Woodbury House - Hambleton

HAMBLETON EXPERTS COME TOGETHER ON A MISSION TO REUNITE RARE WORKS BY THE ICONIC ARTIST

Woodbury House is a well-respected private art studio in the heart of Soho, London. It has built itself a reputation as the go-to destination for artwork by legendary street artist Richard Hambleton, a contemporary and friend of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring and Andy Warhol.

Hambleton was best known for the arresting and ephemeral ‘Shadowman’ wall paintings that popped up all over New York in the 1980s, and later throughout Europe. Coined ‘The Godfather of Street Art’ by the New York Times, Hambleton is regarded a legend of the street art world as many artists have used his artwork as inspiration, most notably Banksy, who is passionate about disclosing where he derives his artistic inspiration from.

With investors and collectors worldwide now stockpiling Hambleton’s work - it’s tipped to rise in value much as the work of his contemporaries – the core team of art specialists at Woodbury House, led by Steven Sulley and Joseph Bannan, hosted at the beginning of September an exclusive preview of never-seen-before works by Richard Hambleton at the Owner’s Club at Puente Romano and shared tips on how to build up investment collections of highly reputable art pieces.

The story about how Woodbury House uncovered some of Richard Hambleton’s forgotten work is compelling to say the least. In 2016, the brand’s co-founder, Steven Sulley, was approached by a dealer regarding an overlooked piece he had never heard of; his curiosity, and his suspicion, was piqued. Steven Sulley said “The artwork was described to us as The Richard Hambleton Box --- a painting of a Shadowman, folded in a booklet, stored within a wooden box. My initial reaction was that this was a gimmick, compared to the canvas or paper works we were used to acquiring.”

Nonetheless, Sulley and his close collaborator, fellow Hambleton fanatic, art collector and consultant Michael Joseph, decided to take a punt on purchasing the box, sight unseen, as it remained for some time. Once the box eventually arrived at Woodbury House, it revealed itself to contain a remarkable rendering on paper of a work that Joseph and Sulley recognised to have originally been made on the streets of New York City. The work was stunning, and the pair decided not to put it up for sale, but instead to keep hold of it until they could find the most appropriate outlet.

Eighteeen months later, on a trip to view a rare Hambleton bust in a Swiss storage facility, Joseph stumbed upon twenty boxes that he immediately recognised to be similar to that which they had purchased all those months ▶

Hambleton was best known for the arresting and ephemeral ‘Shadowman’ wall paintings that popped up all over New York in the 1980s, and later throughout Europe. Coined ‘The Godfather of Street Art’ by the New York Times, Hambleton is regarded a legend of the street art world as many artists have used his artwork as inspiration, most notably Banksy, who is passionate about disclosing where he derives his artistic inspiration from.

before. To him there was no question but to take them home with him, the discovery of so many in one place proving irrestible.

Each contained a work as extraordinary as the first, painted on classic Japanese Kinwashi paper, bound and mounted in 100% rag museum board and each exquisitely produced to concertina into their individual handmade boxes.

On investigation, Joseph and Sulley identified the works to be part of the lost 53-piece ‘Nightlife’ series, originally exhibited in New York in the late 1980s. The pair were immediately inspired to show the works again, and to offer an insight into the early career of this significant and sometimes overlooked artist, who disappeared in 1985, as the series seems to have done.

Plans were quickly put into place for a dedicated showcase of the works. The ‘Nightlife Show’ was scheduled to take place in London in April 2020. Naturally, as a result of the global coronavirus pandemic, like all other exhibitions, it was put on hold.

Rather than simply postpone, business partners Joseph Bannan and Steven Sulley discussed how they might be able to produce something positive from the enforced delay, and have thoughtfully used the time in lockdown to reunite the entire ‘Nightlife’ series with the ambition to exhibit them all together in the ‘Nightlife Show’ at London’s world-renowned Saatchi Gallery in October 2020. The exhibition will be a highlight of STARTNET, the leading art exhibition for Contemporary Art and emerging artists, poised to kickstart the art world.

American artist Annie Albers was once quoted as saying that “art is something that makes you breathe with a different kind of happiness”. Today, her insight could not be more poignant. 2020 has been a year of hardships around the world, not least of which has been the fact that all our cultural institutions have had to shut down for months on end. Save for the valiant efforts of museums, theatres, operas, musicians, creators and curators to offer us a digital window into their work – the world has not been able to physically enjoy the joys of cultural immersion.

Fortunately, the tide is finally turning with the much anticipated announcement of STARTNET at London’s Saatchi Gallery. Running from 21 to 25 October, this will be the art exhibition’s seventh year, making it a cornerstone event in Europe’s art calendar. This year’s exhibition combines a special programme of gallery and artist exhibitors complemented by innovative START Projects, and Woodbury House’s ‘Nightlife Show’, tipped as the must-see event on the STARTNET calendar.

EVENT AT LES JARDINS DE PUENTE ROMANO

The exhibition will showcase the 22 recovered ‘Nightlife’ works alongside photographs by Hambleton’s confidant, Franc Palaia, who was invited by the artist to document his ‘Shadowman’ wall works as he created them.

Joseph Bannan says, “We are determined to do our best to now bring all 53 ‘Nightlife’ works together as one body of art in one location at STARTNET 2020. We are tremendously excited to be able to pay tribute to Hambleton and to tell the story of this extraordinary reclusive artist to an audience we know will fall in love with him the way we have”.

Woodbury House continues to push the limits to democratise contemporary art. There are substantial plans for the young art brand to venture into becoming the link between the art and fashion world. Whilst still selling investment-grade art, in October of this year, Woodbury House is due to relaunch it’s website, which will feature works for sale, artist collaborations and the start of limited drops, that will continue to be released with various emerging and established artists.

As to Hambleton, logic suggests that his market will follow in the same footsteps as his predecessors Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring. Hambleton’s works have already seen some good capital growth since his death in 2017; investors and collectors worldwide are now stockpiling his work with a common-sense approach that it will rise in value in the coming years. ■

For more information on Hambleton or Woodbury House, visit www.woodburyhouseart.com