Smith & Singer

Smith & Singer In the News

Accomnews

The Langham, Sydney closed its famous Kent Street doors in July, 2014 to undertake a $30 million grand transformation which will re-deliver this landmark hotel as Sydney's most exclusive harbourside address, on December 2, 2014.

Grace Cossington Smith: The Window 1956

12 November 2014

Regarded as one of Australia’s foremost modernist artists, Grace Cossington Smith was instrumental in introducing post-impressionism to her home country.  Born 20 April 1982, in Sydney’s Neutral Bay, Smith came from a socially conventional background.  She was the second child of well-to-do English immigrants.  Her mother, also named Grace, was a cultured woman with a love of music and languages; her father, Ernest, was appointed Crown Solicitor of New South Wales in 1890 and later established his own firm.

An early modernist, her fascination with light and colour and her unerring interest in what she saw around her developed throughout the many phases of her work, culminating in the luminous interiors she painted in the 1950s and 1960s.  Often giving a glimpse of the ordinary suburban home, Smith’s subjects varied from significant global events to quintessentially Australian scenes, capturing a time and a place.  As an artist Smith was a strong supporter of modernism, credited with leading post-impressionist movements in Australia.  However it was not until later in her life that she was adequately recognised and in 1973 made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for her services to Australian art.  That same year a major retrospective of her work toured Australia, cementing her role as a truly brilliant artist.  Her paintings are widely treasured, with works exhibited in major galleries throughout the country.

Grace Cossington Smith’s (1892-1984) highly-acclaimed masterpiece, The Window (1956) is one the largest compositions from Grace Cossington Smith’s shimmering interiors painted in a pointillist manner and is the last of this scale remaining in private ownership.  The companion paintings are Interior with Blue Painting (1956, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne) and Interior in Yellow (1962-1964, National Gallery of Australia, Canberra).

Grace Cossington Smith employed a variety of techniques, largely characterised by square brush strokes and bright colours.  Sotheby’s Australia will offer one of Grace Cossington Smith’s acclaimed masterpieces, The Window (estimate $250,000-350,000, lot 14) at its forthcoming sale of Important Australiana & International Art.  The Window is distinctly Australian with a central doorway opening out to a tall gum tree and surrounding native flora.  The foreground is awash with warm tones, showing the artist’s surrounds.  The painting is a spectacular example of the artist’s much loved scenes of doorways and windows, with the backgrounding blue skies drawing the viewer to look beyond the initially captivating interior.  The artfully constructed composition of yellow, purple, blue and green immediately engages and shows Grace Cossington Smith’s mastery of colour.

Grace Cossington Smith was a pioneer of Australian modernist painting. From the mid-1960s until her death in 1984, she was a much-admired elder stateswoman of Australian art, and her legacy includes some of the prepossessing paintings of her times.

> view e-Catalogue
> view catalogue entry The Window 1956

 

Illustrated
GRACE COSSINGTON SMITH 1892-1984
The Window 1956
oil on composition board
122.2 x 91.5 cm
Estimate $250,000-350,000

D'Marge  |  Mike Huynh

Sotheby’s will be auctioning an exclusive Mercedes-Benz SL-Class bonnet designed and signed by Jean Paul Gaultier tonight. The bonnet features the French fashion designer’s unique interpretation of his signature blue stripes emblazoned across the classic SL design.

Property from the Collection of Mr Darryl Farrelly Lots 1-45

24 October 2014

A prominent patron of the arts, Darryl Farrelly was responsible for some of Myer’s most memorable windows.  Renowned for his keen eye and significant contribution to Melbourne’s design and retail world, Darryl Farrelly established a name for himself during his career with the Australian clothing label, Fletcher Jones and was considered one of the country’s finest window dressers.  Today the profession is widely recognised as visual merchandising, requiring strong design and visualisation skills.  Darryl Farrelly was an original pioneer of Australian visual merchandising, creating stimulating and engaging displays like none other.

Sotheby’s Australia has been entrusted with the sale of Mr Darryl Farrelly's collection of arts & design which will take place on 29 October, commencing with lots 1 through to 45. 

Darryl Farrelly’s long-time friend, Paul Maxwell, says ‘Darryl Farrelly has certain ways of working within confined spaces to display things magnificently, moving mountains to create dynamic displays that visually excite.’  Of Darryl Farrelly’s personal collection, Paul Maxwell says ‘his home was always an Aladdin’s cave full of treasures.’

A life-long collector, Darryl Farrelly commenced with European pieces and later acquired works of Middle Eastern and Oriental provenance.  A 19th century Flemish cabinet (estimate $5,000-8,000, lot 44), comprised of tortoiseshell, bone and ebony is one of the highlights from his collection that is featured in the sale.  In addition to the private collection of Darryl Farrelly Sotheby’s Australia will present an impressive selection of arts and design from Asia, Australia and Europe in the forthcoming Arts & Design sale. 

> view e-Catalogue

The Sydney Morning Herald  |  James Cockington

Syndicated: The Age, Money Matters

The best known of John Kelly's quirky cows sits stranded upside down in a tree near the Docklands stadium in Melbourne. Cow up a Tree is a monumental work, some eight metres high, which was previously exhibited on the Champs-Elysees in Paris.

The Advertiser  |  Patrick McDonald

Syndicated: The Australian, The Courier Mail, The Daily Telegraph, Herald Sun  & News.com.au

HANS Heysen’s only large-scale painting of the 1912 bushfire which devastated Hahn-dorf is expected to fetch up to $250,000 at auction next month.

The Age  |  Louise Bellamy

Syndicated: The Brisbane Times, The Canberra Times, The Sydney Morning Herald & WA Today

There's a haunting image of Australian artist, Robert Dickerson, recently turned 90 , as a young boy at Bourke Street School, Hurstville, New South Wales, in Grade 6. It's  1936, he's second row from the back, and the caption reads: boys with shoes were placed in the front row.

Australian Financial Review  |  Peter Fish

A rare large work by Australian ­modernist Grace Cossington Smith from a private collection is to be offered in November, with hopes of setting a new record for the artist.

We use our own and third party cookies to enable you to navigate around our Site, use its features and engage on social media, and to allow us to perform analytics, remember your preferences, provide services that you have requested and produce content and advertisements tailored to your interests, both on our Site as well as others. For more information, or to learn how to change your cookie or marketing preferences, please see our updated Privacy Policy & Cookie Policy.

By continuing to use our Site, you consent to our use of cookies and to the practices described in our updated Privacy Policy.

CONTINUE