On Saturday, 11 October 2014, an auction of art objects and antiques arranged by ArtembassyGallery with the support of Rietumu Bank will take place in the bank headquarters.
Auctions held by Artembassy Gallery with the support of Rietumu Bank have always been one of the most remarkable events on the Baltic market concerning works of art. Every time the organisers do their best to offer valuable and interesting paintings, sculptures, graphic and applied art works to art connoisseurs and collectors.
“This year we areseeing a general upturn and increase in activity on the Latvian market of art objects and antiques,which is primarily due to restoration of the market after the crisis. It is hard to name the segments, apart from perhaps, Latvian decorative porcelain, where buyers could have a more expressed and active interest. In such a situation we tried to make a balanced selection by including both collection artefacts and highly artistic interior design items andpaintings in the catalogue, which enjoy demand ‘in any weather conditions on the market’,” says Aigars Grinbergs, Director of Artembassy Gallery and organiser of the auction.
Among the top lots of this auction, there is a small but very picturesque and emotionally touching painting “Spring” (1930s) of the Latvian classic Vilhelms Purvitis (1872-1945). Another interesting work is “Fishermen” painted in an impressionism manner by another classic – Russian Academician Nikolay Bogdanov-Belsky (1868-1945). Art of the eminent classic Janis Rozentals (1866-1916)is represented by his early picture “At the Well”, painted under the influence of Russian Itinerants.The classical group is completed by the picture “Old Riga”of the Russian artist AcademicianSergey Vinogradov (1869-1938) painted in 1924.
Latvian modernism is widely represented at the auction. The early cubist work “City” of Romans Suta (1896-1944) is among the obvious highlights – paintings of such a format and quality are very rare, not only on the open marketbut also in museum collections.The art of Latvian artist Hilda Vika (1897-1963) is represented by a very interesting avant-garde painting “Zunda Channel” (1927); another work by her “In the Candle Light” (1929) is painted in an art-deco style.
Avant-garde connoisseurs will have an opportunity to bid for several landscapes of Aleksandra Belcova (1892-1981) painted during her trip to Southern Francein the 1920s, as well as for some sketches of porcelain items painted by her husband Romans Suta. An interesting and stylish sketch of a theatrical costume by OttoSkulme (1889-1967) and a pencil drawing of a town in FrancebySergey Antonov (1884-1956) are worthy of note. The “modernist” group is concluded by a rare early work of Rudolfs Pinnis(1902-1992) painted by him in 1936 in Paris.
Traditionally popular Latvian artists of the mid and second half of the 20
th century are also well represented: Ludolfs Liberts (“Grand Boulevards in Paris”,“Poppies” and “Self-Portrait”), Leo Svemps (“Flowers in a Vase” and“Winter Landscape”), Janis Tidemanis (“Ballet Dancers”, “Flowers” and “Sleeping Girl”), Uga Skulme (“Lucavsala”).
The famous seascape painter and refined landscape painter Eduards Kalnins is represented this time by a “Plein-air” sketch and two miniature paintings from his Chinese cycle of the late 1950s.
An excellent acquisition which would adorn any collection is a large picture by Janis Pauluks “Brother’s Bathing” painted in the mid 1960s.
Among the Latvian “grandees” represented in the auction catalogue are Valdis Kalnroze, Janis Osis, Janis-RobertsTidemanis, Sigizmunds Bitbergs, Ansis Artums, Adolfs Melnars, Imants Vecozols, Janis Kalmite, Herberts Silins and other artists.
In the sculpture section, the excellent compositions of Viktorija Pelse must be noted –“Mother with a Child” and “Horseman”, created in the 1970s.
Traditionally, Latvian, Russian and European decorative porcelain will be widely represented. Among the works made by Latvian authors, original vases from the Burtnieks workshop, painted figures and plates of the Riga Kuznetsov Manufactory, and post-war works of the Riga Porcelain Factory masters deserve special attention.
The pre-auction exhibition is currently being held in Riga, in the Rietumu Bank headquarters, located at 7 Vesetas Street. The auction will start on 11 October at 12:00.
More information and the catalogue for the auction can be found at
artembassy.lv.
Eleonora Gailisha Mass Media and Public Relations
Phone: +371-67020506
Fax: +371-67020563
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