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Bloomsbury 20th Century Prints Sale Results

Stock markets were tumbling but somehow Bloomsbury managed to pull off a good, solid sale of 20th Century Prints. It was interesting to see the more decorative, ‘easy on the eye’ prints faring particularly well and Banksy still proved to be on the crest of his wave.

All the Terry Frost and Victor Pasmore prints sold for around the estimates, while the signed and dated Umber Disc and Red Edge, a brilliantly coloured silkscreen by Patrick Heron (lot 101), soared to £3200, well over its higher estimate of £2200. Ben Nicholson’s simple, linear etching printed with tone (lot137) went for £2600, comfortably over its higher estimate of £2200. Amongst the earlier pieces, Miro’s lithographs did particularly well; From Lezard aux Plumes D’Or (lot 263) sold for £1300, over double the lower estimate and Apes, a signed lithograph by Edvard Munch (lot 264) made £2200, over double the lower estimate.

Banksy stole the show, all 17 lots sold. The cover image Rude Copper (lot 296) which was Banksy’s first silkscreen, was snapped up for £3600, well over its higher estimate. Flying Copper, a silkscreen printed in colours sold for £6000, double the high estimate (lot 303); Queen Vic made £2000, exactly double the lower estimate (lot 305) and the following lot, Happy Chopper, a silkscreen printed in colours, fetched a very healthy £4200, well over its pre sale estimate of £1000-1500. Have a Nice Day made four times the lower estimate and sold for £2800 (lot 309), while Bomb Middle England sold for £3600, well over the estimate of £800-1000. All bar one of the Micallef lithographs found buyers at around the estimates and Paradise, a lithograph printed in colour, by the popular Chinese artist Zhang Xiaogang (lot 396), sold for £ 3200, over double the higher estimate. Richard Hamilton’s Flower Pieces made £2000 (estimate £600-800); all the Hockney prints were sold for around the estimates and Warhol mainly sold for around or over the higher estimate; From 25 cats Named Sam and One Blue Pussy (lot 473) made £1700 (estimated £800-1200) and Poster for Kunsthaus, Zurich fetched £1700, just under double the higher estimate (lot 478).

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