LONDON.- 'There were also women looking from afar off' an important oil on canvas by Vasilii Dmitrievich Polenov (Russian, 1844-1927) sold for £1,542,300 at
Bonhams’ 19th Century and British Impressionist Art sale today (Wednesday 29 March) at New Bond Street, London. The work had a pre-sale estimate of £500,000 - 700,000.
The 73-lot sale made a total of £3,678,100 with 70% sold by lot and 99% sold by value.
Daria Khristova, Bonhams Specialist, commented: “There were also women looking from afar off was part of the series of paintings entitled The Life of Christ, completed by Polenov in late 1890 and early 1900s, which he considered to be his life’s work. Referred to by his contemporaries as the ‘Knight of beauty’, it is no wonder that this work excited collectors and we are absolutely delighted it achieved such a fantastic price.”
Charles O'Brien, Head of Bonhams 19th Century Paintings department, added: “This was a very strong sale and represented many distinctive areas of 19th century art. We are incredibly pleased with the particularly strong prices achieved for works by Leighton, Millais, and Ruskin.”
Other highlights of the sale included:
• Frederic, Lord Leighton, PRA (British, 1830-1896), Sea Echoes. Sold for £403,500.
• Sir John Everett Millais, PRA (British, 1829-1896), Forget-Me-Not. Sold for £302,700.
• Gaetano Chierici (Italian, 1838-1920), Una catastrophe. Sold for £113,700.
• John Ruskin (British, 1819-1900), La Cascade de la Folie, Chamonix. Sold for £69,600
