Leonard Joel

Sixty lots of militaria from the 1850s to the 1940s – including items from the American Civil War, Boer War, World War I and World War II – will be auctioned by Leonard Joel from noon Thursday September 25 at 333 Malvern Road, South Yarra.

Auction highlights include a Webley & Scott flare pistol and Turkish belt buckly believed to have been souvenired by Lieutenant Colonel Robert Rankine of the 14^th Battalion AIF during World War I.

Leonard Joel sold his Gallipoli DSO, medal group and diary in May last year for $36,000 including buyers’ premium.

More than 100 years of photographic history will be highlighted in Leonard Joel’s cameras and photography auction from noon Thursday September 25 at 333 Malvern Road, South Yarra.

The oldest items on offer are 19^th century hand painted magic lantern slides, then they proceed through the stereoscope era to what purists describe as the best 35mm camera ever made – the Leica M3.

According to objects, books and collectibles manager Sasa Mitic cameras are beginning to see a similar resurgence in popularity – similar to that currently being enjoyed by vinyl records.

In Leonard Joel’s 95^th year as an auction house, head of art Sophie Ullen reflects in the latest catalogue on how the business has adapted to changing Australian and European art trends while retaining its eclectic appetite for all fine art periods as the company gets ready for its fine art auction from 6.30pm Tuesday September 16 at 333 Malvern Road, South Yarra.

“It seems to me that in 2014 a street art auction, a contemporary art sale or even the estate of Pro Hart sits as comfortably at Leonard Joel as the traditional fine art categories,” she said.

Jewels and objets d’art will be the highlight of Leonard Joel’s inaugural $1.3 million Sydney auction from 1pm Sunday August 24 at the Intercontinental Hotel, 117 Macquarie Street.

One of the major attractions is a Cartier gold panther double cuff never before seen at an Australian auction.

Another intriguing item is the “Face and Owl” vase by Pablo Picasso.

Heading the Asian objects is a significant and elegant blue and white bluster vase – while international makers such as Faberge, Lalique, Galle, Meissen and Chiparus populate the collection.

Leonard Joel has four interesting auctions on Thursday August 7 at 333 Malvern Road, South Yarra.

The first, at 10am, is a Vintage Interiors – Furniture sale followed 30 minutes later by the start of the Designer Jewellery auction and, at 11am, by the Specialist Print auction.

The last auction to start is Vintage Interiors – Books & Objects.

Kevin Charles (Pro) Hart is probably best remembered for his outrageous Stainmaster advertisements, where he was busy creating works of art from food on carpet by sliding around on his stomach on the floor before an enterprising female cleaner vacuumed up the creation without leaving a trace.

However, Pro Hart was much more than an advertising stunt. Born in Broken Hill in 1928, this prolific artist created and sold thousands of works during his lifetime and is possibly one of the most recognisable painters of his day.

Furniture and objects from the 1950s to the 1990s by several leading 20^th century designers will be the highlight of Leonard Joel’s latest modern design auction from noon on Thursday at 333 Malvern Road, South Yarra.

Works by such names as Grant Featherston (1922-1995) and Marc Newson will undoubtedly whet the appetite of auction goers who will have a rare opportunity to add to their designer collections.

Leonard Joel has held modern design auctions since 2012 – sales they only conduct twice a year.

An impressive sculpture of famous German composer Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) by noted French sculptor Emile Antoine Bourdelle (1861-1929) will be a major highlight of Leonard Joel’s fine art auction from 6.30pm Tuesday June 17 at 333 Malvern Road, South Yarra.

Bourdelle was well known for his works – making about 80 sculptures from 1888 until his death, with Beethoven’s figure featuring quite prominently.

From 6.30pm Monday June 16, Leonard Joel has a jewellery auction featuring a loose fancy vivid yellow diamond weighing 2.2 carats with a catalogue estimate of $25,000-$35,000.

Other strong attractions include a diamond riviere necklace, a diamond ring by Canturi and diamond line bracelet.

There also is a range of wristwatches including a Piaget gold example, a Patek Philippe, a Chanel and ladies Jaeger, Cartier, Rolex and Tag Heuer specimens.

To mark the 50^th anniversary of the Beatles arrival in Adelaide for the first leg of their Australian tour, from noon on Thursday June 5 Leonard Joel will auction a remarkable collection of 50 photographs of the band and the crowd who turned out to meet them.

An estimated 300,000 people (about one-third of the city’s population) lined the route from Adelaide airport to the city to catch a glimpse of the Beatles when their plane touched down on June 12, 1964.

Part of a bigger world tour, it was the only time the Beatles ever came to Australia.