Taylor's Breton paintings make strong prices

As predicted, the Breton scenes included in de Vere's studio sale of work by Belfast artist Samuel Taylor performed particularly…

As predicted, the Breton scenes included in de Vere's studio sale of work by Belfast artist Samuel Taylor performed particularly well last Tuesday. It hardly needs to be said that the pre-sale estimates in many instances bore little relation to the prices realised. So, for example, Brittany Market sold for £8,000, which was 10 times its lower estimate, The Sardine Fleet, Concarneau (est. £800£1,200) went for £5,200 and Sunday Morning, Concarneau Harbour, expected to fetch £5,000-£7,000, eventually made £13,000. While some watercolours and drawings sold for just a few hundred pounds, other notable successes at this sale were £11,700 for An Old Breton Fisherman (estimate £2,000-4,000), £5,500 for Sheltering from the Wind (£500£800) and £9,500 for The Return of the Sardine Fleet (£3,000-£5,000). Among the works on sale by Taylor's daughter Anne, the best price paid was £2,200 for The Builders.