British, European & Sporting Art
Lots: 112
Sir Alfred Munnings is rightly celebrated as the master of equine art; his lifelong affinity with the horse is reflected in his insightful and vital equine portraits that capture the grace and power of the animals, and his “Lord Astor on Shooting Stick with Horses” will be sold in the British, European and Sporting Art Sale on 13th July. The painting is a sketch for “A Summer Evening at Cliveden, Waldorf Astor, Second Viscount Astor (1879-1952), seated”, which is held in the Cliveden Estate Collection in Buckinghamshire, now managed by the National Trust. From the same private collection is a watercolour by Munnings; “In the Woods Near Noyon 1918 Attack. Our Retreat” was executed whilst the artist was serving in the First World War with the Canadian Cavalry.
An engaging portrait sketch by the renowned George Romney, which has been in the same family collection since it was painted, will also be offered. The sketch depicts Caesar Hawkins and is thought to have been executed in preparation for a full-length portrait of Caesar, his sister Louisa Anne, and their mother Emma Hawkins (née Adair), which was once in the collection of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.
Four works by one of the leading Victorian equestrian artists, Heywood Hardy are also on offer, hailing from two private collections.
