VIVIENNE WESTWOOD DESIGNS FOR CHIVAS REGAL

ICONIC BRITISH FASHION DESIGNER VIVIENNE WESTWOOD IS THE LATEST TO CREATE A SPECIAL PACKAGING FOR CHIVAS REGAL'S 18 YEAR SCOTCH BOTTLE. THE LAST LIMITED EDITION WAS DESIGNED BY CHRISTIAN LACROIX AND THE DESIGN WAS MORE TRADITIONAL. THE SPECIAL LIMITED EDITION CHIVAS REGAL 18 WILL SELL FOR AROUND £150, AND WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR CHRISTMAS 2010 AND INTO THE NEW YEAR.

BAINBRIDGES SELLS FAMILY VASE FOR RECORD £53 MILLION

IT WAS JUST AN OLD CHINESE VASE THAT HAD BEEN IN THE FAMILY FOR OVER 80 YEARS. IT TURNED OUT TO BE MUCH MORE. WHEN THE INTRICATELY PAINTED 18th CENTURY PIECE WENT ON THE THE BLOCK AT BAINBRIDGES, A SMALL SUBURBAN LONDON AUCTION HOUSE, IT SOLD FOR A RECORD £53 MILLION THURSDAY, SCOOPED UP BY A CHINESE COLLECTOR. 'HOW DO YOU ANTICIPATE THE CHINESE MARKET?', ASKED THE SHOCKED AUCTIONEER, PETER BAINBRIDGE. 'IT'S TOTALLY ON FIRE.' THE SALE PRICE WAS MORE THAN 40 TIMES THE PRE-SALE ESTIMATE AND A RECORD FOR A CHINESE WORK OF ART, AN OUTCOME BAINBRIDGE CALLED 'A FAIRY TALE' FOR TEH FAMILY WHO OWNED THE VASE. THE SELLERS, WHO WISHED TO REMAIN ANONYMOUS, ARE THE SISTER AND NEPHEW OF A DECEASED ELDERLY WOMAN IN THE WEST LONDON SUBURB OF PINNER. THE VASE HAD BEEN IN THE FAMILY AT LEAST SINCE THE 1930s, THOUGH THEY DON'T KNOW HOW IT WAS ACQUIRED. MANY CHINESE ARTIFACTS SURFACED IN BRITAIN IN THE 19th CENTURY, HAVING BEEN LOOTED FROM BEIJING'S SUMMER PALACE WHEN IT WAS SACKED BY BRITISH AND FRENCH TROOPS AT THE END OF THE SECOND OPIUM WAR IN 1860. PAINTED SKY BLUE AND IMPERIAL YELLOW AND ADORNED WITH MEDALLIONS DEPICTING LEAPING GOLDFISH, THE 16 INCH CASE DATES FROM THE QING DYNASTY, A TIME WHEN CHINESE PORCELAIN-MAKING WAS AT ITS PINNACLE. MADE FOR THE PERSONAL COLLECTION OF EMPEROR QAINLONG AND BEARING THE IMPERIAL SEAL, EXPERTS SAID IT WAS AN EXCEPTIONAL PIECE. STILL, NO ONE EXPECTED WHAT HAPPENED WHEN THE DELICATE ENAMELED VASE WENT ON THE BLOCK. BAINBRIDGE SAID THE ATMOSPHERE WAS 'ELECTRIC', WHEN THE HAMMER CAME DOWN ON THE WINNING BID HE STRUCK IT SO HARD THE GAVEL BROKE. 'THERE WAS A SILENCE THAT WRAPPED ITSELF AROUND THE SALE AS THE FIGURE GREW SLOWLY BUT SURELY UP TO THE SKY', SAID BAINBRIDGE, WHO SPECIALIZES IN HOUSE CLEARANCE SALES, AND WHOSE PREVIOUS RECORD SOLD FOR £100,00. THE VASE, BOUGHT BY A CHINESE BIDDER ON BEHALF OF AN UNDISCLOSED BUYER, BEAT THE PREVIOUS RECORD FOR CHINESE ART, A 45 FOOT LONG 11th CENTURY SCROLL ELABORATELY DECORATED WITH CALLIGRAPHY SOLD FOR ALMOST £45 MILLION IN BEIJING IN JUNE. WHILE THE VASE SOLD THURSDAY IS NOT EXTREMELY OLD, IT DATES FROM AROUND 1740, IT COMES FROM A PERIOD WHOSE WORKS ARE COVETED BY CHINESE COLLECTORS.

MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS BOSTON TO OPEN NEW ART OF THE AMERICAS WING

WHEN DECORATING HIS HOME SOME YEARS AGO, FINANCIER HENRY KRAVIS SOLD A PAINTING BY JOHN SINGER SARGENT TO THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS IN BOSTON. THE PAINTING, 'CHARLES STEWART SIXTH MARQUESS OF LONDONERRY, CARRYING THE GREAT SWORD OF THE STATE AT THE CORONATION OF KING EDWARD VII AUGUST 1902, AND MR WC BEAUMONT, HIS PAGE ON THAT OCCASION', IS ONE OF THOUSANDS OF WORKS THAT WILL NOW BE DISPLAYED AT THE MUSEUM'S NEW ART OF THE AMERICAS WING, WHICH OPENS TO THE PUBLIC ON 20.NOVEMBER. 'THIS IS THE KIND OF SARGENT THAT IS A REAL OPPORTUNITY FOR THE MUSEUM BECAUSE IT IS NOT THE KIND OF SARGENT THAT IS POPULAR IN COMMERCIAL TERMS', MUSEUM DIRECTOR MALCOLM ROGERS TOLD A NEWS CONFERENCE ON FRIDAY TO LAUNCH THE NEW EXHIBITION HALL. HANGING CLOSE TO THE 'LORD LONDONDERRY' PAINTING IS SARGENT'S IMMENSELY POPULAR PAINTING 'THE DAUGHTERS OF EDWARD DARLEY BOIT'. SARGENT IS ONE OF HUNDREDS OF AMERICAN ARTISTS REPRESENTED IN THE ART OF THE AMERICAS WING, INCLUDING JOHN SINGLETON COPLEY AND HIS FAMOUS PORTRAIT OF AMERICAN PATRIOT PAUL REVERE, FROM 1768. THE EXPANSION, WHICH INCREASES THE MUSEUM'S SQUARE FOOTAGE BY 28%, WAS 10 YEARS IN THE MAKING AND REPRESENTS THE BIGGEST INITIATIVE IN THE WORLD FOCUSED ON AMERICAN ART AND CULTURE, ROGERS SAID. THE $504 MILLION PROJECT INVOLVED $345 MILLION FOR THE BUILDING AND $159 MILLION FOR ENDOWMENT OF PROGRAMS, POSITIONS AND ANNUAL OPERATIONS. FUND RAISING WAS COMPLETED SHORTLY BEFORE THE FINANCIAL MARKET CRISIS OF LATE 2008. THE FOUR-FLOOR BUILDING CONTAINS 53 GALLERIES THAT INCLUDE WORKS OF ART FROM THE NORTH, CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA SPANNING THREE MILLENNIA, MORE THAN DOUBLING THE NUMBER PREVIOUSLY ON VIEW. THEY INCLUDE PAINTINGS, FURNITURE, SCULPTURE, MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS, TEXTILES, FASHION AND JEWELRY. THE NEW WING ALLOWS NUMEROUS MASTERPIECES TO BE DISPLAYED THAT HAVE BEEN IN STORAGE FOR DECADES DUE TO THE LACK OF LARGE-SCALE EXHIBITION SPACE. ONE OF THOSE PIECES IN THOMAS SULLY'S 1819 PAINTING 'THE PASSAGE OF THE DELAWARE', DEPICTING GEORGE WASHINGTON LEADING HIS TROOPS ACROSS THE DELAWARE RIVER TO SURPRISE BRITISH FORCES; AND JOHN SINGLETON COPLEY'S 'GEORGE IV WHEN PRINCE OF WALES' FROM 1809. THE NEW WING AND ADJACENT GLASS-ENCLOSED RUTH AND CARL J SHAPIRO FAMILY COURTYARD, WAS DESIGNED BY THE LONDON-BASED FIRM FOSTER & PARTNERS.
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT www.mfa.org

BONHAMS TO SELL PRESENTATION GONE WITH THE WIND SCRIPT

BONHAMS & BUTTERFIELDS' ENTERTAINMENT MEMORABILIA AUCTION ON 13.DECEMBER IN LOS ANGELES WILL FEATURE A WIDE VARIETY OF ITEMS RELATED TO HOLLYWOOD, ROCK 'N ROLL AND ANIMATION ART, INCLUDING HATTIE MCDANIEL'S PERSONALLY-OWNED 'PRESENTATION COPY' SCRIPT FROM 'GONE WITH THE WIND'. GIFTED TO MCDANIEL BY THE MOVIE'S PRODUCE, DAVID O SELZNICK, AFTER FILMING WAS COMPLETE ON THE 1939 CLASSIC, HE INSCRIBED THE INSIDE: 'FOR MCDANIEL,/ WHO CONTRIBUTED / SO GREATLY! / WITH GRATITUDE / AND ADMIRATION, / DAVID O SELZNICK / XMAS, 1939.' ESTIMATED TO BRING $10,000 TO $15,000, THE SCRIPT IS AN IMPORTANT PIECE OF HOLLYWOOD HISTORY AS MCDANIEL WON A 'BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE' OSCAR FOR HER PORTRAYAL OF 'MAMMY' IN THE FILM, THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN TO BE NOMINATED FOR AND TO WIN AN ACADEMY AWARD.

