We were delighted to present a specialist focus on the Scottish Colourist Samuel John Peploe in celebration of the 150th anniversary of his birth in our flagship December 2021 Scottish Paintings & Sculpture auction. A collection of five exceptional paintings by the acclaimed Scottish Colourist, Samuel John Peploe led the auction, selling for £1,170,000*. One of the most important Scottish artists of the 20th century, Peploe was the eldest and most successful of the four artists known as the ‘Scottish Colourists’.
A stunning still life, Roses and Fruit, led the Peploe works, achieving £735,000*. It was estimated to achieve between £300,000 and £500,000. While The Statuette, a fine example of the assured still lifes for which Peploe is renowned, sold for £187,500*.
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The auction also featured work by Peploe’s fellow Scottish Colourists, J.D. Fergusson, F.C.B. Cadell and G.L. Hunter.
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Cadell is celebrated for his depictions of the Hebridean island of Iona. Indeed, the importance of his Iona paintings was recognised by a room dedicated to them in the major retrospective of his work held at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art in 2011. A beautiful example, St Columba’s Bay, sold for £100,000* in the auction.
Works by Anne Redpath, the doyenne of Post-WWII Scottish Painting, proved popular with her brightly coloured still lifes leading a group of her works. Indeed, Still Life on a Patterned Tablecloth achieved £81,250* and Still Life - Tulips and Lilies sold for £75,000*.
The final total for the auction, which took place on 09 December 2021, was £2.3milion*. It was a fitting end to a year of record sales with our in-person and live online auctions in Edinburgh and London.
Nick Curnow, our Head of Fine Art said: “Peploe's 'Roses and Fruit' is a remarkable painting and we are, of course, delighted with the sum achieved in this anniversary year which marks 150 years since the artist’s birth. The auction as a whole did extremely well and is a fantastic outcome as 2021 draws to a close."
Lyon & Turnbull’s Scottish Paintings & Sculpture specialists host two auctions per year from our Scottish auction house based in Edinburgh. Successfully selling around 90% of Scottish Colourist works handled in the last eight years, a record unmatched by our competitors – selling Scottish art in Scotland has always been a Lyon & Turnbull lynchpin. Our specialists are experts not only on the works of Scottish artists, but also on the workings of the art market, and it is this combination that fuels our on-going success in the field.
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