11th Feb, 2026 11:00
The Estate of John Russell Taylor: Author, Critic, Collector
88
⊕ GERALD FESTUS KELLY (BRITISH 1879-1972)
VIEW FROM THE FIRST TEE, ETRETAT, FRANCE
signed Kelly lower left; inscribed and dated Etretat / view from the first tee / 26th July 1908 on the reverse; oil on panel; 14.5 x 17cm; 5 3/4 x 6 3/4in (26.5 x 29.5cm; 10 1/2 x 11 1/2in framed)
Exhibited: London, Belgrave Gallery, 1978
Painted the summer the golf course at Etretat opened, the present work is one of a series of landscapes Kelly painted during his travels through France following his time at the Académie Julian in Paris and before he went on to establish himself as a leading society portraitist favoured by the Royal Family. Friends and sitters would later include Somerset Maugham, T.S. Eliot and Ralph Vaughan Williams. Bernard Forbes, the 8th Earl of Granard was first president of the Etretat course, one of a number of eminent British figures instrumental in its establishment.
Sold for £1,500
VIEW FROM THE FIRST TEE, ETRETAT, FRANCE
signed Kelly lower left; inscribed and dated Etretat / view from the first tee / 26th July 1908 on the reverse; oil on panel; 14.5 x 17cm; 5 3/4 x 6 3/4in (26.5 x 29.5cm; 10 1/2 x 11 1/2in framed)
Exhibited: London, Belgrave Gallery, 1978
Painted the summer the golf course at Etretat opened, the present work is one of a series of landscapes Kelly painted during his travels through France following his time at the Académie Julian in Paris and before he went on to establish himself as a leading society portraitist favoured by the Royal Family. Friends and sitters would later include Somerset Maugham, T.S. Eliot and Ralph Vaughan Williams. Bernard Forbes, the 8th Earl of Granard was first president of the Etretat course, one of a number of eminent British figures instrumental in its establishment.
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
