ENTRIES ARE NOW INVITED FOR FORTHCOMING SALES
AN INVITATION TO CONSIGN
The team at Webb’s looks forward to the year ahead and invites entries for a suite of sales to be held in March including: fine art, jewellery and watches, Maori and Oceanic arts, applied arts, modern design, fine wine and rare books. Results at Webb’s in 2009 confirm that quality works of art, especially those in excellent condition and with superior provenance, are selling well. Equally, the markets across the collecting genres of jewellery, antiques, wine and books remain sound and stable. Professionalism is the foundation of Webb’s success. With 10 expert staff and well-resourced business and marketing services, Webb’s provides the most effective and diverse auction sale options in the country. Specialists will be visiting the main centres to appraise pieces. For a discreet, no-obligation appraisal, please call 0800 22 00 77.
CALENDAR OF SALES 14 MAR Bethunes@Webb’s 29 MAR Fine Wine 29 MAR Antiques and Modern Design 30 MAR Important Works of Art 31 MAR Fine Jewellery and Watches ¯ 24 MAY Maori Artifacts and Oceanic Arts Including over 300 pieces deaccessioned
from a USA museum
15 JUNE Important Collectors’ Motorcycles Front Cover: Peter Stichbury Preston Proudlove acrylic on linen, 2007 (detail) 1220mm x 915mm, $28,000 - $38,000
New Zealand’s Premier Auction House 18 Manukau Road Newmarket, PO Box 99 251 Auckland 1149, New Zealand 0800 22 00 77 +649 524 6804 +649 524 7048 (fax) auctions@webbs.co.nz
www.webbs.co.nz
MILAN MRKUSICH Painting 150 oil and wax on board 1950 680 x 930mm $25,000 - $35,000
DICK FRIZZELL Ocean Beach oil on canvas 1050 x 1350mm $35,000 - $45,000
¯ A MAGNIFICENT POU RAHUI Provenance: Private Collection, New Zealand 250 x 145 x 135mm $10,000 – $20,000
RITA ANGUS Lilies oil on board 600 x 500mm $50,000 – $70,000
MICHAEL SMITHER Fern Frond acrylic on board 1200 x 875mm $55,000 – $75,000
MARQUESAS ISLANDS' TIKI, STONE CARVED FISHING GOD Provenance: Formally on loan to Auckland War Memorial Museum 170 x 130 x 90mm $20,000 – $30,00
EXTREMELY RARE PRE-CONTACT REI PUTA (whale-tooth amulet) Provenance: Private Collection, New Zealand 95 x 40 x 12mm $20,000 – $40,000
POOLE STUDIO CHARGER, NICOLA MASSARELLA Limited Edition, Picasso Technique, diameter. 410mm $1,200 – $2,000
SEA URCHIN VESSEL BY CHRISTOPHER DRESSER Manufactured by Linthorpe art pottery, 1879 – 1882 $3,000 – $4,000
STANLEY PALMER Towards Whangarei Heads oil on linen 1620 x 2250mm $25,000 – $35,000
TONY FOMISON Inward Eye oil on canvas 330 x 410mm $25,000 - $35,000
TOKI POU TANGATA Provenance: Private Collection, New Zealand 240 x 340 x 65mm $15,000 – $25,000
A 19TH CENTURY MINTON MAJOLICA MONKEY TEAPOT $700 – $1,000
Executed on three monumental canvases, Blackout Movement is representative of the shift in scale, palette and iconography that occurred in Shane Cotton’s work following his year as the Frances Hodgkins fellow in 1998. Falling into the loose group of ‘Kenehi (Genesis)’ paintings, Blackout Movement presents the viewer with a sprawling expanse of black that is tempered by a string of symbols and words. Blackout Movement elegantly addresses some of Cotton’s key concerns including his poignant ¯ exploration of the relationship between the colonial missionaries and the Ngapuhi iwi. The title of the work explicitly alludes to this tumultuous relationship, referring to an early nineteenth-century prophetic sect in the Hokianga of the same name. The first spiritual leader of the sect was Penetana Papahurihia, a ¯ direct descendent of visionary seers, who was one of many Maori to incorporate aspects of Christianity into their traditional rituals following European contact.1 The phrase ‘Blackout Movement’, which was also used by Cotton for the title of an exhibition in 2001, can similarly be seen to recognise the tradition of black paintings in New Zealand’s art history, punctuating the oeuvres of artists such as Petrus van der Velden, Colin McCahon and Ralph Hotere.2 Jemma Field, exert. For full essay see www.webbs.co.nz
SHANE COTTON Blackout Movement (2001) oil on 3 stretched canvases, signed 1600mm x 4800mm $200,000 - $300,000 1 Lara Strongman, Ruarangi: The Meeting Place Between
Sea and Sky – A Consideration of Shane Cotton’s Work 1993 – 2003, pp.15 – 32 in Shane Cotton Survey 1993 – 2003, exh. cat. City Gallery Wellington, 2003 (Victoria University Press), p.26. 2 Ibid.
