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Grosvenor House Art
& Antiques Fair
Interest in the Arts and Crafts is
increasing because its simple lines and
craftsmanship appeal to modern buyers,
writes Daniel Morris The Grosvenor House
Art & Antiques Fair is as much a part
of the great British summer season as the
Chelsea Flower Show or Wimbledon. For
prestige and quality, this is the one. The
prices will often be astronomical, but by
dodging the museum fodder you should be
able to find affordable works of art with
investment potential.
£6500 - A priest's laundry
tally from
the 17th century
Certainly, the Arts and Crafts period
will be well represented. Interest in this
movement is increasing, thanks in part to
the International Arts & Crafts
exhibition now showing at the V&A, but
largely because its simple lines and
outstanding craftsmanship appeal to modern
buyers.
Pieces designed or manufactured by
leading names will carry a premium. H.
Blairman & Sons, for instance, will be
exhibiting an extremely refined oak
refectory table designed by Gordon Russell
in 1927 along with other Arts and Crafts
pieces. The price? £14,500.
Even if you can't stretch to that, my
advice would be to pay that bit extra
where you can, in the knowledge that you
are buying a documented work of art, which
should prove a sound investment.
Early 20th-century Danish design is
also becoming increasingly sought-after.
My favourite piece of this period at the
fair has to be the stunning silver
cocktail shaker by Georg Jensen, for sale
at just under £5,000. An expensive
way to mix a Martini, perhaps, but worth
it none the less.
Modern British Art will be well
represented, too, with the leading dealers
Hazlitt Holland-Hibbert selling works by
artists such as Edward Burra, Graham
Sutherland, Barbara Hepworth and Ben
Nicholson. This movement continues to rise
in value, and I suspect still has some way
to go.
If you are searching for a great coffee
table - not easy, as they didn't come into
being until the 20th century and so much
of what is sold now is imported tat - you
may be in luck. Peter Petrou is exhibiting
one made out of a titanium turbine fan
from a Concorde engine set in glass. A
talking point and a piece of aeronautical
history, but it comes at a price -
£38,000.
Petrou also has what I consider one of
the most remarkable objects in the fair -
a pre-Columbian Nazca pouch from between
200BC and AD400. It is woven in a timeless
geometric design reminiscent of the 1960s,
retains striking colours, and at
£3,800 is a good buy.
Finally, for charm and rarity I love
the 17th-century priest's laundry tally
for which Avon Antiques is asking
£6,500. I'd never seen one of these
before. No bigger than a postcard, it is
fitted with 15 rotating brass discs
mounted on paper indicating the number and
variety of items for washing.
The fair runs from June 16 to June 22
at the Grosvenor House Hotel, London. A
single ticket is £16, a double ticket
£27 (020 7399 8100;
www.grosvenor-antiquesfair.co.uk)
More information:
www.corfieldmorris.com; 01794 301141
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