ART FUND COMMISSIONS PHOTOGRAPHIC REPLICA OF ASHWELLTHORPE TRIPTYCH

A FULL SIZE PHOTOGRAPHIC REPLICA OF THE CELEBRATED ASHEWELLTHROPE TRIPTYCH HAS BEEN COMMISSIONED BY THE NORFOLK BRANCH OF THE ART FUND FOR ALL SAINTS CHURCH IN ASHWELLTHORPE, SOUTH NORFOLK. BACK IN 1983, THE ART FUND HELPED NORWICH CASTLE MUSEUM TO BUY A MAGNIFICENT FLEMISH ALTARPIECE, THE ASHWELLTHORPE TRIPTYCH, DEPICTING THE SEVEN SORROWS OF THE VIRGIN MARY. COMMISSIONED BY THE KNYVETT FAMILY OF ASHWELLTHORPE IN AROUND 1520, IT IS THE EARLIEST KNOWN PAINTING COMMISSIONED BY A NORFOLK FAMILY FROM A FLEMISH ARTIST. FAT FORWARD TO 2010 AND A FULL SIZE PHOTOGRAPHIC REPLICA OF THE CELEBRATED TRIPTYCH. THE WORK, WHICH THE ART FUND GAVE £500 TOWARDS, WILL BE ON DISPLAY AT THE NORWICH CATHEDRAL BETWEEN 6-29.DECEMBER BEFORE HEADING TO ITS PERMANENT HOME AT THE CHURCH IN ASHWELLTHORPE, WHERE IT WILL BE DEDICATED BY THE BISHOP OF NORWICH AT A SPECIAL SERVICE ON 6.FEBRUARY.2011. MARY YULE, A VOLUNTEER WITH THE NORFOLK BRANCH OF THE ART FUND, SPENT AN HOUR ON THE FOURTH PLINTH IN LONDON'S TRAFALGAR SQUARE LAST YEAR AS PART OF ANTONY GORMLEY'S ONE & OTHER PROJECT, IN ORDER TO FUNDRAISE FOR THE COPY OF THE TRIPTYCH. SHE SAID: 'IT WAS AN UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE GOING ONTO THE FOURTH PLINTH TO RAISE FUNDS TO CREATE THIS WONDERFUL REPLICA, AND THRILLING THAT IT NOW EXISTS. IT IS A GREAT HONOR THAT IT IS BEING SHOWN IN THE BEAUTIFUL SURROUNDINGS OF NORWICH CATHEDRAL BEFORE IT GOES HOME TO ALL SAINTS CHURCH, ASHWELLTHORPE.'

METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART TO PRESENT MCQUEEN EXHIBITION

