Homes Antiques

for example under £150 and a Worcester

teapot for £200 to £300.’ Up the ante

several hundred pounds and a more

sculptural standalone piece could be

yours a tureen or an ice pail for example

to show off on your dresser.

3

CHARLOTTE CONBOY

TENNANTS

FINE ART

‘Generally 18th and 19th-century art is not

fetching the prices it was 10 years ago but

paintings by artists with good pedigree are

attracting notice’ says Charlotte Conboy.

This explains the current passion for artists

such as Robert Gemmell Hutchison who

painted in an Impressionistic style and

Arthur Melville an adventurer-artist in the

Lawrence of Arabia mould who produced

evocative watercolours of Middle Eastern

scenes. Still these are investment buys and

you won’t get much change from £10000.

The strongest demand

continues to be for early

and mid 20th-century

art (paintings and

prints). ‘These images

resonate more with

us; they are better in tune with the way

we decorate and furnish today’ explains

Conboy who goes on to recommend we

look out for wonderful prints by animal

artist Charles Tunnicliffe and scenes of the

1960s industrial north by the Spennymoor

school of ‘pitmen painters’ Norman

Cornish and Tom McGuinness – prices

from £2000.

4

WILL HOBBS

WOOLLEY & WALLIS

TRIBAL & ETHNIC ART

A blend of craftsmanship and interest

in tribal cultures fuels the growing

market for tribal art. ‘Maori items are

whizzing out of the auction room

selling to both British and Australasian

buyers’ comments Will Hobbs. In the

faraway world of Oceanic antiques

(the collective name for Australia New

Zealand and associated islands) we’re

talking nephrite jade hei

tiki pendants paddles

war clubs treasure

boxes bowls and

tapa cloths

ranging in price

from £200

to several

thousand

pounds

depending

on desirability and value. With prices

going from £500 the hunt is on for

decorative and sculptural African pieces

such as masks shields and headrests to

mount on walls or display on shelves.

Those with smaller budgets

meanwhile can afford hand-carved

spoons figures and stools. Inuit art from

the Arctic Circle is also on the up with

carvings made for tourists in the 1950s and

1960s creeping into the salesroom and

being snaffled by in-the-know buyers.

RIGHT This hide and

metal African shield sold

for £650 at Woolley &

Wallis in spring 2017

Arthur Melville’s Arabs Returning From

a Raid fetched a comfortable £35000

at Tennants in March this year

ABOVE This George

III mahogany chest

sold for £950 at

Bonhams Edinburgh

LEFT A pair of

George III painted

armchairs sold for

£100 at Bonhams

122 H&A SUMMER 2017