A Love Letter to Latin America', operagallery.com, 19 September 2023). Maternidad wonderfully captures the essence of motherhood; the plumpness of the bodies perhaps helps convey this sense of maternal abundance and the fertility associated with motherhood, while her gentle embrace and the placement of her hand on her chest suggestive of a sense of tenderness. Domestic life is a central motif in Botero's body of work, especially women's roles within it. Here, Botero portrays the quintessential woman as both mother and caregiver to her young child combined with the heavy weight of art historical and religious iconography and a sense of shared human experience.Botero's international recognition and ability to transcend geographical and cultural boundaries have boosted the visibility of Latin American artists on the global stage. His contributions to the world of art are substantial and his unwavering commitment to his artistic vision has earned him a notable place in the history of art. Botero's oeuvre serves as a bridge between traditional and contemporary art, developing a melange classical techniques and modern and innovative flair. By embracing diversity and celebrating the inherent charm in each of his subjects, he challenges conventional notions of beauty and representation and forces viewers to reconsider their preconceived notions and stereotypes.This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
19TH C. MAHOGANY BANJO BAROMETER. L.Casartelli (Liverpool), swan neck pediment with brass finial, tapering mahogany case, silvered dials, nicely engraved main dial, 100cms (h)NB Ivory licence ERFQNKPZ.Provenance: private collection CardiffComments: untested, very good cosmetic condition, the spirit level, glass and frame are loose but appear to be undamaged
Astronomical Transit Instrument, Schmalcalder, London, English, c. 1840, signed in script along the vernier arm ‘Schmalcalder 82 Strand, London’, standing on a delicate brass frame with fine height adjustment via geared wheel, tall uprights with lamp mounts (lamp missing) to both sides, telescope with a 6inch scale with 2 vernier scales, clamp with fine screw adjustment, spirit level, telescope with 90degree eyepiece with cross hairs in place, rack and pinion focus, achromatic cell to front behind lens cap, telescope length 60cm, with original spirit level with engraved scales to read the bubble position, height 48cm, width 34cm, circle 14cm, telescope focuses, lenses dusty, image inverted
A late Victorian Scottish rosewood spirit level, by A Mathieson & Son Glasgow & Edinburgh, c.1890, the rosewood frame mounted with brass, and with two spirit levels together with maker's name and 'Warranted 46D proved tubes' engraved in the brass, 35.5 x 3.3 x 7.5cms high.PROVENANCE: The Graham Smith Retirement Auction - 50 years in the Antiques Trade.
Thomas Harris & Son: a George III mahogany wheel barometer, c.1830, with 12" dial, cross banded with boxwood edge and line inlay, brass urn finial with a swan neck pediment, above a hydrometer, thermometer and a small convex mirror, large silvered dial, and a spirit level at the base engraved 'T Harris & Son London', 35.5 x 6.3 x 126cms high.Notes: Thomas Harris & Son were opticians to the Royal family and had branches across London from 1806 to after 1900. They occupied the premises at 52 Great Russell Street (opposite the British Museum) between 1817-1887. PROVENANCE: The Graham Smith Retirement Auction - 50 years in the Antiques Trade.
Late Victorian five glass mercury barometer - in a mahogany case with a swans necked pediment and finial , with an 8" register , hygrometer, spirit thermometer, butlers mirror, spirit level, and bone recording button, brass cast bezel and convex glass, brass recording hand and steel indicating hand, tube intact with mercury and counterweights.
A REGENCY MAHOGANY WHEEL BAROMETERBY DIXEY, LONDON, EARLY 19TH CENTURYwith a 12 inch silvered dial, an arched thermometer compartment and with a white enamel clock with Roman numerals, the base with a signature panel with spirit level signed 'Dixey, London', the case inlaid with boxwood stringing and with bone handle adjuster and rondels115.3cm highProvenanceThe contents of The Grange, Wendover.
A Bowman 0 Gauge live steam No 265 Tank Locomotive, a twin-oscillating-cylinder non-reversing 2-2-0 in LMS crimson as No. 265 with fluted connecting rods, complete with original burner, replacement safety valve, water and spirit level plugs in original wooden box, F, substantial scorching to boiler and tank sides, rear drop-link missing from coupler, box P-F, lid detached
Three Mamod and two Meccano live steam Stationary Engines and accessories (qty), three Mamod SE1 engines, two of which have exhaust regulators and large safety valves, both lack level plugs and burners, the third a later example is complete; with two 1960s/70s Meccano steam engines, both complete except burners, some surface rusting to boiler cowls, two Mamod workshop tools, lineshaft supports, a large spirit tank with valve, a small upright stationary engine, oil can, bottle of steam oil, non-asbestos wick material, funnels, spring drive belts and other related items, engines mostly F other items F-G (qty)
Loading...