SPRING IN A RIVIERA GARDEN
Sir John Lavery RA RSA RHA (1856-1941)(?) ’Portraits and Landscapes of Sir John Lavery RA’, Robert C. Vose Galleries, Boston, 1925-6, catalogue no. 25 (as A Garden at Cap Ferrat);
Cartwright Memorial Hall, Bradford;
’Sir John Lavery RA 1856-1941’, Spink & Co., London, 1971, catalogue no. 53
The côte d’azure had been enduringly fashionable with painters since the turn of the century, supplementing the popular artists’ colonies in Normandy and Brittany. Monet, Renoir, Derain and Matisse had all worked in the south of France and in the years leading up to the Great War, it attracted artists as various as the Irishman, William John Leech, the English, Henry Herbert la Thangue, the Scots, John Duncan Fergusson and the Welsh, Augustus John. Whilst these painters preferred the hill villages and romantic fishing ports, Lavery turned his back on obvious picturesqueness. With his pupil, Winston Churchill, he was an early arrival at the chic villas of Cap Ferrat in 1921.3 In his foreword to the catalogue accompanying Lavery’s exhibition to the Alpine Club Gallery later that year Churchill noted:
”He shows us sunlight in all its variety… gay and pellucid and pleasurable on the Riviera… We are presented with the true integrity of an effect. And this flash is expressed in brilliant and beautiful colour with the ease of long mastery”.4
It and the neighbouring resorts of Villefranche and Beaulieu-sur-Mer, were destinations of choice for an opulent, aristocratic English-speaking community that had included the Duke of Connaught, Lord Salisbury, Sir J. Blundell Maple and Gordon Bennett. Not only did Cap Ferrat satisfy Hazel Lavery’s social ambitions, but its incomparable coastal views drew the painter into a flurry of activity. Two views of Beaulieu were produced in the 1921 season, two other canvases represent the famous headland, the tête de chien, at Monte Carlo and yet others portray the terrace of Cap d’Ail and the steep path up to the village of Eze.
Cap Ferrat boasted the best gardens on the Riviera and a micro-climate at Beaulieu, in the area known as ‘Petite Afrique’, produced the most luxurious vegetation in France. Spring, with its exotic blooms always arrived early, before the visitors departed. Whilst the garden in the present work has not been identified, it is likely to belong to the Villa Sylvia on Cap Ferrat. Lavery particularly admired this recreation of an Italian palazzo, and portrayed its white colonnade overlooking the sea on several occasions in 1921. The secluded garden was also a favourite motif – its trees and shrubs appearing in Spring, The Garden, Villa Sylvia 1921 (fig. 1, Ulster Museum, Belfast)5.
Although painted from a slightly different angle and containing only the suggestion of figures, the Ulster Museum composition is strikingly similar to the present work. The precedent for depictions of garden tête-à-têtes in Lavery’s work goes back to 1889 when he painted members of Paisley Lawn Tennis Club (fig. 2, Renfrew District Museums and Galleries) under trees in blossom.
However in recent years more intimate subjects were found in Tangier – particularly in Lavery’s own My Garden in Morocco, 1913 (private collection), where we sense the murmur of civilised conversation around the tea-table, as in the present example. Lavery preserves the privacy of the resting rich in the Riviera garden. None is identifiable, although they would certainly include Hazel Lavery, possibly the Churchills and maybe the recently married Duff and Diana Cooper, who were holidaying in the area. It is entirely possible in view of Hazel’s intense interest in Irish affairs that having read recent newspapers from London, they are discussing the politics of the emerging state.
Kenneth McConkey,
University of Northumbria
1 W. Scott, The Riviera, A&C Black, London, 1907, page 94.
2 Lavery was to paint the interior of the Salons Privées at the casino in 1929. See Kenneth McConkey, Sir John Lavery, Canongate, 1993, pages 180-181. Sources for the Riviera lifestyle at this period abound – see for instance, F. Berkeley Smith, Parisians Out of Doors, Funk and Wagnall, n.d., c. 1910, and Capt. Leslie Richardson, Things Seen on the Riviera, Seeley Service and Co., 1927.
3 The Churchills were photographed with the Duchess of Sutherland at Monte Carlo in 1913, and it is possible that Winston Churchill was one of those who recommended the South of France to Lavery.
4 RT. Hon, Winston S Churchill PC, MP, ‘Foreword’, Pictures of Morocco, the Riviera and other scenes by Sir John Lavery RA – Portrait and child Studies by Lady Lavery, exhibition catalogue, Alpine Club Gallery, London, 1921, pages 3-4.
5 Since the present picture appears more finished than that in the Ulster Museum, it may be that it was shown at the Alpine Club Gallery exhibition. A further possibility is the unidentified A Garden at Cap Ferrat, shown in Portraits and Landscapes of Sir John Lavery RA, at the Robert C. Vose Galleries, Boston, 1925-6, no. 25.
