We Buy Paintings
We are looking to buy Paintings, whether Antique, Modern, Abstract, sketches by well-known artists. If you have any paintings in your possession that are no longer wanted, and you believe they may have value attached, do please contact us. One of our team of experts will be pleased to make an assessment. Photographs will help as will any documentation or provenance.
The oldest known artworks date back 40,000 to 60,000 years ago, discovered in caves in Indonesia. The Sulawesi caves depicted a hunting scene, typical of other known Rock or Cave art in other parts of the world. This is also the oldest form of story telling. The animals are very recognisable. In 2018 cave paintings were discovered in Borneo, thought to be 52,000 years old at least. This age was known as the Upper Paleolithic age. These Rock paintings have been discovered elsewhere, in France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, China, India, Australia, Mexico, and of course Africa where ancient Bushman paintings were found in Namibia and in parts of South Africa.
With the introduction of photography in 1829, much of the history that art depicted was set aside. Various movements of art form or style revived interest in the late 19th and 20th centuries. These were noted as Impressionist, Fauvism, Expressionism, Cubism, and Dadaism. However, in the East, Asia and in Africa these were still unknown.
Today Modern and Contemporary Art forms are more in-depth depictions of ideas and beliefs. However, most artists today are content to paint whatever they like, in whatever medium, whether landscapes, seascapes, city scenes, portraits, animals, etc. Watercolour, oils, acrylics, inks, pastels and pencils are most commonly used. There are various theories on pigmentation and the use of colour, and there are ever-evolving methods of extracting pigments from the earth, plants, from rocks, and by mixing different elements to make new shades of colour. Selling paints and related essentials such as canvas, paper, brushes, etc., is very commercial and there is a huge choice of materials available to artists today.
Philosophers through the ages had their own theories on art and painting. Classical philosopherssuch as Aristotle and Plato had their own views. Plato for instance argues that no art form could depict the truth and was merely a form of craft. This included sculpture as an art form. By the time of Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo and Rafael, however, painting had become a mirror of the truth. Painting was considered one of the three romantic arts, besides music and poetry. Abstract painters such as Kandinsky and Klee regarded painting as having a spiritual value, primary colours being feelings or concepts.
In around 1890 the French artist Denis stated that a painting is only a flat surface covered with colour laid down in a certain order. This led to Cubism in the 20th century, a reflection on the means of painting rather than the external world or nature. As far as painting movements are concerned, Impressionism is the first example of Modernism. Artists began to paint their surroundings outdoors rather than in studios, depicting real light in their work. This group rebelled against the rules governing exhibitions of their work, and organised their own exhibitions, much to their advantage.
Various media have been used through the ages. Hot wax, or encaustic art as it is now called, was used as early as the 6th century. Many religious icons were painted using this medium. Heated beeswax was mixed with coloured pigments. Greeks and Romans used this method in their paintings, and there are panels that survive today in Orthodox churches. The Greeks and Romans used mosaics both as floor art works and on walls.
Watercolour is popular to this day, with colours suspended in a water-soluble medium. Watercolour was widely used in Eastern Asian art, in particular Chinese art, to which Inks were added and special papers used. Indian artists also used watercolour and inks. Ink was widely used for drawing and adding outlines using pens, brushes and quill pens.
Gouache is water-based but the pigments are opaque, using larger particles, and chalk is added to make the paint heavier.
There was also the art of enamelling, mixing a metal with powdered glass and heating to high temperatures. It was typically used in decorating porcelain and small objects, like the Russian Faberge objects.
The use of tempera was popular as a medium until around 1500. This method combined a water-soluble binder, generally egg yolk mixed with pigments. Botticelli’s famour painting “The Birth of Venus” was done using tempera. Fresco paintings of the Italian Renaissance period were done as murals on plaster. Colours were mixed with a binding such as oil or egg, or glue to attach colours to walls or ceilings.
After the year 1500 oil based paints were introduced. These are mixed with oils such as linseed or poppy seed oil, often boiled up with resin as a varnish. Oil paints became the main medium for artists in Europe, replacing tempera. Water-mixable oils have been a fairly recent introduction, which some artists prefer as being less toxic to use.
Pastel colours are yet another form of using pigments. These use a binder and powdered pigments, formed into sticks for easier application. This form of laying down colour is very delicate, as the powders smudge easily. There are numerous fixatives that one can use to prevent this, and framing under glass also helps preserve pastel paintings. Pastels are generally longer-lasting than oils for instance. Oil paints dry out, and early artworks are seen to suffer cracking.
Acrylic paints are widely used today. They are fast drying paints, made from an acrylic emulsion mixed with pigments. These paints can be used on canvas, wood and other bases, and are water-mixable. Some artists prefer acrylics as oils are slow to dry, sometimes taking several days. Watercolour also must be allowed to dry before laying down extra colour.
The most famous paintings in the world are too numerous to mention, however, here are just a few that come to mind: Perhaps the most famous painting in the world is the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci, painted in the 16th century. Leonardo was not only an artist but also made advances in anatomy with his drawings, and he was also an engineer. His Last Supper painted in the 1490’s was a masterpiece. His contemporary and rival Michelangelo was also busy with his religious depictions, having been commissioned by the Pope to paint the Cistine Chapel in 1590. In 1642 Rembrandt painted the Night Watch. The Girl With a Pearl Earring by Vermeer is also a timeless treasure. Monet’s Waterlilies are very well known, as are works by Gustav Klimt, for example The Kiss. The Scream by Edvard Munch. Georges Seurat’s Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte. And The Fighting Temeraire by William Turner, The Toilet of Venus by Velasquez, and so on. Vincent Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, amongst the 871 other paintings accredited to his name, should have a mention. Everyone has their favourite paintings by their favourite artists, whether Old Masters or Modern artists.
If you have any paintings in your possession, whatever the style and age, and perhaps not so well known, that you wish to part with, please get in touch with one of our team of experts and we will be pleased to assist in making an assessment.
