THE HAREWOOD ANTIQUES & FINE ART FAIR RETURNS FOR A SECOND YEAR Friday 1 to Sunday 3 March 2013

After a successful launch event last year, The Harewood Antiques & Fine Art Fair, in association with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Manchester, returns to the Harewood Pavilion, Harewood House, Harewood, near Leeds, West Yorkshire LS17 9LG from Friday 1 to Sunday 3 March 2013 bringing some 30 specialist exhibitors, dealing in a wide variety of fine art and antiques. The Harewood Pavilion is transformed into a cornucopia of quality fine art and antiques to entice the discerning collector, interior designer and visitor seeking that magnificent piece of furniture, object or work of art. Town and country furniture, silver, glass, jewellery, oriental rugs and carpets, contemporary and 19th century sculpture, oil paintings, watercolours and illustrations, jewellery, clocks and books are just some of the disciplines on offer.

Neptune Fine Art has recently acquired a pencil drawing on paper by L S Lowry (1887-1976) from a private collection in Yorkshire. ‘A girl pushing three children in a pram’ measures 8” x 10” and is signed and dated 1962. Selling for £40,000, it has full provenance and was formerly owned by a member of parliament, who was shadow junior arts spokesman in the fifties. ‘Ranthambhore Queen’, an oil on canvas depicting a tigress, signed by eminent wildlife artist and conservationist David Shepherd (b. 1931), 30”x 20”, 2004, priced at £60,000, is another eye-catching painting on Neptune Fine Art’s stand.

Also of local interest is a Regency period rosewood breakfront side cabinet with brass inlay. Four silk panelled doors conceal drawers and sliding trays, c1810, £25,000 from S&S Timms Antiques. One drawer bears a handwritten label explaining that it was made for Mrs Hobson to fit a recess in her house at Park Place in Leeds. It was made to house her collection of geological specimens. An important pair of George IV solid rosewood drawing room chairs, in the Rococo Revival style, by Gillows & Co. of Oxford Street, London, c 1825, £15,000 bears pride of place on the stand of Freshfords Fine Antiques from Bath. Freshfords is also bringing an amusing pair of early 19th century brass candlesticks depicting Robinson Crusoe and Man Friday under palm trees, English, c1820, £3,250.

From Aberdeenshire comes Campbell Wilson with ‘In The Temple of Venus’ by English pre- Raphaelite artist Simeon Solomon (1840-1905), whose work can be found in the Victoria & Albert Museum. This oil on canvas, 25.4 x 17.7cm, is signed with monogram, inscribed and dated, selling for £17,500. Haynes Fine Art of Broadway has a Walter Hunt (1861-1941) oil on canvas canvas ‘Playmates’, 36” x 48”, priced at £95,000 and a gouache by French artist Luigi Loir (1845- 1916) ‘A Parisien Café Scene’, 10¼” x 10¾”, selling for £38,500.

Garret & Hurst Sculpture has a fine collection of 19th century bronze sculpture, including ‘Elevage de Chevaux’ signed by Victor Paul Dargaud, c1890, 39cm high x 49cm long, £8,950. Dargaud exhibited paintings at the Paris Salon from 1873-1885, but appears to have turned to sculpture and a number of his animals were cast in bronze, mainly horses and dogs.

Silver is always a very popular purchase and the fair includes some magnificent pieces including a George l tapering tankard with domed lid, made in Newcastle in 1725 by James Kirkup, selling for £3,800 on Jack Shaw & Co’s stand. Stephen Kalms Antiques has a pair of George III silver salt cellars by master silversmith Paul Storr (1771-1844), 1819, £4,200 and a Victorian cast silver hound stirrup cup, priced at £12,000. Jewellery stands always create a wonderful sparkle and exhibiting jewellery dealers Plaza has a couple of fifties’ 18ct gold bird brooches by Chaumet and André Col priced at £1,250 and £2,200 respectively.

There is ample free parking for the antiques fair at Harewood and a shuttle bus operates between the car park and the Pavilion. Light refreshments and a restaurant with seasonal dishes prepared by Harewood’s chefs give visitors a chance to sit and mull over potential purchases.

The fair is raising money for two charities – the homeless charity ‘St Georges Crypt’ in Leeds and the Art Fund.