Art Night, 2018

Art Night 2018 on Saturday 7th July

Untitled. Image courtesy of Art Night London

Hayward Gallery. Image courtesy of Art Night London

Battersea Power Station. Image courtesy of Art Night London

Art Night 2018 is London's largest free contemporary art festival. This year it falls this weekend, Saturday 7th July, from 6pm to 6am.  Each year the festival partners with a leading art gallery and curator, focusing on a different area of London to discover its unique identity, culture and architecture though a variety of art forms.

The focus of this year's festival is transforming the Thames riverbank between the South Bank and Battersea Power Station, via Vauxhall and Nine Elms, showcasing iconic and off-the-beaten venues with artworks and pop up performances in over sixty locations.  All 12 events in the programme are curated by the Hayward Gallery and are free and open to all without tickets. Please note that all of the 50 plus events in the Art Night Open are free, but that a small number are ticketed. The programme will feature a range of contemporary art, ranging from immersive multimedia installation and visual reality to interactive experiences, special screenings and live music.

Inspired by one of the biggest art events this summer, then look no further and come and visit us here at Alfies where you will find a wonderful array of fine art, paintings, prints, sculpture, decorative pieces and more waiting to be discovered..

A lesson in wasted morals, oil on canvas, early 19th  century. John Cserny at Alfies.

An abstract painting by James Arnold Martin, contemporary, British. Mark Eaton at Alfies.

Large silver hollow lidded pendant, 12th century, Afghanistan. Marko Pollo at AlFayez, Alfies.

16th century Iznic border tile. Ottoman, Turkey. Antique Choices at AlFayez, Alfies Antique Market.

An English landscape with figures, oil on canvas, 19th century. John Cserny at Alfies.

Mid century painting  'Exhausted Nanny'. Diplomat Treasures International at Alfies 

Flower Power

It's officially flower show season! Last month saw the iconic Chelsea Flower Show hosted by the Royal Horticultural Society with many more taking place through the Summer months right up until September. The RHS was founded in London in 1804 and has since become the UK's leading gardening charity. The society aims to promote horticulture making the UK a greener place through their inspirational flower shows, promotion and education.

Here are some of our favourite plant based pieces from around Alfies:

A Monet print, 1970s. Available from Moe Heidarieh

A Chinese prunus vase, 1916. Available from Horner Antiques

A Jean Allen dress, 1960s. Available from June Victor

Flowers in vase painting, signed, 1940s. Available from i Fine & Contemporary Art

An enamel flower scent bottle, 1970s. Available from Gloria Sinclair

A watercolor floral painting by Lucy Kemp Welsh, 1930s. Available from Robert McKoy Fine Arts

A floral button down dress, 1950s. Available from June Victor

A floral painting, oil on board, 1950s. Available from i Fine & Contemporary Art

Glass

Among some of the most vibrant pieces on show at Alfies right now is lots of coloured glass. Always popular and striking, glass also has huge scope, coming in many forms. Technically known as glass art, Murano is considered to be the birthplace of the modern styles and is still one of the most popular styles of glass available. 

As a decorative medium, glass was developed in early Egypt and Assyria and was desired by the Romans. The earliest evidence of glass blowing was found in Chogha Zanbil during excavations where many glass bottles were found and were dated to the 2nd millennium BC.

In the context of being used as an art form, glass reached the height of popularity during the Middle Ages, when the builders of the cathedrals of Europe began creating stained glass windows as a major decorative element in their architecture.

The 19th century saw factory glass blowers replaced by mechanical bottle blowing and birthed some of the great modern designers such as Lalique, Tiffany and Whitefriars which are still hugely popular in the world of antiques today.

Here are some of the most eye-catching pieces we have seen around Alfies...

Yellow and orange glass serving dishes, c1970s. Available from W & L Antiques

A cranberry crackle glass, c1890s. Available from W & L Antiques

Midnight blue and turquoise glass perfume bottle, c1980s. Available from Hayman & Hayman

An orange glass splash vase, c1950s. Available from Beth

A Davidson Pearline yellow glass sweet dish, 1915. Available from Beth

A French peach splash glass bowl, c1950s. Available from Horner Antiques

A Czech aquamarine glass vase, c1960s. Available from Robinson Antiques

An amber glass perfume bottle, c1940s. Available from Hayman & Hayman

A Whitefriars ruby glass vase, c1965. Available from Robinson Antiques

A Val St. Lambert lime green glass vase, c1950s. Available from Louise Verber Antiques

 

A Murano crackle glass cased vase, c1960s. Available from Robinson Antiques

May's Birthstone: Emerald

May is the heart of Spring, making the Emerald a very fitting birthstone for the month with its colour matching the lush growth and landscapes of the season. Just as Spring is associated with renewal, in the eyes of the ancient Greeks and Romans, the emerald is a symbol of rebirth.

The Egyptians also valued emeralds, considering them to have protective powers, which led to them using the gem in jewellery and burial ceremonies. Cleopatra is possibly the most famous character in history with a fondness for the emerald, using them heavily in her personal adornment and even taking ownership of all the emerald mines in Egypt during her reign.