THE SPRING 2011 EXHIBITION ORGANIZED BY THE COSTUME INSTITUTE OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART WILL BE ALEXANDER MCQUEEN: SAVAGE BEAUTY, IT WAS ANNOUNCED BY THE MUSEUM TODAY. THE EXHIBITION, ON VIEW FROM 4.MAY THROUGH 31.JULY2011, WILL CELEBRATE THE LATE MCQUEEN'S EXTRAORDINARY CONTRIBUTIONS TO FASHION. FROM HIS CENTRAL SAINT MARTINS POSTGRADUATE COLLECTION IN 1992 TO HIS FINAL RUNWAY PRESENTATION, WHICH TOOK PLACE AFTER HIS DEATH IN FEBRUARY 2010, MCQUEEN CHALLENGED AND EXPANDED THE UNDERSTANDING OF FASHION BEYOND UTILITY TO A CONCEPTUAL EXPRESSION OF CULTURE, POLITICS AND IDENTITY. THE EXHIBITION, IN THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM'S SECOND-FLOOR CANTOR GALLERIES, WILL FEATURE APPROXIMATELY 100 EXAMPLES OF MCQUEEN'S WORK FROM HIS PROLIFIC 19 YEAR CAREER. DRAWN PRIMARILY FROM THE MCQUEEN ARCHIVE IN LONDON, WITH SOME PIECES FROM THE GIVENCHY ARCHIVE IN PARIS AS WELL AS PRIVATE COLLECTIONS, SIGNATURE DESIGNS INCLUDING THE BUMSTER TROUSER, THE KIMONO JACKET AND THE ORIGAMI FROCK COAT WILL BE ON VIEW. MCQUEEN'S FASHIONS OFTEN REFERENCED THE EXAGGERATED SILHOUETTES OF THE 1860s, 1880s AND THE 1950s, BUT HIS TECHNICAL INGENUITY ALWAYS IMBUED HIS DESIGNS WITH AN INNOVATIVE SENSIBILITY THAT KEPT HIM AT THE VANGUARD. GALLERIES WILL SHOWCASE RECURRING THEMES AND CONCEPTS IN MCQUEEN'S WORK BEGINNING WITH 'THE SAVAGE MIND' WHICH WILL EXAMINE HIS SUBVERSION OF TRADITIONAL TAILORING AND DRESSMAKING PRACTICES THROUGH DISPLACEMENT AND DECONSTRUCTION. 'ROMANTIC GOTHIC' WILL HIGHLIGHT MCQUEEN'S NARRATIVE APPROACH TO FASHION AND ILLUMINATE HIS ENGAGEMENT WITH ROMANTIC LITERARY TRADITIONS SUCH AS DEATH, DECAY AND DARKNESS. IT WILL ALSO REVEAL THE MAIN CHARACTERS OF HIS COLLECTIONS, INCLUDING FEMME FATALES AND ANTI-HEROES SUCH AS PIRATES AND HIGHWAYMEN. 'ROMANTIC NATIONALISM' WILL LOOK AT MCQUEEN'S FASCINATION WITH THE DISTANT PAST, WHILE 'ROMANTIC EXOTICISM' WILL EXAMINE HIS FOCUS ON DISTANT PLACES. 'ROMANTIC PRIMITIVISM' WILL EXPLORE MCQUEEN'S ENGAGEMENT WITH THE IDEAL OF THE 'NOBLE SAVAGE'.
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT www.metmuseum.org

CHRISTIE'S SELLS LICHTENSTEIN PAINTING FOR RECORD $42,642,500

CHRISTIE'S MADE HISTORY YESTERDAY BY SELLING A POP ART MASTERPIECE FROM ROY LICHTENSTEIN AT ITS MAJOR EVENING SALE OF POST-WAR & CONTEMPORARY ART. THE HIGHLY ANTICIPATED MASTERPIECE 'OHHH...ALRIGHT...', 1964, BY ROY LICHTENSTEIN REALIZED $42,642,500, ESTABLISHING A NEW WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR THE ARTIST. THE WORK SOLD TO AN ANONYMOUS BIDDER ON THE PHONE. THE PREVIOUS RECORD FOR A WORK BY LICHTENSTEIN WAS $16,256,000, ACHIEVED FOR IN THE CAR, 1963, AT CHRISTIE'S NEW YORK IN NOVEMBER 2005. 'OHHH...ALRIGHT...' CHARACTERIZES THE LICHTENSTEIN'S CAPTIVATION AND INSPIRATION WITH TECHNIQUES OF COMMERCIAL PRINTING AND REPRODUCTION ARTICULATED IN HIS SIGNATURE BEN-DAY DOTS. AS WITH ALL OF LICHTENSTEIN'S ICONIC IMAGES, 'OHHH...ALRIGHT...' IS AT ONCE STRIKING AND SUBTLY AND HUMOROUS. THE STUNNING BLUE-EYED, FLAME HAIRED BEAUTY FORMS PART OF THE ICONIC CAST OF DREAM-GIRLS PAINTED BETWEEN 1961-1965 THAT SAW LICHTENSTEIN ATTAIN INTERNATIONAL PROMINENCE AS ONE OF AMERICA'S MOST EXCITING AND CONTROVERSIAL ARTISTS.

GRAND RAPIDS ART MUSEUM PRESENTS 'DIANA: A CELABRATION'

