LONDON.- Dr Mohammed Said Farsi’s remarkable art collection has supplied landmark auctions with millions of pounds worth of Middle Eastern and Western art over the past two decades.
Credited with having the greatest group of modern Egyptian art in private hands, his collection now promises to dominate
Sloane Street Auctions’ June 12 sale in London, with exceptional pieces, adding works by Henry Moore, Salvador Dalí and David Hockney to the mix.
The former Mayor of Jeddah (1972-86) – he is known as the father of Saudi Arabia’s modern port city – also led the planning for redeveloping Mecca and Medina. That extended vision placed art at the centre of the urban environment as he embarked on replicating the glories of Beirut’s corniche in Jeddah.
In doing so, Dr Farsi looked to artists such as Lebanon’s Aref El Rayess and Shafiq Mazloum, Egypt’s Mustafa Senbel and several Saudi artists, including Maha Malluh.
He was soon the road to becoming a major influence in global art as he did so, extending his interest to outstanding Western figures such as Henry Moore, Joan Miró, Alexander Calder, Arnaldo Pomodoro, Jean Arp and Victor Vasarely.
If his personal collection is impressive, his artistic impact on Jeddah was supreme, as he installed more than 400 sculptures across the city. It culminated in a book by his own son, Jeddah, City of Art.
The range of Dr Farsi’s personal collection is immense, from early Islamic glass and carpets to Contemporary Street Art, as the 245 lots on offer at Sloane Street Auctions attests.
From bibelots, Fabergé Imperial Russian gewgaws and silver through extensive holdings of drawings, sketches, oils, and watercolours to antiquities and modern bronze sculpture, this formidable gathering has the air of a never-ending exploration of talent and creativity rather than simply an exercise in acquisition.
It also includes curiosities: one is a pair of handcuffs that belonged to the great escapologist Harry Houdini.
Such is the collection’s importance that it was the first of its type to be fully documented thanks to the 1998 publication of A Museum in a Book: The Farsi Art Collection – the “Egyptian Works.
How to pick out highlights from such eclecticism? In the end price must be the guide.
Leading the way is a Standing Figure in bronze by Henry Moore (1898-1986). At just 6¼in (16cm) high, it has a commanding presence and an estimate of £15,000-25,000.
David Hockney’s (b.1937) lithograph in colours from his celebrated swimming pool sequence is signed and dated 163/1000 and is pitched at £10,000-20,000.
Among the leading artists of the day he collected, whose works will appear in the June 12 sale, are Mahmoud Said (1897-1964), Abdel al-Hadi El-Gazzar (1925-66) and Mohamed Nagy (1888-1956). A highly atmospheric landscape by Said, showing a path disappearing into the woods, should sell for £8,000-10,000, while El-Gazzar’s enigmatic Portrait of an Italian Physician, a signed 25¼ x 21in oil on board, is expected to fetch £10,000-15,000. Nagy’s richly coloured and sumptuous, signed 18 x 26½in oil on canvas, A Rural Landscape in France also has a guide of £8,000-12,000.
Leading the decorative objects is an impressive silver and gilt appliqué Ka’ba panel measuring 54 x 79in and estimated at £8,000-12,000.
A Seljuk engraved coffer measuring 4½ x 7 x 4½in is pitched at £6,000-8,000.
Among the luxury items, an 8½in high Imperial Russian desk clock dating to 1892 by Fabergé and signed to the base by Carl Fabergé has hopes of £4,000-6,000.
“Dr Farsi’s collection must have the most widespread appeal for collectors with its extraordinarily eclectic offering,” said Daniel Hunt of Sloane Street Auctions. “His impeccable taste and astute eye, coupled with his standing as a leading figure in modern Arabia make this catalogue of treasures a must for serious collectors in both East and West.”
