LONDON.- Christie’s will present its October Modern British and Irish Art sales in London, as part of Christie’s flagship 20th/21st Century Art auction series. Taking place on 16 (Evening Sale) and 17 October (Day Sale), the sales will showcase the very best of British and Irish art from 1900 to the present day, and include artists such as Sir Stanley Spencer, Dame Barbara Hepworth, Patrick Caulfield R.A., Dame Elisabeth Frink, L.S. Lowry R.A., Frank Auerbach, Henry Moore, Lynn Chadwick, and Gwen John.

Leading the Evening Sale is Sir Stanley Spencer’s Wisteria at Englefield (1954, estimate: £800,000-1,200,000). Painted over a period of five weeks, it is the third of a total of five paintings commissioned from the artist by Gerard Shiel of his house between 1948 and 1955, and is a meticulously rendered landscape exemplifying Stanley Spencer’s highly intimate painterly style and love of his hometown of Cookham.

L.S. Lowry 's Senhouse Street, Maryport (1955, estimate: £700,000-1,000,000) stands out for its scale, being much larger than the majority of Lowry's works. The composition, framed by the wall in the foreground, guides the viewer’s eye up the rising street, flanked by houses on either side. Lowry rarely painted topographically accurate scenes of identifiable locations, and this view of Maryport remains recognisable today.

Sir Winston Churchill’s Marrakech with a Camel (circa 1954, estimate: £600,000-800,000) was retained by Churchill throughout his lifetime at his home in Chartwell, and subsequently bequeathed to his daughter Lady Sarah Audley. Churchill first visited Marrakech in 1935, at the insistence of his painting mentor Sir John Lavery. It was there that he was enchanted by the strong light and bold colour that he had not previously experienced.

This season the Modern British and Irish Art Evening Sale presents a spectacular grouping of unique sculptures by leading British artists Dame Barbara Hepworth, Lynn Chadwick, Dame Elisabeth Frink and Barry Flanagan.

Carved in 1966, Dame Barbara Hepworth’s Two Forms (Gemini II) (estimate: £400,000-600,000) has been held in the same private collection for over 40 years. The slate used for this work was specially sourced for Hepworth from the Delabole Quarry in Cornwall, known for its high-quality stone. This sculpture embodies two of Hepworth’s most significant themes: the interaction of two forms, representing the tender relationship between living beings, and the pierced form, a technique she pioneered in the early 1930s.

Lying Down Horse (1974, estimate: £200,000-300,000), is the only unique large-scale horse by Dame Elisabeth Frink and also her first large-scale bronze of the subject. The piece was once part of the renowned collection of Fran and Ray Stark, which is now housed in The Getty Museum’s sculpture garden alongside works by iconic artists including Moore, Calder, and Hepworth.

Beast (conceived in 1953, estimate: £700,000–1,000,000), one of Lynn Chadwick's largest and most significant unique sculptures has remained in the same private collection since the 1950s. Created during the pinnacle of Chadwick's creativity—between the celebrated Geometry of Fear Venice Biennale of 1952 and his prize-winning moment at the 1956 Biennale, where he triumphed over Alberto Giacometti—the piece was acquired directly from Chadwick circa 1954 by his friend, renowned architect Raglan Squire, and has stayed in the Squire family ever since. Blurring the lines between figure and abstract form, Beast balances the geometric and the organic, the animal and the architectural.

Appearing at auction for the first time, and a rare, unique work by the artist, Barry Flanagan’s Thinker (conceived in 1996, cast in 1997, estimate: £400,000-600,000) offers a playful reinterpretation of Rodin’s iconic figure by anthropomorphising the hare with human-like qualities. For Flanagan, the hare symbolised life and vitality, drawing from its significance in early British pagan rituals and ancient Egyptian mythology.

An exhibition of the Modern British and Irish Art sales will be open to the public at Christie's King Street in London from 12 to 16 October 2024.