- Auction Details
- T&Cs
- Bidding
Clause 1
(a) Each lot is put up subject to any reserve price imposed by the vendor
(b) Subject to sub-clause (a) of this clause, the highest bidder for each lot shall be the purchaser thereof
(c) If any dispute arises as to the highest bidder the auctioneer shall have absolute discretion to determine the dispute and may put up again and re-sell the lot in respect of which the dispute arises.
Clause 2
(a) The bidding and advances shall be regulated by and at the absolute discretion of the auctioneer and he shall have the right to refuse any bid or bids. NOTE: Where an agent bids, even on behalf of a disclosed client, the auctioneer nevertheless has the right at his discretion to refuse any such bid.
(b) The purchaser of each lot shall immediately on its sale, if required by the auctioneer, give him the name and address of the purchaser and pay to the auctioneer at his discretion the whole or part of the purchase money. If the purchaser of any lot fails to comply with any such requirement the auctioneer may put up again and re-sell the lot; if upon such re-sale a lower price is obtained than was obtained on the first sale the purchaser in default on the first sale shall make good the difference in price and expenses of re-sale which shall become a debt due from him.
(c) Where an agent purchases on behalf of an undisclosed client such agent shall be personally liable for payment of the purchase money to the auctioneer and for safe delivery of the lot to the said client.
Clause 3
(a) The auctioneer reserves the rights to bid on behalf of clients including vendors, but shall not be liable for errors or omissions in executing instructions to bid.
(b) The auctioneer reserves the rights, before or during a sale, to group together lots belonging to the same vendor, to split up and to withdraw any lot or lots at the auctioneer's absolute discretion and without giving any reason in any case.
(c) The auctioneer acts as agent only, and therefore shall not be liable for any default of the purchaser or vendor.
Clause 4
(a) Each lot shall be at the purchaser's risk from the fall of the hammer and shall be paid for in full before delivery and taken away at his expense within one day of the sale. The buyer will be responsible for all removal, storage and insurance charges in respect of any lot which has not been collected within one day of the date of sale.
(b) If any purchaser fails to pay in full for any lot within 21 days of the date of sale such lot may at any time thereafter at the auctioneer's discretion be put up for sale by auction again or sold privately; if upon such re-sale a lower price is obtained than was obtained on the first sale the purchaser in default on the first sale shall make good the difference in price and the expenses of re-sale which shall become debt due from him.
(c) Interest at 2 per cent per month and legal costs (if any) for recovery of monies due shall be payable by the purchaser on any overdue account.
Clause 5
(a) Each buyer, by making a bid, acknowledges that he has satisfied himself as to the physical condition, age and catalogue description of each lot (including but not restricted to whether the lot is damaged or has been repaired or restored).
(b) All lots are sold with all faults and imperfections and errors of description and the Auctioneer and its employees, servants or agents shall not be responsible for any error of description or for the condition or authenticity of any lot, save for Clause 5 (c) below. Written or verbal condition reports may be supplied by the Auctioneer on request but these are merely statements of opinion, and any error or omission in these reports may not be taken as grounds for a cancellation of sale or refund of any part of the purchase price or the cost of any repairs to the lot or lots reported on
(c) A purchaser shall be at liberty to reject any lot if he - (i) gives the auctioneer written notice of intention to question the genuineness of the lot within seven days from the date of sale; AND (ii) proves that the lot is a deliberate forgery and (iii) returns to the auctioneer within 20 days from the date of sale the lot in the same condition as it was at the time of sale; provided that the auctioneer may, at his discretion, on receiving a request in writing from the purchaser, extend for a reasonable period the time for return of the lot to enable it to be submitted to expertisation. NOTE: The onus of proving a lot to be a deliberate forgery is on the purchaser.
(d) Where a lot has been submitted to expertisation, all costs of such expertisation shall be paid by the person who retains the certificate of expertisation and item or items to which the certificate relates.
(e) Where the purchaser of a lot discharges the onus and acts in accordance with sub-clause (b) of this clause, the auctioneer shall rescind the sale and repay to the purchaser the purchase money paid by him in respect of the lot.
(f) No lot shall be rejected if, subsequent to the sale, it has been marked by an expert committee or treated by any other process unless the auctioneer's permission to subject the lot to such treatment has first been obtained in writing.
(g) Any lot listed as a "collection, range, portfolio etc." or stated to comprise or contain a collection or range of items which are not described shall be put up for sale not subject to rejection and shall be taken by the purchaser with all (if any) faults, lack of genuineness and errors of description and numbers of items in the lot, and the purchaser shall have no right to reject the lot; except that, notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this sub-clause, where before a sale a person intending to bid at the sale gives notice in writing to, and satisfies the auctioneer that any such lot contains any item or items undescribed in the sale catalogue and that person specifically describes that item or those items in that notice, then that item or those items shall, as between the auctioneer and that person, to be taken to form part of the description of the lot.