Some of the oldest emeralds are estimated to be 2.97 billion years old and are still among the most valuable gemstones to own today.

In honour of the dazzling jewel, here is a selection of our favourites from Alfies:

Emerald and diamond baguette ring, 1980s. Available from Kieron Reilly

French Art Deco emerald and diamond filigree earrings, 1920s. Available from Pari's Jewellery

French Art Deco diamond and emerald platinum ring, 1920s. Available from Kieron Reilly

A diamond and emerald bow brooch, 1940s. Available from Zeeba Jewels

A Columbian emerald and diamond gold ring, custom made, 1970s. Available from Pari's Jewellery

Diamond and emerald drop earrings, 1970s. Available from Kieron Reilly

Celebrating Women

Mother's Day is coming up soon, falling on Sunday 11th March, and is the perfect time to show your Mum the love she deserves. Today also happens to be International Women's Day, so it really is a great time to be coming together and supporting each other as females -  if you're looking for an event where you can experience this kind of atmosphere then the WOW (Women of the World) festival is currently running at the Southbank Centre until Sunday.

With all of this going on, it's worth celebrating the women in your life - what better way to do so than with a gift? Here's our pick of the bunch from Alfies:

A floral painting, oil on canvas, mid 20th Century. Available from i Fine & Contemporary Art

A pair of paste and enamel earrings, 1980s. Available from April Antiques

An Italian ceramic coffee pot and sugar bowl, 20th century. Available from The Originals

A silver baby pram charm, 1960s. Available from Good Time Antiques

A Victorian emerald, diamond and pearl brooch, English, c1890. Available from Kieron Reilly

A selection of Victorian cranberry and vaseline glass vases. Available from Beth

A vintage tulip brooch, 1950s. Available from April Antiques

A floral painting, oil on canvas, mid 20th Century. Available from i Fine & Contemporary Art

Valentine's Day

Valentine's day is nearly upon us once again and it's time to start thinking about how to celebrate..

We are offering a special prosecco afternoon tea for two at the Rooftop Kitchen, plus £100 in Alfies gift vouchers in a special Valentine's giveaway! To be in with the chance to win, keep an eye on the Alfies Instagram account (@alfiesantiques), tag a friend in our promotional post and DM (direct message) the Alfies account with your email address*. Simple! The winner will be announced Saturday 10th February. 

*Entrants will be added to the Alfies mailing list

Of course it's also time to start thinking about what you might gift your loved one. With the holiday symbolising all that it does, it's a perfect time to express appreciation for those who are important to us. Traditionally, Valentine's day is the holiday representing the Roman saint and has been associated with love and romance since the Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love and chivalry flourished. Over time this has evolved into the practice of card and gift giving. 

There are the usual gifts that are given at this time of year, such as flowers and chocolates, but how about something a little more unique? Read on to see some of our favourite pieces from around the store that we think would be perfect for the occasion.

Early 20th century oil painting, oil on board. Available from Robert McKoy Fine Arts

A 1950s Aurora Borealis heart carriage brooch. Available from Tony Durante

A 1960s gilded cupid brooch. Available from Good Time Antiques 

A 20th century signed floral painting, oil on canvas. Available from i Fine & Contemporary Art

An American 1940s floral brooch. Available from Tony Durante

A selection of antique gold and silver charms. Available from Good Time Antiques

Abstract at Alfies

Abstract Art is one of the most popular and enduring art movements with many gravitating towards the style for the space away from reality that it provides. Whilst abstract styles can be seen in some of the world's earliest cultures, the movement started to gain popularity in the 19th Century, with the 20th Century being considered its peak and producing many of the artists and works we associate with the art form today.

Whilst the departure from reality that this style of art often depicts can be slight, partial or total, the movement can generally be characterised by a few key traits. Firstly, abstract art makes no attempt to represent reality. Objects, figures and landscapes are usually simplified. Colour and form are often explored. Some reoccurring themes are block colours, geometric shapes, and use of texture. Abstract art has often been defined as artists painting what they feel as opposed to what they see.

Wassily Kandinsky is generally credited with painting one of the first recognised completely abstract works, and is still considered one of the movement's leading artists to this day. Just a few popular artists that are considered to be leaders within this style are Jackson Pollock, Piet Mondrian, Mark Rothko, Willem de Kooning and Robert Delaunay.

With a large variety of art to be seen around Alfies, we knew there would be some interesting abstract pieces on offer. Here are just a few of our favourite:

'Running Man' painting, oil on board, 1980s. Available from Robert McKoy Fine Arts

A Joseph Weiss signed painting with Hebrew inscription on the back, oil on canvas, 1950s. Available from i Fine & Contemporary Art

'Large Abstract Study' painting by Derrick Latimer Sayer, mixed media on paper, contemporary. Available from Thomas Fine Art

A Portrait by Steve McCahn (student of Leon Kossoff), oil on canvas, contemporary. Available from Diplomat Treasure International

'Sylvette' a lithograph signed by Picasso, 1954. Authenticated by Bonhams. Available from i Fine & Contemporary Art

Abstract painting of a stained glass window, watercolour, 1980s. Available from Robert McKoy Fine Arts