11th Feb, 2026 11:00
The Estate of John Russell Taylor: Author, Critic, Collector
40
⊕ EDWARD BAWDEN RA (BRITISH 1903-1989)
HORNS AND ANTLERS
signed and dated Edward Bawden 1948 lower right: pen and ink and watercolour over traces of pencil on paper; 45 x 55cm; 17 3/4 x 21 1/2in (68 x 75cm; 26 3/4 x 29in framed)
Provenance: Abbott & Holder, London
Exhibited: London, Leicester Galleries, Edward Bawden, 1949
Literature: Penguin, New Writers, n.d., illustrated
According to Tim Mainstone, publisher of The Lost Watercolours of Edward Bawden (Mainstone Press 2016), the present work was hung next to Pine trees at Scott's Hall in the Leicester Galleries 1949 exhibition, and that in gallery notes the work is described as 'Horns and Antlers in the Coach House; relics of the chase; antlers hung in the coach-house'. Mainstone posits that as the two paintings were adjacent the present work may be the interior of the coach house to Scotts’ Hall.
Bawden’s experience as a war artist was eventful; both before and after a period of time during which he was torpedoed on the RMS Laconia, spent five days at sea on a lifeboat, held in a prisoner of war camp, travelled across Libya, Sudan, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia and Yugoslavia, he had spent time documenting the Marsh Arabs across Iraq and Kurdistan. It is perhaps unsurprising that with these broad and character building experiences behind him that after the war he turned his attention to more local matters. A key figure within the group known as The Great Bardfield Artists (which included his great friend Eric Ravilious), he spent the next several decades documenting the more mundane and grounded components of British country life. Bawden’s remarkable skill at evoking mood through incidental details is beautifully expressed here. A pared back palette, and delicate details exemplifying this as an exquisite and evocative example of this period.
Sold for £9,000
HORNS AND ANTLERS
signed and dated Edward Bawden 1948 lower right: pen and ink and watercolour over traces of pencil on paper; 45 x 55cm; 17 3/4 x 21 1/2in (68 x 75cm; 26 3/4 x 29in framed)
Provenance: Abbott & Holder, London
Exhibited: London, Leicester Galleries, Edward Bawden, 1949
Literature: Penguin, New Writers, n.d., illustrated
According to Tim Mainstone, publisher of The Lost Watercolours of Edward Bawden (Mainstone Press 2016), the present work was hung next to Pine trees at Scott's Hall in the Leicester Galleries 1949 exhibition, and that in gallery notes the work is described as 'Horns and Antlers in the Coach House; relics of the chase; antlers hung in the coach-house'. Mainstone posits that as the two paintings were adjacent the present work may be the interior of the coach house to Scotts’ Hall.
Bawden’s experience as a war artist was eventful; both before and after a period of time during which he was torpedoed on the RMS Laconia, spent five days at sea on a lifeboat, held in a prisoner of war camp, travelled across Libya, Sudan, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia and Yugoslavia, he had spent time documenting the Marsh Arabs across Iraq and Kurdistan. It is perhaps unsurprising that with these broad and character building experiences behind him that after the war he turned his attention to more local matters. A key figure within the group known as The Great Bardfield Artists (which included his great friend Eric Ravilious), he spent the next several decades documenting the more mundane and grounded components of British country life. Bawden’s remarkable skill at evoking mood through incidental details is beautifully expressed here. A pared back palette, and delicate details exemplifying this as an exquisite and evocative example of this period.
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
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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
