"Natural Beauty: From Fra Angelico to Monet" opens at the Groninger Museum
Fra Angelico, H. Nicolaas van Bari, 1424 / 1425, tempera op hout, 35,5 x 14 cm © Collectie Rau voor UNICEF, Foto: P. Schälchli, Zürich
GRONINGEN - The Natural Beauty exhibition shows landscapes and still lifes from the collection of Gustav Rau (1922-2002), a German tropical doctor and art collector. Gustav Rau is regarded as one of the most exceptional collectors of our times. Masterpieces by Fra Angelico, Van Goyen, Van der Neer, Bonnard, Fantin-Latour, Monet, Liebermann, Sérusier, Vuillard, Sisley, Morandi and others make this presentation a feast for the eye.
Gustav Rau was the sole heir to his father’s empire of automobile companies. He worked as a tropical doctor in Zaire, as the current Democratic Republic of the Congo was then called. Every year, Rau paid a few visits to Europe to participate in art auctions, and thus accumulated a unique collection of approximately eight hundred paintings and sculptures. The collection provides an overview of five centuries of European art history.
Gustav Rau’s collection remained hidden to the outside world for many years. It was only in 1999 that the artworks first came into the public domain. In 2001, a year before his death, the collection was handed over to UNICEF.
The Natural Beauty exhibition in the Groninger Museum presents landscapes and still lifes from the Rau collection: nature viewed from a distance and from close-by. The centre of gravity is formed by still lifes from the 17th century and landscapes from the 20th century.
The exhibition is supplemented with similar work from the collection of the Groninger Museum.
Willem van Aelst, Still Life with Flowers, undated, oil paint, 79 x 64 cm© Rau Collection for UNICEF, Cologne. Photo: Mick Vincenz, Essen
Claude Monet, Pyramids at Port-Coton, W 1087, 1886, oil paint on canvas, 65.5 x 65.5 cm© Rau Collection for UNICEF, Cologne. Photo: P. Schälchli, Zürich.
Pair of platinum, 18 karat gold, diamond and conch pearl earclips, Harry Winston
Pair of platinum, 18 karat gold, diamond and conch pearl earclips, Harry Winston. Photo Sotheby's
Of cluster design, set with six conch pearls measuring approximately 9.9 by 7.0 mm to 6.3 by 5.4 mm, accented by marquise and pear-shaped diamonds weighing approximately 5.20 carats, signed HW, numbered 82966. Estimation 20,000 — 30,000 USD
Sotheby's. Magnificent Jewels. New York | 11 déc. 2013 - www.sothebys.com
Pair of platinum, 18 karat gold, ruby and diamond pendant-earclips, Harry Winston
Pair of platinum, 18 karat gold, ruby and diamond pendant-earclips, Harry Winston. Photo Sotheby's
Set with ten oval-shaped rubies accented by round and marquise-shaped diamonds weighing approximately 5.40 carats, signed Winston. Estimation 25,000 — 35,000 USD
Accompanied by AGL report no. CS 57483 A and B stating that an excess of 50% of the rubies tested at random are of Burmese (Mong Hsu Type) origin, with indications of heating.
Sotheby's. Magnificent Jewels. New York | 11 déc. 2013 - www.sothebys.com
Platinum and diamond ring, Harry Winston
Platinum and diamond ring, Harry Winston. Photo Sotheby's
Centering an emerald-cut diamond weighing 12.36 carats, flanked by two tapered baguette diamonds weighing approximately .50 carat, size 4½, signed Winston.With signed box and pouch. Estimation 300,000 — 400,000 USD
Accompanied by GIA report no. 14900981 stating that the diamond is H color, VS1 clarity.
Sotheby's. Magnificent Jewels. New York | 11 déc. 2013 - www.sothebys.com
Magnificent platinum and diamond ring, Harry Winston
Magnificent platinum and diamond ring, Harry Winston. Photo Sotheby's
The marquise-shaped diamond weighing 13.05 carats, flanked by two tapered baguette diamonds weighing approximately .80 carat, size 4¼, fitted with inner sizing spheres, stamped HW for Harry Winston. With signed box. Estimation 1,000,000 — 1,500,000 USD
Accompanied by GIA report no. 2155497057 stating that the diamond is D color, VVS2 clarity. Together with the original working diagram stating that the diamond is potentially Flawless. Additionally with a letter from the GIA stating that the diamond has been determined to be Type lla.
Sotheby's. Magnificent Jewels. New York | 11 déc. 2013 - www.sothebys.com
Sweden's Nationalmuseum acquires family portrait painted in 1767 by Alexander Roslin
Alexander Roslin, Self-portrait with his wife Marie Suzanne Giroust painting a portrait of Henrik Wilhelm Peill, 1767.
STOCKHOLM.- Nationalmuseum has acquired a portrait of Alexander Roslin and his wife Marie Suzanne Giroust painted by the artist himself. The museum had the opportunity to acquire this unique and rarely shown work. The acquisition has been made possible by an extraordinary contribution from the Friends of Nationalmuseum.
