Noël Coward’s art collection and own paintings to be sold by Christie’s
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Version 0 of 1. Noël Coward is well known for his plays, music, acting and cabaret, but far less well known for his art or collecting. As you might expect, his unseen art is far from boring, featuring bold and vibrant colours, gorgeous blue skies – and a smattering of nudity and nuns. The picture of a naked man sunning himself on a bench next to two smiling nuns – entitled What is She Telling Her Beads? – was painted by Coward in Jamaica, his Caribbean home, and is one of 19 of his works that will be sold by Christie’s in March. “It is risqué in a very English, 1930s way,” said Will Porter, senior director of modern British art at the auction house. “His paintings are great fun ... they reflect his sense of humour. There are some very witty works and some slightly risqué pieces.” Christie’s is selling 75 lots in total, a selection of 19 works by Coward himself as well as the artworks he collected including paintings by 20th-century British artists such as Christopher Wood, John Nash, Edward Seago and Derek Hill. Porter said Coward’s own painting was very much a relaxing pastime and he would often give away the finished works as gifts for birthdays and first nights. He was also a man who knew what he liked in terms of what he hung on his walls. “Generally the theme running through them is one of naivety or a certain primitivism and simplicity.” The collection includes paintings he acquired as presents from friends including Elizabeth Taylor, David Niven and Ivor Novello. Coward also often bought paintings directly from the artists and the collection includes one Seago work, Towards Westminster, which has a dedication on the reverse: “For Noel from Ted 1972.” The admiration between the two men was mutual. In a letter from Seago to Coward in 1966, the artist wrote : “I’m still very thrilled to think that the man who’s [sic] work I admire far more than anyone else in his art – or several arts for that matter – should profess a liking for my pictures.” Estimates for the artworks in the sale range from £300 to £100,000 and come from a collection inherited after Coward’s death in 1973 and passed down through his extended family. The sale, on 19 March, will include a group of landscapes by Wood, a bohemian artist who would probably be better known if he had not died so young, throwing himself in front of a train at the age of 30. That group includes Fishing Village, Cornwall, which has an estimated sale price of £70,000-100,000, and a pencil and watercolour called Frigate that Novello bequeathed to Coward. |