2009 IN REVIEW Forecasting a precautionary approach to spending at the beginning of 2009, the art market braced for difficult times. Art at auction in New Zealand, however, remains healthy and moderate: a happy state when one considers the downturn in the northern hemisphere, where auction houses recorded a plunge in sales figures in 2009. Gross turnover for the New Zealand auction market sits at approximately $15.5 million* for 2009, down 18% on 2008 but approximately equal to the ten-year average. Against this, Webb’s can report an increase of 15% in gross turnover since 2008. With a decrease in supply, competition at Webb’s delivered excellent results for clients who offered the right works at the right time and excellent results were achieved for several single-owner collections including a major private collection of contemporary art. Webb’s results support an overall trend for steady if restrained growth. Jewellery continues to be a significant area of interest with record prices achieved in 2009 for superb diamonds and luxury watches reflecting a counter-cyclical trend where buyers seek to place cash into commodity-valued objects. This might also be true of the vintage motorcycle market which Webb’s continues to lead with remarkable results. Equally, institutional quality Maori¯ and Oceanic artifacts set record prices and exceed all expectations. Fine wine sales continue to grow with a demand for quality product resulting in record turnover, whilst Webb’s rare books department, offering prestige stand-alone sales, consistently achieves 90%+ sale rates by volume. Please contact us if you would like to discuss the current market for works of art, jewellery, Maori¯ artifacts and Oceanic arts, antiques, vintage motorcycles, books, wine or collectables. Sophie Coupland, Director * Reference: www.aasd.com.au Note: Prices realised are inclusive of buyer’s premium and GST on the premium, rounded to the nearest $100.
Diamond and Pink Tourmaline Necklace $36,000
Michael Parekowhai Kapa Haka (Hiwera) $48,000 A George I Walnut-Fall Front Bureau $10,500
Frances Hodgkins The Farmer’s Daughter (Portrait of Annie Coggan) $262,300
A Magnificent Gold Presentation Sword $43,300
Eric Craig New Zealand Ferns: 167 Varieties, a ‘blue book’ $6,500
Colin McCahon Northland $94,700 Colin McCahon Truth from the King Country: Load Bearing Structures, Series 2 $79,800
A Nephrite Hei Tiki $5,300
A 19th Century Monumental Hunting Table or Sideboard in Mahogany $6,400
Peter Stichbury
Lily Donaldson
$45,600 (Record price for the artist at auction)
A Pair of Crown Lynn Wharetana Moko Bookends $4,500
1938 Macallan Single Malt Whisky $4,700 Don Binney Kotare Over Hikurangi $251,000 (Record price for the artist at auction)
Charles Frederick Goldie A Happy Thought, Te Aitu te Irikau, A Noted Arawa Chieftainess $182,500
A Whalebone Rei Puta from the Frances Ryman Collection $140,200 A Magnificent Necklace Set with Marquise-cut Fancy Yellow Diamonds together with White Diamonds. $37,000
1948 Indian Chief $65,500
Ranfurly Medal presented to Malcolm Ross by His Excellency the Governor, Lord Ranfurly $7,100
A Magnificent Loose Emerald-cut Diamond of 5.09ct. $120,000
Katherine Mansfield The Letters of Katherine Mansfield, John Middleton Murry’s working copy $14,400 Colin McCahon Black White French Bay $185,350
A Ceremonial Hoe (Canoe Paddle) attributed to Jacob William Heberley $15,200
Michael Parekowhai Rainbow Servant Dreaming $12,600
Colin McCahon French Bay $142,600 A George II Sterling Silver Coffee Pot $7,700
Pendeloque-cut Diamond of 5.713ct. $150,000
ROLEX, a Gentleman’s All 18ct Yellow Gold Oyster Perpetual Day-Date Wristwatch $55,900
Hans Wegner Table and 10 Chairs $22,300
A Fine Waka Huia by Jacob William Heberley $32,700
Sydney Parkinson Parkinson’s ‘Endeavour’ Journal $9,900
Paul Hartigan The Phantom $57,000 (Record price for the artist at auction)
1990 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti ‘Romanee-Conti’ $10,800
A Taxidermy Elk $4,600
Colin McCahon If You Can Afford a Psychiatrist $79,800