Pictures & Prints

Oil Painting of a landscape scene with trees, framed, C20th

Price: £25

An oil painting on hardboard in impressionistic style of a landscape scene with trees, a field in the foreground and a river bank in the distance, signed, but illegibly in the bottom right corner. Doubtless the work of an amateur artist this presents an attractive scene employing the techniques of the ‘impressionist’ masters and rather more affordable than their work. The frame is simple but complementary. The use of hardboard suggests a dating to the 1950s or 1960s when that material was particularly in vogue. On the back can be made out the letters 'RICHARDSON' 'NO PIC' 'G' and the signature at the front may well be read as 'Richardson'. Many artists by that name are known but while this picture cannot be atrributed to any of them, the painter was clearly accomplished.

French Orientalist etching aquatint - Paris La Rue Saint Rustique

Price: £35

This is a beautile small etching aquatint that is signed. One reverse is the printers label of "Georges Hautecoer & Co. Gravures Encadements 172 Rue de Rivoli Paris". It is a scene of a very famous street in the Monmarte district of Paris. The signature is illegible but it is lovely quality.

Mods at Clacton 1964, Photograph by Terry Disney for the Daily Express

Price: £45

Easter 1964 saw a gathering of two wheeler transport fanatics in the sea town of Clacton, Essex. These were the ‘mods’ and ‘rockers’ famous at the time, the ‘mods’ with their sharp suits and scooters and the ‘rockers’ with leather jackets and motorcycles. Relationships between the two groups were less than friendly and the inevitable resulted. But if the two rival ‘gangs’ disliked one another, they disliked the police even more and when officialdom stepped in, the chaos increased. Exactly what happened has been debated ever since. The press called it anarchy (see image 6) but the local council was not so sure.

It was, though, a newsworthy confrontation and press photographers were sent in to record events. The most notable of these was Terry Disney who worked for the Daily Express newspaper. Disney was a distinguished and prolific photographer from the 1960s onwards and many of his striking images survive, not least those capturing the major personalities of the entertainment world at the time, including the Beatles themselves. His images of the ‘mods’ (he seemed less interested in the ‘rockers’) capture the atmosphere of the scenes vividly and this photograph is an excellent example of his work on that Easter weekend (for another see image 5). Often only obtainable under licence, this print is an ideal opportunity for a collector to acquire a near iconic image. It is offered with a very basic frame which might well be replaced with something which would enhance the photograph more sympathetically.