06/12/2001
by Fiona Long

Twenty of the one hundred known works by the 17^th Century Flemish painter Jan Siberechts (Antwerp 1627 - c. 1703) have come onto the art market in the last 10 years. Earlier this year, Bonhams, London sold a river view by the artist for a record $ 1,097,350 (€ 1,237,350). Previous sales, however, indicate that this excellent showing was a one-off prompted by particular circumstances and does not point to a rekindling of market interest for Siberechts.

Siberechts’ works command different prices depending on their period of execution. The career of Jan Siberecht can be divided neatly into two phases, his Flanders period and his mature period in England from 1672 onwards. The market for the earlier works finds mixed reception among auction buyers, despite the meticulous technique and colourful characterisation of rustic life in Flanders. Although the later scenes with their refined technique have been fetching the highest prices of late, the earlier Flemish peasant scenes have scored some success over the years.

A coach party crossing a river, an 83 x 97 cm meticulously detailed landscape from the first part of Siberechts’s career, sold for $ 182,200 (€ 205,330) at Sotheby’s London, on the 3^rd of December 1997, against an estimate of $ 81,700-114,400 (€ 92,080-128,930). The painting is a valuable example of his last works produced in Antwerp just before he moved to England. A similar work, A river landscape with a cart carrying a maid and baskets of vegetables (97 x 122 cm), was auctioned at the same location in July 1998, selling for $ 319,500 (€ 360,040) against an estimate of $ 96,100-128,100 (€ 108,290-144,350).

Mid-priced lots by the artist include A peasant woman on horse back (64.5 x 56.5 cm), which sold for $ 12,080 (€ 13,630) in July 1992 at Christie’s London, below its estimate of $ 14,220-21,320 (€ 16,040-24,060). In 1990, Sotheby’s London presented a similar-themed but much larger work, A river landscape with a haycart, a man and a woman, (109 x 90 cm) which went for $ 68,400 (€ 77,020) within its pre-sale estimate of $ 57,300-73,700 (€ 64,530-83,000). However, Cows watering by a pond, a landscape that came up for auction at Christie’s New York in May 1994 with a hefty price tag (compared to previous similarly-styled compositions) of $ 100,000-150,000 (€ 112,590-168,870) failed to attract a winning bid. A more affordable introduction to the work of Jan Sibrechts can be found in the form of "circle of" works. Most of these are inspired by the principle themes Siberechts painted (peasant work, riverscapes and wooded landscapes) and usually sell for around $ 5,000 (€ 5,630).

This year, a painting from the artist’s British period attracted much attention and strong bidding. On the 11^th of July Bonhams presented Henley from Wargrave Road at their Knightsbridge premises in London, complete with a pre-sale estimate of $ 568,900-853,360 (€ 641,650-962,480). This river view, an oil on canvas measuring 90.2 x 120.6 cm, set a new auction record for the artist when it sold for an impressive $ 1,097,350 (€ 1,237,350), undoubtedly helped by the topographical importance of the painting which is an accurate contemporary record of the Henley area, renowned for its glamorous annual regatta. The purchase of the lot was partly funded by the National Art Collections Fund and the painting currently hangs in a rowing club in Henley.

The actual story behind this painting shows that the record price fetched was heavily prompted by the peculiarity of the location depicted. It does not point to any sudden growth in the market for Siberechts, as witness his Departure for the market, a large oil (161 x 219 cm) that went unsold at Christie’s London on the 2^nd of November, against an estimate of $ 42,670-71,120 (€ 48,120-80,210).