British & European Fine Art Auction Highlights

There were some exciting lots on offer, including two Louis Wain paintings discovered by a couple in a skip. Our Pembrokeshire-based auctioneer, Charles Hampshire, with whom the paintings were consigned, said:

“It’s always wonderful to hear stories of people uncovering extraordinary treasures in their homes. It really shows the importance of checking attics, lofts and old belongings, as you never know what hidden gems might be waiting to be discovered.”

The sale opened strongly with five works by Mary Fedden attracting fierce competition. Lot 3, Near Lucignano — a large oil on canvas — sparked a four-way bidding battle between three telephone bidders and one online bidder before finally selling online for £17,000. All five Fedden works exceeded their estimates, underlining the artist’s enduring popularity.

Doreset-based artist Nicholas Hely Hutchinson’s Park Landscape with Pigeons also performed exceptionally well, selling for over three times its £500-700 estimate.

Interestingly, Kyffin Williams’s Standing Stones at Penrhos Feilw, which had failed to sell at our Welsh Sale just a month ago, achieved £32,500 today, reaching the upper end of its original estimate.

We were also thrilled to offer two works by the renowned Victorian artist Louis Wain, whose charming cat paintings were rescued from a skip by a Pembrokeshire couple whilst walking their dog. The pair said, “We always joked they might be worth something one day, but never truly believed it.”

They can believe it now, as both works sold above estimate — proof that you never know what treasures might turn up on an ordinary dog walk.

Meanwhile, Anna Palm de Rosa’s watercolour Stockholm is returning home after spirited bidding between two Swedish buyers, eventually selling for £2,300.

We have an exciting slate of auctions coming up, including monthly sales from our Colwyn Bay, Cardiff and Chester venues, as well as our specialist Jewellery, Coins & Watches auction on 25th June.

We are now inviting entries for our Summer Welsh Sale, which will take place at Gregynog Hall on 25th July.

View our full auction calendar here, and to keep up to date with future sales, subscribe to our catalogue alerts at the bottom of the page.