THE GRAND RAPIDS ART MUSEUM (GRAM) PRESENTS THE 'DIANA: A CELEBRATION' EXHIBITION AS PART OF ITS 100th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION. THE EXHIBITION WILL BE OPEN UNTIL 6.FEB.2011. ESTABLISHED IN 1910 BY THE CITY FEDERATION OF WOMEN'S CLUBS, THE GRAND RAPIDS ART MUSEUM HAS SERVED THE REGION BY PRESENTING ORIGINAL, AUTHENTIC WORKS OF ART. PAST GRAM EXHIBITION HAVE INCLUDED SCULPTURE OFF THE PEDESTAL, PERUGINO, MASTER OF THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE AND MATHIAS ALTEN: JOURNEY OF AN AMERICAN PAINTER. IN 2009, TO COMMEMORATE THE 40th ANNIVERSARY OF THE INSTALLATION OF LA GRANDE VITESSE IN IN DOWNTOWN GRAND RAPIDS, GRAM OPENED THE CALDER IN THE COLLECTION EXHIBITION TO DISPLAY THE MUSEUM'S PERMANENT AND PLEDGED COLLECTION OF CALDER WORKS. MORE THAN A DECADE AFTER HER DEATH, PRINCESS DIANA'S MEMORY STILL STIRS INTEREST AND EMOTION. THE EXHIBITION DIANA, A CELEBRATION PRESENTS THE LIFE AND HUMANITARIAN WORK OF ONE OF THE 20th CENTURY'S MOST REMARKABLE WOMEN THROUGH NINE GALLERIES CONTAINING OVER 150 OBJECTS, RANGING FROM HER ROYAL WEDDING GOWN AND 28 OF HER DESIGNER DRESSES TO FAMILY HEIRLOOMS, PERSONAL MEMENTOS, PAINTINGS AND RARE HOME MOVIES AND PHOTOS. THE EXHIBITION IS ON LOAN FROM THE ALTHORP ESTATE, THE SPENCER FAMILY'S 500 YEAR OLD ANCESTRAL HOME. THE SERIES OF STUNNING OBJECTS CHRONICLES HER LIFE AND INVITE THE VISITOR TO SHARE THE MILESTONES OF HER MANY ROLES: AS A YOUNGSTER, SCHOOLGIRL AND ATHLETE; AS THE SHY KINDERGARTEN TEACHER WHO CAPTURED THE HEART OF THE PRINCE AND THE PUBLIC; AS THE YOUNG, RAVISHING ROYAL BRIDE; AS THE DEVOTED MOTHER, SISTER AND DAUGHTER; AND AS THE TIRELESS CHARITY ADVOCATE AND SPOKESWOMAN. THE STRENGTH OF THE SPENCER WOMEN AND THEIR ROOTS IN THE BUCOLIC 500 YEAR OLD ALTHORP ESTATE FORM THE BACKDROP FOR DIANA'S FORMATIVE YEARS. ALSO FEATURED IN THE EXHIBITION ARE PORTRAITS OF HER ANCESTORS, FAMILY JEWELS, HEIRLOOMS, PAINTINGS, ARTIFACTS AND PHOTOS, WHICH PROVIDE THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT. HOME MOVIES FILMED BY HER FATHER AND SCENES FROM HER CHILDHOOD, HER ENGAGEMENT TO PRINCE CHARLES AND THE EVENTS LEADING UP TO THE ROYAL WEDDING ARE REMEMBERED.

BONHAMS TO SELL SARAH SIDDONS PORTRAIT

A PORTRAIT MINIATURE BY HORACE HONE OF SARAH SIDDONS, A BRITISH ACTRESS WHO FOUND FAME ON DRURY LANE FOR HER PORTRAYAL OF LADY MACBETH AND BECAME THE BEST KNOWN TRAGEDIENNE OF THE 18th CENTURY, WILL BE OFFERED BY BONHAMS IN THE FINE PORTRAIT MINIATURE SALE TAKING PLACE IN KNIGHTSBRIDGE ON 24.NOVEMBER. THE STUNNING PORTRAIT IS ESTIMATED TO SELL FOR £6,000 – 8,000. BORN IN BRECON, WALES, SARAH SIDDONS WAS THE ELDEST DAUGHTER OF AN ACTOR-MANAGER, WHOSE TRAVELING COMPANY INCLUDED MOST MEMBERS OF HIS FAMILY. IN 1774, SIDDONS' PERFORMANCE AS BELVIDERA IN THOMAS OTWAY'S 'VENICE PRESERVED' BROUGHT HER TO THE ATTENTION OF DAVID GARRICK, WHO ASKED HER TO APPEAR AT DRURY LANE. HOWEVER, HER FIRST APPEARANCES WERE NOT WELL RECEIVED AND FROM 1777, SHE WORKED IN PROVINCIAL COMPANIES, GRADUALLY BUILDING UP HER REPUTATION. HER NEXT DRURY LANE APPEARANCE IN 1782 COULD NOT HAVE BEEN MORE DIFFERENT. SHE WAS AN IMMEDIATE SENSATION PLAYING THE TITLE ROLE IN GARRICK'S ADAPTATION OF A PLAY BY THOMAS SOUTHERNE, 'ISABELLA'. SHE SUBSEQUENTLY TOOK ON SHAKESPEARIAN CHARACTERS FROM ROSALIND AND OPHELIA TO DESDEMONA, BUT HER MOST FAMOUS ROLE WAS THAT OF LADY MACBETH. IT WAS SAID THAT THE GRANDEUR OF HER EMOTIONS AS SHE EXPRESSED LADY MACBETH'S MURDEROUS PASSIONS, HELD HER AUDIENCES SPELLBOUND. THIS WAS THE BEGINNING OF TWENTY YEARS IN WHICH SHE WAS THE UNDISPUTED QUEEN OF DRURY LANE. HER CELEBRITY STATUS HAS BEEN CALLED 'MYTHICAL' AND 'MONUMENTAL', AND BY THE MID 1780s SIDDONS WAS ESTABLISHED AS A CULTURAL ICON. THE PORTRAIT MINIATURE WAS PAINTED AT THE HEIGHT OF HER CAREER ON DRURY LANE. WEARING A LIGHT BROWN DRESS AND WIDE BRIMMED HAT, SHE PROPS HER FACE UP AGAINST HER RIGHT HAND, IN A THOUGHTFUL GAZE. BY THIS PERIOD, THERE WAS A GROWING DEMAND FOR IMAGES OF THE CELEBRITIES OF THE DAY AND THEATRE PROVED A GOOD SOURCE OF COMMISSION FOR MINIATURISTS.

