kokoschka's Istanbul painting

The Global economic downturn is forcing many art collectors to part with rare pieces by artists such as Amedeo Modigliani, Camille Pissarro, Oskar Kokoschka, Piet Mondrian and Edouard Vuillard. Works by some of these artists in particular, Pissarro and Modigliani have never been seen before auction. Whether the reason for parting with family heirlooms is that keeping them has proven to expensive over recent months or that collectors are simply looking for something else to invest their money in we just don’t know. However, what we do know is that it is a good time for buying if you do have the cash. Also take into account the way prices have been falling in the art market. These paintings are not likely to reach their maximum potential and I suspect prove to be a steal at Christies on Feb 3rd.

Oskar Kokoschka’s landscape of Istanbul is perhaps one of his more famous pieces. The artist’s use of vivid colour and the beauty in his naive construction of objects on to The Global economic downturn is forcing many art collectors to part with rare pieces by artists such as Amedeo Modigliani, Camille Pissarro, Oskar Kokoschka, Piet Mondrian and Edouard Vuillard. Works by some of these artists in particular, Pissarro and Modigliani have never been seen before auction. Whether the reason for parting with family heirlooms is that keeping them has proven to expensive over recent months or that collectors are simply looking for something else to invest their money in we just don’t know. However, what we do know is that it is a good time for buying if you do have the cash. Also take into account the way prices have been falling in the art market. These paintings are not likely to reach their maximum potential and I suspect prove to be a steal at Christies in LONDON on Feb 3rd.

Oskar Kokoschka’s landscape of Istanbul is perhaps one of his more famous pieces. The artist’s use of vivid colour and the beauty in his naive construction of objects on to the canvas make him unique amongst post 1st world war artists. This piece will be under the hammer and is expected to fetch around 2 million quid. It is very rare that one of this artist’s works goes on auction. Nearly every other painting is now owned and sought after by museums. Only in the last 2 years was the painting handed back to the family of the artist after long disputes spanning 10 years with the Czech government who took hold of it in 1943 from the Nazis who had this painting along with the rest of their vast collection.

Pissarro’s Bords de l’oise a Pontoise, 1868-1870, one of the French impressionist’s finest landscape paintings which has been with the same American collector for more than 20 years, is expected to fetch up to £700,000 another historical occurrence.

Also a Modigliani painting, one of only five double portraits ever completed by the Italian master will be on sale and is quite possibly one of the artist’s most significant pieces. Les deux filles, painted in 1918 is expected to fetch 5.5 million quid. The painting by Modigliani has been in a private collection now for roughly 90 years. This will be sold alongside a Degas sculpture which has been in the hands of John Madejski (the chairman of Reading football club) the sculpture ‘Petite Danseuse de Quatorze Ans, 1879-81’ is expected to fetch up to £10 million at next month’s sale.