Clause 6
The respective rights and obligations of the parties shall be governed and interpreted by Irish law, and the buyer hereby submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Irish Courts.
Special Conditions
a) The buyer shall pay the Auctioneer a commission at the rate of 20% (Art sales) or 24% (Collectibles sales). The Buyer's Premium is added to the hammer price of all lots and is subject to VAT at the prevailing rate.
(b) The Auctioneer or its employees, servants or agents may, on request organise packing and shipping of lots purchased or may order on the buyer's behalf third parties to pack or ship purchases. Under no circumstances does the Auctioneer accept any liability whatsoever for any loss or damage howsoever occasioned in the course of such service.
(c) The buyer authorises the Auctioneer to use any photographs or illustrations of any lot purchased for any or all purposes as the Auctioneer may require. The placing of a bid will be taken as full agreement to all the above conditions.
WHYTE AND SONS AUCTIONEERS LIMITED, 2022
We hold two types of auction - TIMED and LIVE SALEROOM
1. TIMED AUCTIONS
WHAT IS A TIMED AUCTION?Timed auctions do not have an auctioneer calling the bids – there’s just a bidding time frame and whoever bids highest during the time frame wins. Each lot can be bid on for a defined time period. At the end of this period, the bidder who has submitted the highest bid wins the lot, provided the bid exceeds the reserve price. You tell us the most you’re willing to pay – and we’ll bid intelligently for you, only bidding enough for you to meet the reserve or stay in the lead. Don’t worry, your maximum bid is not disclosed, and is held in confidence on our bidding system.
WHEN ONLINE BIDDING STARTS - YOU CAN LEAVE BIDS online and your bid will start at one step above the previous bid or at the start price if no other bid. You will be notified by email if you get outbid before the auction starts.
ONCE THE AUCTION BEGINS TO FINISH, ON THE DATE AND TIME SPECIFIED, THE EMAIL NOTIFICATIONS CEASE and you should follow the auction on-line to see how your bids are doing. Make sure you have logged in if you wish to bid.
WHEN THE AUCTION BEGINS TO FINISH ON THE DATE AND TIME SPECIFIED,THE BIDDING FOR EACH LOT REMAINS OPEN FOR 45 SECONDS at a start price determined by the reserve or bids already received. Each lot will be open and remain open for bidding until its end time is reached; the end time will be extended by 45 seconds if another bid is received. At the end time, if there are no further bids and the highest bid received equals or exceeds the reserve price the lot is sold to highest bidder.
The Buyers Premium for Art sales is 20% plus VAT ( 24.6% gross). The Buyers Premium for Collectibles sales is 24% plus VAT (29.52% gross). The Buyers Premium will be added to your winning bid amount. Your invoice will detail all the payment, collection and shipping particulars.
2. LIVE SALEROOM AUCTION:
If you can't attend the auction in the saleroom you can email or post or telephone bids to us, or you can book a telephone line to bid during the sale. Contact us on +353 16762888 or bids@whytes.ie
To bid on-line at a Live Saleroom Auction:
• Log in or register bid.whytes.ie
• Visit the online auction catalogue
• Find the lot number you are interested in.
· The current highest bid will be displayed
• The minimum bid required to beat the highest bid will also be shown.
· You can place your bid. The screen will show the new highest bid and will indicate if that bid is yours. Note: if a previous bidder has left a bid that equals yours the previous bidder will win the lot unless you outbid them. If the screen doesn’t confirm that your bid is winning you will need to bid again if you wish to buy the lot. Don’t worry -the system will not allow you to bid against yourself.
• The live auction will begin at the announced date and time and will be sold in lot number order by the auctioneer.
• Invoices will be issued to successful bidders on the next working day after the sale has ended.
BIDDING STEPS:
Up to €300 x€10
Up to €700 x €20
Up to €1,300 x €50
Up to €3,000 x €100
Up to €7,000 x €200
Up to €13,000 x €500
Up to €30,000 x €1,000
Up to €40,000 x €2,000
Up to €70,000 x €2,000
Up to €130,000 x €5,000
Up to €500,000 x €10,000
A FEW TIPS FOR ABSENTEE BIDDERS:
Bid the maximum price you would pay for the lot; we will try and secure the lot for you at the lowest possible price. For instance if you bid €2,000 on a lot and the highest other bid we receive is €1,200 you get it for €1,250. Most people tend to bid in round numbers, e.g. €500. It’s often a good idea to bid an odd number, e.g. €520, or €540 which will outbid an even number. Check the results the day after the sale: these are published on our website www.whytes.ie at about 10am on the day after the sale. Successful bidders are also notified of results by mail.
TIE BIDS: if two or more equal bids are received the lot will be sold to the first received.
The Buyers Premium for Art sales is 20% plus VAT ( 24.6% gross). The Buyers Premium for Collectibles sales is 24% plus VAT (29.52% gross). The Buyers Premium will be added to your winning bid amount. Your invoice will detail all the payment, collection and shipping particulars.