A 1923 painting of the Mill Dam, Fife, by Scottish Colourist George Leslie Hunter, which bears a portrait of Tom Honeyman, a former director of the Kelvingrove Art Gallery on the reverse, will go up for auction later this month at the prestigious Woolley & Wallis Salerooms in Salisbury.

The Tea Table, a work by another of the Scottish Colourists, Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell, is also up for sale at the Modern British & 20th Century Art auction on December 13. Valued at between £80,000 and £120,000 it is one of the highest priced works on offer at the auction.

Mill Dam, which features on the sales catalogue cover, has a sale estimate of between £40,000 and £60,000. Two other works by Hunter are also included in the sale, The Quayside, Fife, valued at between £10,000 and £15,000 and Torcello, a scene from Venice, which is expected to fetch between £20,000 and £30,000.

The four Scottish Colourists Hunter and Cadell, along with Samuel Peploe and John Duncan Fergusson, were all born in Scotland around 1870 and independently spent time studying in France. There, they were greatly influenced by new movements in French art at the time, particularly the Impressionists but also by Matisse and Cezanne.

On retuning home, they continued to paint in a style that was considered revolutionary because of their use of light and colour. Tom Honeyman first named Hunter, Cadell and Peploe the Scottish Colourists in 1950 with Fergusson being added in the 1980s.

The auction, which features an eclectic mix of more than 460 works by British artists, also includes a painting by Edinburgh-born artist Craigie Aitchison. Best known for his depictions of the Crucifixion this work, Red Berries Montecastelli, has a different theme and was previously exhibited in London and New York. It has been valued at between £10,000 to £15,000.

Kircudbright artist Edward Atkinson Hornel’s work, Burmese girls on the banks of Irrawaddy, which is valued at between £10,000 and £15,000 will also go under the hammer. His work hangs in galleries in the USA, Canada and in museums across the Scotland and England, with several in galleries in the Kircudbright area including in his former home, Broughton House.

Also for sale on December 13, are six works by William Gear. Gear, born in Methil, Fife, was best known for his abstract work and the collection depicts that style.

“We have a strong base of buyers interested in works by Scottish artists, so they always attract a great deal of attention,” said Paintings Specialist Victor Fauvelle. “We are particularly pleased to include outstanding work by two of the Scottish Colourists in this auction. Their use of light and colour, although they used them in different ways, was very radical compared to the style of Scottish art at the time so I’m sure that they, along with the Craigie Aitchison, will appeal to many buyers.”

The auction takes place at The Old Sarum Galleries, Salisbury on Wednesday, December 13. Registration for online or telephone bidding closes at 5pm on Tuesday, December 12.
For further information and details of all works on sale, visit www.woolleyandwallis.co.uk