11th Feb, 2026 11:00
The Estate of John Russell Taylor: Author, Critic, Collector
30
⊕ FRED UHLMAN (GERMAN 1901-1985)
WELSH MINING VILLAGE
signed UHLMAN lower right; black and green watercolour over black chalks and pastel on paper; 24 x 34cm; 9 1/2 x 13 1/2in (39.5 x 48.5cm; 15 1/2 x 19in framed)
Painted circa 1946.
Provenance: Abbott & Holder, London
Painter, book illustrator and writer, Uhlman fled Nazi Germany in 1933 to Paris, where he held his first one-man exhibition at the Galerie Le Niveau in 1935. Arriving in England in 1936, he settled in Hampstead where he mixed with a large group of refugees and exiles forced to flee their homelands. He exhibited with the Zwemmer Gallery in 1938, and co-founded the Free German League of Culture the following year. Other members included Oskar Kokoschka and Stefan Zweig. A retrospective of his work was held at Leighton House Museum in London in 1968 and his novel Reunion, set in the 1930s was published in 1971 (see lot 290). Uhlman's memoirs, The Making of an Englishman, were published in 1960.
JRT notes that the present work is 'from the same series as those reproduced in An artist in North Wales (London, 1946)' by Clough Williams-Ellis (1883-1978). Uhlman captured in his illustrations 'the barren ruggedness of North Wales, [...] with the ability to impart a feeling of sunshine and impeding storm, a stony, hilly, loneliness'.
9
Sold for £1,300
WELSH MINING VILLAGE
signed UHLMAN lower right; black and green watercolour over black chalks and pastel on paper; 24 x 34cm; 9 1/2 x 13 1/2in (39.5 x 48.5cm; 15 1/2 x 19in framed)
Painted circa 1946.
Provenance: Abbott & Holder, London
Painter, book illustrator and writer, Uhlman fled Nazi Germany in 1933 to Paris, where he held his first one-man exhibition at the Galerie Le Niveau in 1935. Arriving in England in 1936, he settled in Hampstead where he mixed with a large group of refugees and exiles forced to flee their homelands. He exhibited with the Zwemmer Gallery in 1938, and co-founded the Free German League of Culture the following year. Other members included Oskar Kokoschka and Stefan Zweig. A retrospective of his work was held at Leighton House Museum in London in 1968 and his novel Reunion, set in the 1930s was published in 1971 (see lot 290). Uhlman's memoirs, The Making of an Englishman, were published in 1960.
JRT notes that the present work is 'from the same series as those reproduced in An artist in North Wales (London, 1946)' by Clough Williams-Ellis (1883-1978). Uhlman captured in his illustrations 'the barren ruggedness of North Wales, [...] with the ability to impart a feeling of sunshine and impeding storm, a stony, hilly, loneliness'.
Auction: The Estate of John Russell Taylor: Author, Critic, Collector, 11th Feb, 2026
Auction Location: London, UK
John Russell Taylor was a compulsive collector. When he died at the age of ninety, his two bedroom flat on the corner of Brook Green was floor to ceiling with books and pictures that he had collected over the last seventy years. A precocious talent he was awarded a scholarship to read English at Cambridge aged 16 and graduated with a starred First Class degree. Film, theatre and art critic for The Times for more than four decades, he wrote thousands of articles and reviews for the newspaper. He also wrote over sixty books – critical studies, biographies, and monographs. He was appointed professor of Film at the University of Southern California during the 1970s, when he was asked by Alfred Hitchcock to write his biography. Hitch remains the standard text on the film director. John's interests ranged across all aspects of the arts from Art Nouveau book illustration to Vorticism, fan paintings, poetry and stage design. Struck by the visual rather than the value of a work of art, the sale of his picture collection gives a flavour of the full gamut of his encyclopaedic mind, a man remembered for his phenomenal range of reference, his extraordinary talent for writing and his warm and generous character.
For a copy of the printed catalogue, email pictures@olympiaauctions.com
PUBLIC EXHIBITION
Friday 6th February: 10am - 5pm
Sunday 8th February: 12pm - 4pm
Monday 9th February: 10am - 8pm (Drinks: 5pm - 8pm)
Tuesday 10th February: 10am - 5pm
View Press Release for more information
Viewing
PUBLIC EXHIBITION
Friday 6th February: 10am - 5pm
Sunday 8th February: 12pm - 4pm
Monday 9th February: 10am - 8pm (Drinks: 5pm - 8pm)
Tuesday 10th February: 10am - 5pm
