At the Art & Design Sale on 28th October, Cheffins will be offering a series of paintings by Anna Mayerson, a German artist whose work now presents an opportunity for investment.
Despite enjoying a successful career as a painter, exhibiting alongside artists such as Graham Sutherland, Otto Bachmann, and Jankel Adler and, notably, having been commissioned by Truman Capote to illustrate the frontispiece to his 1951 novel, The Grass Harp, more recently, the works of Austrian-Jewish émigré Anna Mayerson have been sadly neglected.
'Portrait of a Woman' by Anna Mayerson, available in the Cheffins Art & Design Sale on 28th October, estimate £200 - £400
Born in Vienna in 1906, Mayerson spent her early career training at The Kunstgewerbemuseum, Zürich and at The Art Academy in Vienna. In 1938 the Nazi annexation of Austria forced Mayerson to emigrate to London, where she continued her studies at The Slade School and, after a decade spent living in Taormina, Sicily, between 1949 and 1959, would eventually settle.
Mayerson’s work oscillates between the abstract and the figural, and the bold and playful paintings included in the Art & Design sale are typical of her distinctive style. Importantly, many of the paintings on offer at the sale were exhibited by Annely Juda in 1972 at her eponymous gallery and warehouse space, which was known to showcase the best in 20th century avant-garde works. Mayerson was also known to have exhibited throughout the 1940s and 1950s at the Redfern Gallery, Cork Street, Hanover Gallery in Mayfair and also the Ben Uri Gallery amongst others.
'A Spot of Red' by Anna Mayerson, available in the Cheffins Art & Design Sale on 28th October, estimate £200 - £400
Recent auction records show that despite Mayerson’s significant success throughout the 1950s and 1960s, her paintings have been offered at affordable levels in the past few years, however, interest in her work could now be about to take a turning point, as the demand for European avant-garde works appears to be gathering pace. Indeed, we have seen a growth in new and younger buyers for these types of modern and brightly coloured paintings, offered at affordable values for those perhaps starting a collection.
The market for post-war European modern and avant-garde art has many facets, with the leading protagonists of the movement such as Auerbach and Bomberg of course selling for well into the thousands, however there are a number of artists such as Mayerson who present a more affordable option, but who still hold a weight of historical importance. For anyone looking to start collecting within this field, they would do well to keep an eye on both the international and regional auction houses, or alternatively there are dealers which specialise in these types of works.
The nine paintings by Anna Mayerson in the Art & Design sale have all been consigned from a single owner, to view the catalogue entries, please click here.