British and Irish Art week at Sotheby’s

LS Lowry’s Road Over Hill (1935), which has been held in a private collection for nearly 40 years, is a highlight of this year’s British and Irish Art week at Sotheby’s in London. Lowry is known for his work depicting everyday life in England’s smoky industrial North, full of factories and red terraced houses; heavy, shadowless figures stand starkly against white backgrounds.

Lowry once famously claimed his ambition ‘was to put the industrial scene on the map because nobody [before] had done it seriously’; mere months after he died aged 88, the Royal Academy of Arts held a major exhibition of his work, and the queue for tickets extended right along Piccadilly. That show became the most visited exhibition by a 20th-century artist at the RA. It’s safe to say, then, that Lowry not only fulfilled his ambition, but is still firmly on the map in 2022. 

Sir William Nicholson’s Double Anemones will also be set on the auction block: a simple yet evocative piece, rich in both colour and texture. The first-recorded owner of this particular work was Edward Knoblock, American playwright and author of Kismet. In his autobiography, Knoblock famously wrote about his friend Nicholson, declaring ‘there is no better painter in England’.

Alongside the in-person sale, there’s due to be a dedicated series of online sales to satiate buyers near and far. Sotheby’s has also arranged a vibrant programme of related events – including an afternoon of talks in collaboration with the Ingram Collection, celebrating Jo Baring’s book Revisiting Modern British Art, her latest intervention in the world of art criticism.

Sotheby’s ‘Modern British & Irish Art’ week auction starts at 2pm on 23 Nov 2022. For details, visit sothebys.com