NEWLY DISCOVERED ART TO BE DISPLAYED IN BERLIN

NEARLY A DOZEN SCULPTURES CONSIDERED BY THE NAZIS TO BE 'DEGENERATE' ARTWORK AND BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN LOST OR DESTROYED AFTER WORLD WAR II HAVE BEEN UNEARTHED DURING CONSTRUCTION NEAR BERLIN'S CITY HALL AND WERE SHOWN TO REPORTERS MONDAY. THE TERRA-COTTA AND BRONZE STATUES WERE FOUND DURING A DIG TO LAY A NEW SUBWAY LINE. THEY BELONGED TO A COLLECTION OF 15,000 WORKS CONDEMNED BY HITLER'S REGIME FOR CONTAINING 'DEVIANT' SEXUAL ELEMENTS, ANTI-NATIONALISTIC THEMES OR CRITICIZING NAZI IDEOLOGY. THE SCULPTURES MAINLY DEPICT WOMEN, A WOMAN HOLDING GRAPES, A MOTHER AND HER CHILD, A FULL-FIGURED WOMAN STRETCHING, THE OTHER THREE ARE OF MALES. TEN OF TE PIECES WILL GO ON DISPLAY IN BERLIN'S NEUSS MUSEUM. ONE, A MALE TERRA-COTTA HEAD, IS TOO FRAGILE TO DISPLAY. CONSTRUCTION WORKERS FOUND THE ART ON THE SITE OF AN OFFICE BUILDING THAT BURNED DOWN IN THE SUMMER OF 1944. MUSEUM DIRECTOR MATTHAIS WEMHOFF TOLD REPORTERS MONDAY. THE FIRE STARTED IN THE ROOF, BURNING THE BUILDING FROM THE TOP DOWN. 'EACH FLOOR FELL ONTO THE NEXT AND EVERYTHING THAT COULDN'T BE BURNT COLLECTED AT THE BOTTOM IN THE BASEMENT', INCLUDING THE SCULPTURES, HE SAID. JUDGING FROM THE PLACEMENT AND DAMAGE OF THE WORKS, THEY HAD BEEN STORED IN AN OFFICE BEFORE THE FIRE, WEMHOFF SAID. ONE OF THE PIECES, AN EDWIN SCHARFF STATUE OF THE ACTRESS ANNI MEWES, WAS FOUND IN JANUARY BUT THOUGHT TO BE UNIQUE. SUBSEQUENT DIGS IN AUGUST AND OCTOBER, HOWEVER, TURNED UP THE REMAINING PIECES. WHILE NAZI'S OFTEN ATTRIBUTED THE 'DEVIANT' CHARACTERISTICS OF DEGENERATES ART TO JEWISH CORRUPTION, ONLY TWO JEWS WERE AMONG THE AVANT-GARDE ARTISTS WHO CREATED THE SCULPTURES ON DISPLAY. OTTO FREUNDLICH, WHOSE LARGE, ELONGATED 1925 TERRA-COTTA STATUE OF A MAN'S HEAD WAS LEFT PARTIALLY STANDING, WAS MURDERED IN THE CONCENTRATION CAMP LUBLIN-MAIDANEK IN 1943. NAUM SLUTZKY, A MEMBER OF THE BAUHAUS SCHOOL, FLED TO ENGLAND IN 1933, WHERE HE TAUGHT ART AND LIVED UNTIL HIS DEATH IN 1965. HIS WORK 'FEMALE BUST' WAS ORIGINALLY A GLINTING BRONZE, BUT HAS BEEN LEFT ONLY PARTIALLY RESTORED TO REFLECT THE DAMAGE OF TIME AND FIRE. BERLIN'S MAYOR KLAUS WOWEREIT, SAID THAT FINDING THE SCULPTURES IS A 'SMALL MIRACLE' FOR THE GERMAN CAPITAL THAT 'SHOWS A LOT ABOUT THE DARK TIMES OF THE CITY'.

