Period Furniture & Marble Exemplify Design For The Home & Garden For Andrew Jones – Antiques And The Arts Weekly

Review by Carly Timpson; Photos Courtesy Andrew Jones Auctions

LOS ANGELES — On February 1, Andrew Jones Auctions conducted its auction “Design for the Home & Garden, including the Craig Wright Collection.” Among the 231 lots offered in the sale were designs from notable Los Angeles interior designer and antiques dealer Craig Wright’s personal collection, European antiquities, furniture and decorative arts. With a 93 percent sell-through rate, Andrew Jones Auctions boasted a total realized of $667,187 — 150 percent over the sale’s estimate.

Regarding the auction’s offerings, Aileen Ward, Andrew Jones’ vice president and senior specialist, shared, “Most of the top lots came from the collection of prominent interior designer Craig Wright, creator of the California-style vernacular. His aesthetic incorporates Continental historical forms with lavish textures and rich patterns. He uses diverse pieces from antiquities to his own bespoke designs. The two Montague Dawson works, the George III desk and the dueling pistols were consigned from the estate of Robert and Barbara Grant of Newport Beach, Calif., which had a very English country house sensibility.”

Leading the sale was a Roman Pavonazzo marble and porphyry veneered center table from Wright’s collection. According to the auction catalog, the circa First-Second Century table’s Pavonazzo base was originally for a labrum or water basin. The deep mauve imperial porphyry tabletop was veneered and had some minor losses, which could be said to add depth and character to the piece. Despite not having recorded provenance, the table achieved $32,500, exceeding the estimated $15/20,000, and will be headed to a local California client.

“Bowling Home,” an oil painting by Montague J. Dawson claimed the top spot in the art category. This signed and framed ship portrait surpassed its estimate to sell to an East Coast collector for $25,000. The large central ship with billowing sails is depicted coasting along vibrant blue rolling waves with a smaller ship in the distance behind it. After an intense competition for “Bowling Home,” which left all but one unsuccessful, bidders turned their interest to Dawson’s “Stormy Weather; The Bangalore.” Taking the work well past its estimated $3/5,000, a Southern Collector claimed “Stormy Weather” for $20,000. Both Dawson paintings were from the Estate of Robert and Barbara Grant.

Another piece that performed well above its estimates and finished as the third-highest lot of the day, was a Louis XV-style 10-light chandelier. The gilt bronze chandelier was decorated with rock crystal and clear glass arranged in floral designs. A broken upper arm did not stop this fixture from lighting up bidders’ interests, as it commanded $23,750 against its $3/5,000 estimate.

Displaying more strength in the decorative arts category was an early Eighteenth Century Italian Baroque armadio. Cataloged as “monumental,” the armoire was 9½ feet tall and more than 11 feet wide. The primary carved walnut doors enclosed a configuration of cubby holes and were flanked by another pair of doors with more shelving. The base of the armadio contained six drawers beneath the central doors and single-door compartments on either side. From the Collection of Craig Wright, this grand storage unit was bid to $22,500 and was sold to a local collector.

Another exceptional piece was a circa 1770 Louis XVI gilt bronze architectural mantel clock depicting a scene from Michel-Jean Sedaine and Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny’s popular 1769 comic opera, Le déserteur. According to the auction catalog, “A drawing of this model of clock appears in the Livre de desseins as No. 75 under the name of Goyer, priced at 336 livres.” The intricately designed clock with twin train movements and a bell, set on a white marble base, achieved $8,750.

Finishing at the same price was a mid-Twentieth Century five-piece brass games suite by William “Billy” Haines. The suite included four off-white tufted leather Klismos chairs and a circular Capiz shell veneered table. The set was from the collection of producer, audio engineer and musician Thomas Mikailin (Tommy Rush), and sold to a local collector for $8,125.

An Italian Neoclassical console table from the late Eighteenth Century was bid to $7,500 and was purchased by a local client. The grey-painted demilune table was decorated with gilt vines, leaves, flowers and a central allegorical head, possibly medusa. The table’s four carved and tapered legs were also decorated with gilt foliage.

Not all of the decorative arts sales were so predictable, though. A pair of 15-inch-tall Chinese gilt root wood stools stunned their $200/300 estimate to finish at $12,500. Ward noted, “These had a very modest estimate, in part because the market for Chinese works of art has been cooling over the last six months.”

Close behind was a Roman-style white marble tub, which was sold to a Southern collector for $11,875 against an estimated $800-$1,200. The marble footed tub was made after 1950 and one foot was broken off, but that didn’t slow down the bidding. While this marble work was relatively new, a Roman Corinthian capital also offered from Wright’s collection certainly was not. Dating circa the First Century, the capital showed expected signs of weathering and age but shot past its $3/5,000 estimate and was purchased by a local client for $11,875.

Departing from the Estate of Walter Nelson, a member of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID), San Diego, Calif., was a set of six lounge chairs and an ottoman designed by Walter Lamb for Brown Jordan. The bronze frames of the midcentury chairs and ottoman displayed varying degrees of verdigris patina, and two of the chairs were of different proportions. Each seat and back was strung with discolored white rope, but the set was accompanied by nine upholstered cushions. A local collector took the set home for $10,000 ($2/4,000).

Estimated at only $1/1,500, a late Eighteenth Century George III bronze-mounted mahogany writing desk from the Grant Estate was purchased by a Southern collector for $9,375. The desk’s leather top and hardware had been replaced and it is possible the bronze mounts were later additions, but the desk was in decent condition barring expected marks from use.

Another underdog finish was that of a pair of Damascene dueling pistols. Purchased by a Southern collector, the two Nineteenth Century, possibly Spanish pistols were sold with a 15-inch German naval dagger with engravings from Weyersberg Kirschbaum & Cie. The three arms were from the Grant Estate. The set of three pieces was estimated at $800-$1,200 but commanded $8,125.

Aside from the Dawson paintings, two other works in the fine arts category had strong finishes. From Craig White’s collection was a circa Eighteenth Century French School oil painting titled “Draped reclining man: Endymion.” In restored condition with some inpainting and a repair to a sizable tear, the gilt-framed painting was purchased by a Pacific Northwest collector for $10,000. The other painting will be traveling a bit further to its new home. A French collector claimed Claude Garache’s “Vertical nude” for $8,750. Garache’s post-modernist red figure, signed and inscribed “LXVI” and “240,” came from a private collection.

Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. Andrew Jones Auctions’ next sale, DTLA Collections & Estates, will be February 28-29. For information, www.andrewjonesauctions.com or 213-748-8008.