From the beginning, Jack Vettriano’s paintings have evoked a distinctive and fully-realised world, and his work is therefore instantly recognisable. Dimly-lit Deco-style bars, bedrooms and restaurants are haunted by figures clad in elegant dresses and well-cut suits reminiscent of the 1930s. ‘It’s a perfect world I would like to have lived in’ Vettriano has commented. Yet his paintings go beyond nostalgic odes to a bygone era; they are also expressions of the artist’s worldview, so replete with longing and loneliness that they often read like stills from a film noir. Much of Vettriano’s work explores the complex dynamics at play throughout the rituals of courtship and seduction, exemplified by ‘Busted Flush’. It is arguably his talent as a narrative painter that makes the vignettes he conjures so compelling.
The irresistibility of Vettriano’s journey from Scottish coalminer to globally-successful artist is undeniable. In 2014 his biggest-ever retrospective at Kelvingrove broke the museum’s attendance record, and the appetite for Vettriano remains strong as ever. He famously often paints himself into his own compositions, either immersed within his glamorous nocturnes or in his studio amidst his canvases, as with the striking 2001 example Artist in Studio. Vettriano has expressed that ‘I don’t really want two people there. Because I am self-taught and not used to working with other people, I prefer just me and the model to be in the picture. Any more than that and I just feel a sort of tension.’
Lyon & Turnbull are delighted to offer Modern and Contemporary editioned prints and multiples within our Contemporary & Post-War Art // Prints & Multiples and MODERN MADE auctions.
An exciting and developing area of the market, Prints & Multiples are popular with new and seasoned collectors alike.
At Lyon & Turnbull, we handle prints from a wide variety of artists: from 20th century masters Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali and Joan Miro through to the British canon of printmakers including Dame Laura Knight, L.S. Lowry, Edward Bawden, all the way to David Hockney and Howard Hodgkin. Our auctions encompass printmaking created up to and including the present day, with artists currently working in these mediums, such as Tracey Emin, David Shrigley, Banksy and the Connor Brothers.
Characterised by competitive bidding, strong results and a high selling rate, our Contemporary & Post-War Art sales are among our most popular auctions. Held three times a year in our Scottish saleroom, highlights are also regularly exhibited in our London gallery. Our strong private client base and excellent international marketing reach has seen these sales grow into flagships of our company.
Encompassing works by both emerging and internationally regarded contemporary artists and sculptors, we have achieved top prices for household names including John Hoyland (a world record), Bridget Riley, Eduardo Paolozzi (a world record for a sculpture), Terry Frost, Nicholas Party, Alison Watt and Callum Innes. Regularly featured local favourites include John Bellany and the ‘New Glasgow Boys’ Peter Howson, Ken Currie, Steven Campbell, as well as John Byrne and Alasdair Gray.
CHARLOTTE RIORDAN | HEAD OF CONTEMPORARY & POST-WAR ART
0131 557 8844
charlotte.riordan@lyonandturnbull.com
CARLY SHEARER | HEAD OF PRINTS & MULTIPLES
0131 557 8844
carly.shearer@lyonandturnbull.com