HAMMER GALERIES TO PRESENT 'RENOIR' EXHIBITION

HAMMER GALLERIES, NEW YORK, PRESENTS AN IMPORTANT EXHIBITION OF TEH WORLD RENOWNED FRENCH IMPRESSIONIST ,ASTER PIERRE-AUGUSTE RENOIR FOR ITS INAUGURAL EXHIBITION AT ITS PARK AVENUE LOCATION. RENOIR, CURATED BY GALLERY PRESIDENT AND DIRECTOR HOWARD SHAW, FOCUSES ON THE SECOND HALF OF RENOIR'S DYNAMIC SIXTY YEAR LONG CAREER, A PRODUCTIVE, YET OFTEN OVERLOOKED PERIOD, RECENTLY TEH SUBJECT OF A MAJOR EXHIBITION, RENOIR IN THE 20th CENTURY (GRAND PALAIS, PARIS; LOS ANGELES COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART AND TEH PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART). RENOIR FEATURES 25 OILS AND PASTELS, RANGING IN DATE FROM THE MID 1880s-1912. FOCUSING ON KEY WORKS FROM TEH LAST THIRTY YEARS OF TEH ARTIST'S LIFE, HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE LARGE OILS AND PASTELS OF CLOSE FAMILY MEMBERS, PORTRAITS OF YOUNG WOMEN AND CLASSICAL NUDES AND BATHERS. LES LAVEUSES IS A MAGNIFICENT EXAMPLE OF RENOIR'S FAVORITE THEME WHICH DOMINATED HIS LATER WORKS, THAT OF FEMALE FIGURES DEPICTED IN A NATURAL ENVIRONMENT. OTHER WORKS INCLUDE, CLAUDE RENOIR DESSINANT AND FEMME AU FAUTEUIL VERT EACH HIGHLIGHTING THE IMPORTANCE OF FAMILY AND DOMESTIC LIFE WHICH RENOIR GREW TO GREATLY CHERISH IN HIS LATER YEARS. AS RENOIR'S INTERESTS TURNED FROM CAPTURING TEH FLEETING MOMENTS OF MODERN URBAN LIFE, TO THE PURSUIT OF TIMELESS, CLASSICAL SUBJECTS, SPECIFICALLY THE THEME OF THE FEMALE NUDE, HIS FOCUS SHIFTED TO CLASSICAL THEMES INSPIRED BY TEH TRADITION OF RAPHAEL, TITIAN AND RUBENS AS WELL AS THE PAINTERS OF THE FRENCH 18th CENTURY. HIS ENTHUSIASM FOR EXPLORING THEMES AND SUBJECTS BEYOND EXPRESSIONISM IS EVIDENT AS RENOIR STARTED IN 1913, 'I AM JUST LEARNING HOW TO PAINT', SIX YEARS BEFORE HE DIED AT AGE 78. THIS IS THE THIRD TIME RENOIR IS TEH FOCUS OF A SOLO EXHIBITION AT HAMMER GALLERIES, THE FIRST TAKING PLACE IN 1959 AND TEH SECOND IN 1984.

