The painting Portrait of Sir James Graham by Angelica Kauffman (1741-1807) was among the top selling lots at the auction of Old Masters paintings by Bonhams on Wednesday, July 7. After receiving an estimate of around £20,000-30,000, it sold for £114,000 ($157,500), confirming the current trend that sees a peak in demand for the works of Old Masters female artists.
Angelica Kauffman was a Swiss painter specializing in portraiture and historical subjects, who received important training in Italy. There, Kauffman had the opportunity to cultivate her artistic skills in depth, through the study of the work of Correggio, Guercino and Guido Reni. In the beautiful country, Angelica also got to know the poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and the two became close friends. The artist had an Italian husband, the Venetian painter Antonio Zucchi, and in Rome, he founded his own atelier, which became an institution for travelers on the so-called "Grand Tour". The Grand Tour was a particularly popular journey in the 17th and 18th centuries among the young people of the British and American upper class. It was considered a kind of rite of passage intended to forge their character and perfect their knowledge. Italy was always a stop on such a tour and Rome is where Angelica made this portrait of the young aristocrat.
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Before being auctioned, the painting had since remained in the hands of the family, preserved in exceptional condition. Bonhams director of Old Masters paintings Andrew McKenzie said, "This was a wonderful painting with impeccable provenance coming, as it did, direct from the family of the sitter. Young men on the Grand Tour often had their portraits painted as a standard part of the experience – a welcome source of income for artists – but Kauffman had clearly taken great pains with this work and paid Sir James the compliment of depicting a man of flesh and blood."
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Another important lot of the auction was the Head of Christ, on the kerchief of Saint Veronica from the studio of Domenikos Theotokopoulos, better known as El Greco (1540-1614). The story of Saint Veronica and her veil does not appear in the Bible, but legend has it that Veronica, approaching Christ, offered to wipe the blood and sweat from his face with her veil. His act of kindness paid off when the features of Christ's face remained miraculously imprinted on the fabric. The lot in question sold for £137,750.
Other lots auctioned by Bonhams include: Shipping in a calm sea by Samuel Scott (1702-1772) commissioned by Horace Walpole, sold for £87,750; the painting Piazza del Popolo, Rome by Bernardo Canal, with the words 'View of the Piazza del Popolo entering the City of Rome' on the reverse, sold for £77,750 and Venus punishing Cupid, Bolognese School, late 16th century, purchased for £9,000. The auction was full of great sales and even some surprises, with the spotlight on female artistic talent.
