“The gold-pink falangcai bowl ranks without question among the very finest imperially enamelled porcelains made for the Kangxi emperor.”
Nicolas Chow, deputy chairman of Sotheby’s Asia on the puce-enamel falangcai bowl that will be offered at its auction on April 3 at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
“The defendants engaged in an elaborate multi-year scheme to defraud the investing public of millions of dollars through deceit and manipulative stock trading, and then worked to launder the fraudulent proceeds through off-shore bank accounts and the art world, including the proposed purchase of a Picasso painting.”
Richard Donoghue, the US attorney for the Eastern District of New York, on the indictment on a $50m fraud and money laundering case.
“Seldom in paintings of dogs does one see such individuality and personality so wonderfully portrayed and this told me at once this was not by any ‘dog painter’ but by a great artist. The price it achieved confirms its enormous rarity and appeal.”
John Somerville, Old Master paintings specialist and consultant at Cheffins who first recognised a canine portrait in a Suffolk country house as by the Italian Old Master il Guercino. It sold at Cheffins last week for £570,000, a house record for fine art.
“While I am sad to be leaving this wonderful place, I am happy in the knowledge that many of Fred’s true fans and followers will now be able to own something that belonged to him.”
Heritage centre proprietor Leon Pownsey on the sale of the contents of the property of Fred Dibnah MBE, housed in the Fred Dibnah Heritage Centre in Bolton. It is being offered by auction house Adam Partridge Auctioneers in conjunction with Ashley Waller Auctioneers, a machinery specialist.
“It was a beautiful drawing – not the most fashionable in today’s market you would have thought, but the colours were fantastic, and the combination of the provenance helped it fly.”
Rupert Fogden, director and head of traditional paintings and prints at Mallams, on the sale of a watercolour by Michael Angelo Rooker (1743-1801).
