In terms of art collecting, single owner sales always are something special, and when the collector himself is one of Australia’s most esteemed and talented artists, it just seems that much more special.
‘Works from the Donald Friend Collection’ will be sold by Deutscher + Hackett in Sydney, on Sunday, 27 October 2013, at Paddington Town Hall. This represents a unique opportunity to purchase from some 242 lots, including textiles, china and Balinese wood carvings.
However, my focus is the paintings, drawings and sculptures by Donald Friend. They go as far back as the late 1930s when Friend visited Africa.
It wasn’t hard to pick a ‘Dave’s Faves’ of interesting and attractive works by Donald Friend:
Lot 3 – Lagos Street, Fafijtji, Nigeria, 1937, est. $3,000-5,000. Friend’s talent revealed at age 22
Lot 10 – Figure on Head, c1939, est. 8,000-12,000. Museum piece
Lot 13 – Guitar players, 1941, est. 4,000-6,000. Picasso? Gris? Braque? No – Friend!
Lot 17 – Youth, Death and the Maiden, 1949, est. $6,000-10,000. Who let the skeleton out of the closet?
Lot 18 – A drowning’s man’s view of Florence, c1949, est. $60,000-80,000. Fabulous Friend Fresco
Lot 22 – The studio stairs, Firenze, 1949, est. $5,000-8,000. Dream of Escher – live with a Friend
Lot 23 – Hill End, The Royal Hotel and General Store, 1949, est. $20,000-30,000. Man’s best Friend
Lot 24 – Hill End, c.1951, est. 30,000-40,000. Friend’s Hill End Ascends
Lot 26 – Negroes with a lute, 1953, est. $10,000-15,000. Australia’s finest draughtsman
Lot 28 – Horse and Chariot, c1963-64, est. $10,000-15,000. A most rare and splendid thing
Lot 29 – Self portrait in a carved mirror, 1972, est. $15,000-20,000. The artist shows his mastery of watercolour, ink and gouache
Lot 32 – The Lagoon, c1975, est. $30,000-40,000. 3D Donald
Lot 156 – Ikerre Carving, Nigeria, 1939, est. $2,000-4,000. Donald’s drawing delights
Lot 158 – Village Dancers, Lagos, Nigeria, 1939, est. $1,000-2,000. Nigeria for nix
The viewing is now on at Deutscher + Hackett, 55 Oxford Street, Surry Hills, from 11 am to 6 pm until 25 October, and on Saturday, 26 October, from 11 am to 2 pm. Personal viewing is highly recommended!
View also online at Deutscher + Hackett.