Cathy's Art Diary

Luxurious exhibition at Bonhams to mark the auction of the contents of Kerfield House. The pieces were shown in room settings against hand painted wallpaper by Gournay and some pieces were used in the Downton Abbey exhibition downstairs. There was a strange mix of ornate French 19th century pieces and modern Italian furniture, but it worked well together. I loved this lacquer cabinet by Piero Fornasetti.   Closed 10 September 2025

Fabulous exhibition at Bonhams of costumes and props from the Downton Abbey series and films which are to be auctioned. Having just watched the series and first two films again I was so excited to see this and it didn’t disappoint. There were two large rooms, one for upstairs and one for down. The clothes and objects were arranged in tableaux. The costumes were fabulous and it was like seeing old friends. From Lady Sibyl’s hareem pants, through the iconic wedding dresses to Lady Edith’s London business dress it was all beautiful. I loved a display of maids off duty clothes hanging up. The attention to detail in the faked documents was wonderful. I’m sure many were never seen close up in the series but they had the words which were read out on them and all the correct headings and stamps. They even had Marigold’s birth certificate which I don’t remember seeing at all.   Closed 16 September 2025 Reviews Times Guardian Telegraph Evening Standard

Colourful exhibition at Sotheby’s, the preview for a sale of 20th century Middle Eastern art. This was the first time I’d been to a sale preview and I have to admit I was only brave enough to go in as I’d spotted a rather nice coffee shop at the back of the building. I share that with you as a top tip! A great cup of coffee in a nice space and pictures from a forthcoming sale, Scottish artists, around the walls! The Middle Eastern art was a revelation to me and there were some lovely pictures although most of it you could like to a Western art movement and I didn’t feel I was seeing a unique Middle Eastern view of the world. There was a lovely seated life study of a naked woman sitting on a rock by Georges Hanna Sabbagh from 1928 which felt like a Slade school work. I loved her rounded thighs and the lovely flesh tones. I loved two still lives by Manoucher Yektai both featuring a vase of flowers and a bowl. I also liked a city on a hill by Abdulhalim Radwi with blue p...

Charming exhibition at Hay Castle from this auction to raise money for the conservation of the castle. We found this show by accident and there were some lovely works in it plus it was a good chance to have a look round this fascinating interior as it is being renovated. I am too late to advertise this auction for them as it was held on 11 April but I do hope it went well. Star of the show had to be a drawing for the Harry Potter books by Cliff Wright which I was particularly interested in as a friend is illustrating the new edition. I also loved a stained glass panel of boxing hares by Tamsin Abbott and lovely stone bird bath with carved lettering by Caitriona Cartwright.

Exhibition of pieces of contemporary ceramics in the CPA Auction displayed at the Contemporary Ceramics Centre. There were some lovely pieces in this show and I envy the lucky highest bidders. I loved Mary Rich’s lustre bowl in gold and blue, Matthew Chambers sculptural works of concentric circles and Svend Bayer’s functional cooking pots.