Art Market Monitor

Global Coverage ~ Unique Analysis

  • AMMpro
  • AMM Fantasy Collecting Game
  • Podcast
  • Contact Us

The Fruits of a Passionate Collector

July 21, 2009 by Marion Maneker

Colin Gleadell reveals two British collections that were created without the brute force of money but through passion, dedication and hard work. Here’s one of them:

In the Leeds Art Gallery, retired local GP Jeffrey Sherwin is showing off 220 works from his modern art collection that has a special focus on British Surrealist art. As a student, Sherwin admits, he used to buy pictures from Hyde Park’s railings, but was inspired by an exhibition of British Surrealist art which he saw in Leeds in 1986. At the time, he says, he “didn’t even know British Surrealists existed”. He was not alone. Most collectors considered Surrealism a European art movement, and British involvement to be peripheral. The upside for Sherwin was that there was little competition. Even in the mid-Nineties, he could buy first-rate examples by underrated artists – John Selby-Bigge’s Tyrolean Dreams (1935), or John Banting’s Battle of the Jaw Bones (1929) – for under £1,000 each.

As James Rawlin, head of Sotheby’s modern British art department, recalls: “Jeffrey was very clever, very astute, and very dedicated.” He didn’t just buy at auction, he networked among dealers and surviving artists. “You couldn’t assemble a collection like his today,” says Rawlin. “The material just isn’t there any more.”

Art Sales: How to Collect Modern Art on a Budget (Telegraph)

More from Art Market Monitor

  • Don’t Count Emerging Artists Out Just YetDon’t Count Emerging Artists Out Just Yet
  • Portrait of the Artist as a Not-So-Young ManPortrait of the Artist as a Not-So-Young Man
  • Collecting Information on CollectorsCollecting Information on Collectors
  • With Strong Sotheby’s Contemporary Sale, Amy Cappellazzo Makes Her PointWith Strong Sotheby’s Contemporary Sale, Amy Cappellazzo Makes Her Point
  • Art Trading Banker Covering Hedge Funds Joins Sotheby’s Private SalesArt Trading Banker Covering Hedge Funds Joins Sotheby’s Private Sales
  • A View of the Monet Market: Helena NewmanA View of the Monet Market: Helena Newman

Filed Under: Collectors

About Marion Maneker

LiveArt

Want to get Art Market Monitor‘s posts sent to you in our email? Sign up below by clicking on the Subscribe button.

  • About Us/ Contact
  • Podcast
  • AMMpro
  • Newsletter
  • FAQ

twitterfacebooksoundcloud
Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
California Privacy Rights
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Advertise on Art Market Monitor