Christie’s is selling the collection of the late art critic Brian Sewell, who was himself a picture expert at the auction house between 1958 and 1967. The 200-lot sale, rich with Old Master paintings and drawings and Modern British art, is expected to fetch around £2m.
With prices ranging from £1,000 to £600,000, collectors of all means will have a chance to acquire pictures—some of which hung in Sewell’s Wimbledon home. The 17th-century painting, Blowing Hot, Blowing Cold by Matthias Stomer, was a favourite of the critic’s and is expected to sell for between £400,000 and £600,000.
Other highlights include a sketch of a male nude by the Irish Romantic painter James Barry (est £20,000-£30,000); Dido reclining, asleep by Daniele da Volterra, dating from the 16th century (est £50,000-£80,000); and a portrait of Lucian Freud (1946) by John Craxton (est £50,000-£80,000).
Sewell, who died last September, age 84, built up his collection over several decades, during which time he went from auction house expert to one of the best-known and most widely read art critics in Britain. Orlando Rock, the chairman of Christie’s UK, describes Sewell as one of the auction house’s “most colourful and learned” former colleagues. “What always motivated him was his love of great art and its power to move and inspire, combined with his characteristic and acerbic wit,” Rock says.
Noël Annesley, the honorary chairman of Christie's UK, recalls working as Sewell's assistant: “I got to admire him and to like him enormously. He could be relied upon to provide witty and often devastating judgements. A wonderful instructor, serious but humorous too, he set a standard for us all.”
According to an article in the Daily Mail, Sewell left the bulk of his estate, including diaries, writings, books and works of art, to his partner, the artist Dean Marsh. A spokeswoman for Christie’s says the collection is being sold by the estate of Brian Sewell.
Brian Sewell: Critic and Collector will take place at Christie’s in London on 27 September.
