Against all financial troubles, mantle pieces and 19
th
century bronzes are still very much sought after: lot 347, trippled its estimate and left the block for 20.000 euros, and some bronzes by e.g. Carrier-Belleuse (lot 338) and A.N. Cain (lot 428) left resp. for 4000 and 4900 euros.
An Antwerp cabinet (lot 383) sold for 10.000 euros while an orientalistic landscape by Viérin (lot 486) climbed up to the double of its estimate.
The recently discovered studio of the Antwerp artist Walter Ponsaert appeared to give house to some undisclosed treasures of the sixties, as the paintings left for 2000 to 2600 euros.
A selfportrait by another Antwerp artist Edmond Van Dooren (lot 820) sold for 3000 euros and therebu trippled its estimate. Fellow Antwerp painters like Sam Dillemans (lot 953) and René Guiette (lot 805A) equally attracted eager collectors and sold resp. for 8500 and 1700 euros.
A sculpture by François Morellet (lot 966), an artist with excellent international reputation, shot up to 6600 euros.
But at the end of the run, it was a breathtaking canvas by Jef Verheyen (lot 923) that appeared to be the most sought after piece of the sale. After a harsh competition between a gallery owner on the phone and a collector in the room, it got finally hammered for 30.000 euros.
March 31st: Books, Prints & Drawings
March 31st: Books, Prints & Drawings
Collectors, from the States to France, found their way to Antwerp for the fine and exquisite collection of prints and drawings dispersed on March 31st. The sale comprised work by Edgard Tytgat, René Magritte, Victor Servranckx, Gustave De Smet, Floris Jespers, Andy Warhol, Henri Van Straten e.a. Most of these items left the country, and thereby showing proof in the growing international interest for the Belgian avant garde artists.