CHRISTIE'S TO SELL RARE DEPICTION OF 'LOST' PALACE

CHRISTIE'S ANNOUNCED RECENTLY THAT THEY WILL BE OFFERING AN EXCEPTIONALLY RARE AND BEAUTIFUL DEPICTION OF THE 'LOST' PALACE OF NONSUCH AT THE AUCTION OF OLD MASTERS AND 19th CENTURY ART ON 7.DECEMBER. COMMISSIONED BY KING HENRY VIII IN ORDER TO OUTSHINE THE GREAT PALACES BUILT BY HIS RIVAL KING FRANCOIS I OF FRANCE, THE BUILDING OF NONSUCH PALACE BEGAN IN 1538 AND TOOK 8 YEARS TO COMPLETE. IT STOOD FOR LESS THAN 150 YEARS HAVING FALLEN INTO DESPAIR IN THE 1680s. THE EARLIEST AND MOST IMPORTANT CONTEMPORARY DEPICTION OF BRITAIN'S MOST AMBITIOUS RENAISSANCE COMMISSION, THE PRESENT DRAWING IS AN EXTREMELY VALUABLE RECORD OF THE 'LOST PALACE AND HAS BEN SEEN IN PUBLIC ONLY TWICE BEFORE; AT SUTTON PLACE IN 1983 AND AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY, WASHINGTON, IN 1986. DESCRIBED AS 'THE ONLY SURVIVING IMPRESSION OF WHAT NONSUCH REALLY LOOKED LIKE', IT IS EXPECTED TO REALIZE £800,000 TO £1,200,000. THE STUNNING WATERCOLOUR WAS EXECUTED BY JORIS HOEFNAGEL WHO PROVIDED THE ILLUSTRATIONS FOR CIVITATES ORBIS TERRARUM, AN EXTREMELY IMPORTANT RECORD OF ALL MOST IMPORTANT BUILDINGS AND CITYSCAPES IN EUROPE FIRST PUBLISHED IN 1572. ALMOST ALL OF THE 546 DRAWINGS MADE FOR THE BOOK ARE NOW IN PUBLIC COLLECTIONS, WITH THE MAJORITY, MORE THAN 60, IN THE NATIONAL MUSEUM IN VIENNA. HOEFNAGEL EXECUTED THE PRESENT WORK IN SITU AT NONSUCH AND USED IT TO CREATE A LATER, LESS DETAILED DEPICTION THAT WAS USED FOR THE ENGRAVING. THE LATER VERSION IS NOW IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM. THE PRESENT WORK WAS ACQUIRED IN THE MID-19th CENTURY BY SIR ALFRED MORRISON OF FONTHILL, ONE OF THE MOST CELEBRATED BRITISH COLLECTORS OF THE LATE 19th CENTURY, AND HAS SINCE PASSED BY DESCENT.
THE CONSTRUCTION OF NONSUCH BEGAN ON 23.APRIL.1538, THE THIRTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF HENRY VIIIs ACCESSION TO THE THRONE, ON THE SITE OF TE VILLAGE OF CUDDINGTON, NEAR EWELL, SURRY. THE PALACE'S PRIMARY FUNCTION WAS TO SERVE AS A HUNTING LODGE; MORE IMPORTANTLY IT WAS CONCEIVED AS A VISUAL EXPRESSION OF TUDOR SUPREMACY BOTH TEMPORAL AND SPIRITUAL, A CELEBRATION OF THE BIRTH OF HENRY'S FIRST LEGITIMATE SON (THE FUTURE EDWARD VI) ON 12.OCTOBER.1537 AND, IN FLATTENING THE PARISH CHURCH OF CUDDINGTON, IT LITERALLY DEMONSTRATED HENRY'S NEW DOMINANCE AS HEAD OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND. MOST IMPORTANTLY, IT WAS PROOF THAT HENRY WAS EQUAL TO THE ARCHITECTURAL ACHIEVEMENTS OF FRANCOIS I OF FRANCE. IT WAS NAMED 'NONSUCH' AS NO OTHER PALACE COULD EQUAL ITS MAGNIFICENCE. STILL INCOMPLETE WHEN HENRY VIII DIED IN 1547, NONSUCH WAS SOLD TO HENRY FITZALAN EARL OF ARUNDEL, BY MARY I IN 1557. IT RETURNED TO ROYAL HANDS IN 1592, WHEN ARUNDEL'S HEIR LORD LUMLEY GAVE IT TO ELIZABETH I IN SETTLEMENT OF A DEBT. IT WAS EVENTUALLY GRANTED BY CHARLES II TO BARBARA VILLIERS, COUNTESS OF CASTLEMAINE, IN 1670, WHEN SHE WAS CREATED BARONESS OF NONSUCH, COUNTESS OF SOUTHAMPTON AND DUCHESS OF CLEVELAND. IN LATE 1682 SHE TOOK THE STEP OF BEGINNING TO DISMANTLE THE INNER COURT, AS MERELY THE FIRST STAGE OF AN ORDERED DEMOLITION WHICH ENABLED HER TO SELL THE RAW MATERIALS FOR MONEY WITH WHICH TO PAY OFF HER GAMBLING DEBTS. BY 1690 THE PALACE WAS ALL BUT GONE, AND FOR ALMOST FOUR HUNDRED YEARS ITS FABULOUS APPEARANCE WAS ONLY KNOWN THROUGH WRITTEN RECORDS AND THE FEW KNOWN VISUAL REPRESENTATIONS.