Antique Collecting articles Preview - Olympia International Arts & Antiques

Independent art consultant, Vanessa Curry, will host a series of free
tours at the fair including From Egypt to Versailles: How the world
influenced Georgian and Victorian furniture design.
THE EGYPTIAN, ASIAN AND northern
African influences on design, motifs and
aesthetic, have crossed the boundaries of the
last three centuries. My talk will take a look at
eight to 10 pieces of furniture to illustrate,
firstly, the motifs of Egyptian symbolism that
infiltrated French and English design in the
1800s, courtesy of Napoleon; secondly, the
impact of Darwin’s On the Origin of Species
published in 1859, on art nouveau and motifs
of exotic flora and fauna on furniture design;
thirdly, the influence of Japan and wider Asia
on the last three centuries including specific
reference to Impressionist and Modern art.
The British fell in love with Egyptian design
after their resounding naval victory at the 1798
Battle of the Nile, with jewellery styles changing
to reflect the new taste for Egyptian motifs.
Nevertheless, the French uptake of Egyptian
design predated this by some years, because
Napoleon and his closest scholars in France
believed that Egypt was the cradle of western

Olympia continues to attract some of the world’s leading art dealers

2015 marks the 43rd Olympia International Arts and Antiques Fair
at Kensington’s Olympia Exhibition Centre from June 18-28
THE CHANGE TO A LATER DATE, of June 1828 has, say organisers, prompted one of the
strongest exhibitor line ups for the 43rd Olympia International Arts and Antiques Fair in years.
More than 170 specialist dealers from
around the world will make their way to
W14, offering a fine selection of antiques from
across the disciplines, which are all vetted and
range in price from £100 to £1 million.
Fair director Marie Claire Boyd said: “There
has been a notable increase in exhibitors
returning to the fair after a time away including:
Anthony Fell Antiques & Works of Art Ltd,
Anthony James & Sons Ltd, Freshfords Fine

Antiques, J.M. Baptista, Moxhams Antiques,
Pearse Lukies Antiques Limited and Wick
Antiques and Woodham-Smith Ltd. Many of
these have been attracted by the change in
date which puts us in line with London’s
important cultural events and will open up the
event to even more international visitors.”
This year’s event will also include a loan
exhibition from the American philanthropist
collector, Rex Sinquefield marking the first time
the artworks have been shown outside
America. The collection includes works by
American painters of the Great Depression
including Thomas Hart Benton, Joe Jones,

FACT FILE
Where? Olympia National, Olympia Exhibition Centre, Olympia Way, London, W14 8UX
When? June 18 (preview 11-9pm) then daily until June 28 from 11-7pm, late night June 25
(11-9pm), June 28, 11am-5pm.
Admission: Advance single admission (19-28 June) £15 On the door single admission (1928 June) £20
Website: www.olympia-art-antiques.com
Push the boat out: Rub shoulders with the antiques glitterati at the charity preview day
hosted by Starlight Children’s Foundation on June 18. Tickets cost £100 and include a
reception with drinks, canapés and entertainment.
Subscriber ticket offer: Antique Collecting subscribers can received two tickets, for the
price of one. Visit www.antique-collecting.co.uk, click on ‘Olympia ticket offer’ and enter the
code ANTC2015 (not available for June 18).

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civilisation with Napoleon modelling himself on
a classical emperor and commissioning state
rooms to reflected that styling.
The Victorian period of furniture was
influenced by the desire of the new rich
industrialists to be viewed on a par with the
land-owning aristocracy. That was reflected in
the resurgence of a Roman, classical aesthetic
that had been popular with the aristocracy in
the late 18th century. A further international
influence came with the publication of
Darwin’s On the Origin of Species and posters
by Alphonse Mucha creating huge excitement.
It spilled into the late Victorian aesthetic and
became art nouveau. We will look at two
items of art nouveau furniture, reflecting the
influence of flora and fauna motifs on late
Victorian and early 21st-century design.
The Japanese influence on the Impressionist
painters has long been appreciated, and the tour
will explore exactly what geometric, compositional tools used in Japanese woodblock prints

Independent art consultant Vanessa Curry, is one
of the guest speakers at this year’s event

were reflected in furniture design in the Japanese taste. We will consider the Asian aesthetic
in terms of modern deco style furniture at
Jeroen Markies and Matthew Fosters’ stands.
The influence of the East India Company cannot
be ignored and we see a great piece of AngloIndian design on S&S Timms’ stand with a
miniature cabinet and chest with sadeli and
sandalwood panels c. 1840.
From Egypt to Versailles, how the world
influenced Georgian and Victorian furniture
design, takes place on June 19, 22 and 27.

THREE TO WATCH

Grant Wood, John Rogers Cox, John Atherton,
John Steuart Curry and George Joe Mess.
The 10-day event also sees the return of
Hali, the magazine devoted antique carpets
(the name means ‘carpet’ in Turkish) bringing
together internationally-renowned dealers in
a souk-like setting.
New exhibitors include: Isabel Lopes da
Silva Antiguidades, Peter Pittmann Fossilien,
Prisma Gallery, Serhat Ahmet Limited, Carbone,
Eastdale Antiques, Horton, Isherwood Fine Art,
Antichita La Pieve SRL, Nicholas Wells Antiques,
West Street Antiques and Ars Antiqua SRL.

Highlight
The director of Dulwich Picture Gallery,
u
Ian Dejardin, presents Masters of the
Line: Eric Ravilious and M.C. Esher from
2.30-3.30pm on June 23.

Patrick Sandberg Antiques
A fine quality George III style satinwood
harewood and tulipwood crossbande B&