Bonhams new “Period Art & Design” auction format set to launch in November

SAN FRANCISCO, CA.- Bonhams announces its inaugural Period Art & Design auction in San Francisco, November 20 and 21. This new auction format follows in the footsteps of the wildly popular sales of the same name, in London, which offer a stylish array of quality art and furnishings for the home or apartment. The property for these auctions is hand selected to include items that would appeal to collectors of all levels, interior designers and those who may want to find a unique piece for their home. Sourced primarily from the West Coast, the majority of the property comes from exclusive sources – from high-profile Napa Valley estates filled with contemporary designer furnishings to Pacific Heights homes, embellished with antiques and unique decor. Many of these homes have been styled by high-profile Bay Area interior designers. Each auction catalog will feature an interview with a prominent interior designer with their take on current design trends.

This monthly event will include paintings, prints, rugs, lighting, mirrors, antique furniture, modern designer furniture, decorative accents, silver and much more, with many in the $500-$5,000 price range. These sales will appeal to a wide audience from the discerning antique collector to the person who is simply trying to find that fantastic piece to complement their décor.

Bonhams San Francisco Director of Period Art & Design auctions, Christine Skinner, says of the inaugural sale, “A home is a reflection of one’s personal taste and style. Each month, Period Art & Design will strive to provide unique, one of a kind items that can tell a story through artistic merit, can start a conversation based on history or provenance, or can simply be a stylish piece of personal expression.”

Highlights of the inaugural sale will include art, such as “Follower of William Barraud,” oil on canvas, featuring a groom with his hack, holding his master’s horse (est. $4,000-6,000); “Manner of Francis Wheatley,” oil on canvas (est. $3,000-5,000); Ernest Walbourn’s “In the hay field” (est. $3,000-5,000); “English School, Gentleman on Horseback,” oil painting on canvas (est. $3,000-5,000); “Figures looking at a ruined tower,” attributed to Jean Baptiste Pillement (est. $3,000-5,000); an After Snyders of Dogs attacking a bour; together with another painting (est. $3,000-5,000); and Thomas Prichard Rossiter’s “A visit from the doctor,” oil on canvas (est. $2,000-4,000), among many others.

A wonderful selection of late 19th/mid-20th century furniture and decorative arts that are expected to top the sale include: a Rococo style six light glass chandelier, Waterford, mid-20th century (est. $4,000-6,000); a Louis XV style painted and parcel gilt over-mantel mirror, late 19th/early 20th century (est. $2,500-3,500); a French Aesthetic mixed-metal mounted ivory desk set, last quarter 19th century (est. $800-1,200); a Napoleon III gilt bronze mounted and floral marquetry rectangular center table, third quarter of the 19th century (est. $1,500-2,000); a Louis XVI style gilt bronze mounted mahogany oval center table with green onyx top, early 20th century (est. $1,200-1,500); a Continental black lacquered, chinoiserie decorated, and alabaster shelf clock, 19th century (est. $700-1,000); and a suite of Neoclassical style parcel gilt and gilt metal mounted walnut seating furniture, early 20th century, comprising a settee, three side chairs and three associated side chairs ($1,500-2,500).

Additional highlights will include a sterling centerpiece bowl, International Silver Co., Meriden, Conn., retailed by Shreve & Co. (est. $2,200-2,800); a continental silver mounted cut glass claret jug, with English import marks for John Willis Dixon, London, 1900 (est. $2,000-3,000); a group of sterling miniature table articles, William B. Meyers Co., Newark, N.J. (est. 1,500-2,000); and Franz Bergman and other Austrian cold painted bronzes, estimates vary from $400-900 each.