The newly acquired Roslin family portrait was painted by Alexander Roslin in 1767. In the summer of 1754, Roslin was asked to take over various purchasing duties in Paris on behalf of Carl Gustaf Tessin. When Henrik Wilhelm Peill, Tessin’s protegé, arrived in Paris on a European study tour in the mid-1760s, Roslin and his wife welcomed Peill with open arms. As a token of the resulting close friendship, Roslin painted the portrait of himself and his wife, Marie Suzanne Giroust, at the easel working on a pastel of Peill. The painting was produced toward the end of Peill’s visit. The portrait within the portrait has never been found, but several copies exist of an earlier version produced by Marie Suzanne Giroust the previous year.
The gold box housing the miniature portrait that Roslin is pointing at is part of the rebus-like nature of the painting and may have been a lavish farewell gift from Peill. The inscription on the frame, Loin et près (“Far away and [yet] close”), makes it clear that the portrait was indeed a token of friendship. Peill most likely acquired the painting that same year or in the years that immediately followed. Shortly after his return to Sweden, he married Anna Johanna Grill the younger, daughter of the late Claes Grill the elder, former director of the Swedish East India Company. The evidence suggests that the younger woman portrayed in miniature on the gold box in the painting is Miss Grill, while the older woman is probably her mother, Anna Johanna the elder.
In this light, it is easy to understand why Roslin felt called upon in September 1775 to paint the Grill Family Portrait, which is now in the Gothenburg Museum of Art. The painting of the widowed Anna Johanna Grill the elder with her children Adolf Ulric and Anna Johanna the younger readily tied in with the group portrait of the Roslins that has now been acquired by Nationalmuseum. However, the family portrait did not include Mrs Grill’s son-in-law, Peill, but rather her late husband. In keeping with convention, he is depicted in another degree of reality, in the form of a pastel portrait by Gustaf Lundberg in the background. The inscription complements that of the pendant and adds multiple levels of meaning: Loin et près/Unis à jamais (“Far away and [yet] close/United for ever”).
For a long time, the Roslin family portrait belonged to the descendants of the heir to Henrik Wilhelm Peill and Anna Johanna Grill the younger, her nephew Per Adolf Tamm, a baron and factory owner. This unique work by Alexander Roslin from the Österby collection eventually came into the possession of Baroness Stina Nordenfalk, née Rålamb. Nationalmuseum has now purchased the work from her heirs at a price of SEK 19,5 million. The acquisition has been made possible by means from the museum’s own funds plus a generous contribution from the Friends of Nationalmuseum and a private donation. The painting has been exhibited to the general public on a few previous occasions such as two temporary exhibitions at Nationalmuseum: Alexander Roslin in 2007 and Pride and Prejudice in 2012. Nationalmuseum is therefore delighted to confirm that an important piece of Swedish cultural heritage has been saved for future exhibition as part of the museum’s permanent collection.
An art deco emerald and diamond brooch, circa 1925
An art deco emerald and diamond brooch, circa 1925. Photo courtesy Bonhams.
The central step-cut emerald, between highly stylised anthemion motif shoulders, within a pierced crenellated border, millegrain-set throughout with old brilliant and single-cut diamonds, mounted in platinum, emerald approximately 9.30 carats, diamonds approximately 3.50 carats total, partial maker's mark, French assay marks, diameter 6.5cm. Sold for £16,250 (€19,547)
Bonhams. FINE JEWELLERY INCLUDING SELECTED JEWELS FROM THE COLLECTION OF BARBARA TAYLOR BRADFORD. London, New Bond Street. 5 Dec 2013 -www.bonhams.com
A diamond single-stone ring, circa 1990
A diamond single-stone ring, circa 1990. Photo courtesy Bonhams.
The step-cut diamond, weighing 6.68 carats, between baguette-cut diamond shoulders, to a platinum mount, maker's mark, London hallmark, ring size N½. Sold for £68,500 (€82,401)
Bonhams. FINE JEWELLERY INCLUDING SELECTED JEWELS FROM THE COLLECTION OF BARBARA TAYLOR BRADFORD. London, New Bond Street. 5 Dec 2013 -www.bonhams.com
An art deco diamond bracelet, circa 1925
An art deco diamond bracelet, circa 1925. Photo courtesy Bonhams.
Composed of a series of old brilliant and rose-cut diamond geometric buckles with similarly-set connectors, diamonds approximately 45.00 carats total. length 18.2cm. Sold for £25,000 (€30,073)
Bonhams. FINE JEWELLERY INCLUDING SELECTED JEWELS FROM THE COLLECTION OF BARBARA TAYLOR BRADFORD. London, New Bond Street. 5 Dec 2013 -www.bonhams.com
An art deco diamond strap bracelet, circa 1935
An art deco diamond strap bracelet, circa 1935. Photo courtesy Bonhams.
Of openwork geometric design, the articulated panels set throughout with old brilliant and baguette-cut diamonds, diamonds approximately 27.75 carats total, length 17.8cm. Sold for £43,750 (€52,628)
Bonhams. FINE JEWELLERY INCLUDING SELECTED JEWELS FROM THE COLLECTION OF BARBARA TAYLOR BRADFORD. London, New Bond Street. 5 Dec 2013 -www.bonhams.com
