Invest in Art

Art critics and financial experts are in agreement and according to ‘Alvin Hall’s World of Money’ (BBC Radio 4, August 2008) the art market is enjoying a miracle year. Godfrey Barker of the Evening Standard commented that ‘when the stock market under performs, the art market starts singing and dancing’. There was strong evidence to back this claim when a recent Sotheby’s auction of Damian Hirst’s work raised over £70 million. Barker believes that the art market will continue to defy the current trends and will remain buoyant. To find out more about investing in art, contact us to make an appointment with one of our expert art consultants, or drop by the gallery.

At the Enid Hutt Gallery we offer limited edition prints for purchase by artists who’s original artwork may be out of reach financially. Today’s modern printing techniques combined with the finest light-fast inks and beautiful art paper or canvas, give a result that could only have been dreamed of just a few years ago and mean you don’t have to compromise when buying a limited edition print.

Sometimes a limited edition is the only choice if one is ever to own a piece by say Jack Vettriano, Todd White or Alexander Millar Of course, everyone would like to have an original but when that can cost anything up to between five and ten times as much as a limited edition it is simply unrealistic for most. I once spoke with a lady who’s friend was gifted a painting by a world famous artist and unfortunately had to return it as they could not afford the insurance to cover it. So not only are some original pieces out of reach financially but even keeping one could be too.

Personally I would prefer a good quality limited edition print over a cheap original but many lesser expensive originals are by excellent up and coming artists so you have to define what is ‘cheap’.

If you ever do purchase, it must be of value to you personally as well, it has to jump out and grab you and of course price is another consideration, but if I had the choice between an original by an unknown artist or a limited edition print by say Jack Vettriano, I would go for the Vettriano.

It will always be argued that limited editions are not a good investment. The answer to that is simple. No art, original or otherwise, is a guaranteed investment but is a great one if you calculate the value of pleasure it will give you over the years. It is well reported, that most often than not, limited edition prints by well established artists which are sold after the edition is sold out, make a considerable price increase, even double the original value.

A Day in the Life of Henderson Cisz

Brazilian-born wanderer Henderson Cisz loves to travel the world and paint the drama and diversity of urban life. From New York to Paris, from London to Venice he has formed an intense and loving artistic relationship with these living breathing cities. Although he may have finally settled in London, Henderson’s nomadic past has left indelible imprints on his lifestyle, not to mention his artwork, as we can see by joining him for a few hours in the life of a truly cosmopolitan artist.

As early as 8am Henderson is already demonstrating the habits of a good New Yorker or Parisian, sitting back, legs crossed in a leisurely pose, enjoying a freshly ground coffee and a basket of croissants “en famille” in his local café. Then it’s off to school for the younger children and back to Henderson’s delightful mews studio for him and his eldest son, who is currently going in every day to watch and learn both his father’s painting techniques and the art of studio management.

Observing Henderson at work is an education in itself. A charming and unassuming man, softly spoken and with a gentle sense of humour, he transforms when he stands before his canvas. Working from the many hundreds of photographs he takes in each location, his style is surprisingly uninhibited and the studio wall is strewn with riotous splashes of paint that have flicked from his animated brush. The room itself is equally chaotic, with rolled canvases stacked against the wall, interspersed with family photos, sketches and works in progress. Yet out of this apparent confusion emerges artwork that is beautifully resonant of the city it represents.

When he is not travelling, Henderson tends to spend the majority of his day painting in his studio which occupies a lovely West London setting close to the Thames. He admits to a great fondness for the UK, and judging by the unstoppable success of his dazzling cityscapes, we are rather fond of him too.

Henderson’s Limited Edition Prints are available on Paper, Board or Box Canvas. His stunning Original Paintings are also available in these formats.

At the Enid Hutt Gallery, you can purchase Henderson Cisz artworks including Henderson Cisz canvas prints!

New Jack Vettriano Limited Edition Prints

We are delighted to be able to announce the release of an exclusive collection of 5 new images from the UK’s most popular, and yet most controversial, contemporary artists.

The exclusive 5 new images 3 of which were taken from the Love, Devotion and Surrender exhibition shown at the Kirkcaldy Museum and Art Gallery in June 2006 are each limited to a very small edition of only 250 copies worldwide. A stunning example of Vettriano’s work, these chosen images are already popular with his many fans and in particular featured in the collection is one of the most meaningful paintings to Jack, ‘Long Time Gone’ which features Methil power station which is scheduled to be demolished soon.

Born in Fife, Scotland in 1951, Jack Vettriano left school at sixteen to become a mining engineer. For his twenty-first birthday, a girlfriend gave him a set of watercolour paints and, from then on, he spent much of his spare time teaching himself to paint.

In 1989, he submitted two paintings to the Royal Scottish Academy’s annual exhibition; both were accepted and sold on the first day. The following year, an equally enthusiastic reaction greeted the three paintings, which he entered for the prestigious Summer Exhibition at London’s Royal Academy and his new life as an artist began from that point on.

Over the last twenty years, interest in Vettriano’s work has grown consistently. There have been sell-out solo exhibitions in Edinburgh, London, Hong Kong and New York.

2004 was an exceptional year in Vettriano’s career; his best known painting, The Singing Butler was sold at Sotheby’s for close to £750,000; he was awarded an OBE for Services to the Visual Arts and was the subject of a South Bank Show documentary, entitled ‘Jack Vettriano: The People’s Painter’.

From 1994-2007, Vettriano was represented by Portland Gallery in London but the relationship ended in June 2007. Since then, Vettriano has been focusing on a variety of private projects, including the launch of a new book, and painting of a portrait of Zara Phillips as part of a charity fund-raising project for Sport Relief, the experience of which was captured in a documentary broadcast on BBC1 in March 2008.

Vettriano divides his time between his homes in Fife, London and Nice.

The Life of Fabian Perez

Born in 1967, Fabian grew up outside Buenos Aires in a turbulent world of political upheaval during the post-Peron military regime. Such a childhood could not fail to impact on every area of his life including his artistic ethos, especially when taken in conjunction with his unconventional upbringing.

At the age of 9 he became fascinated with the paintbrush, and using watercolors and tempera he painted portraits of his friends and family. His mother, Edua Herreria, a beautiful Brazilian women, met his father, a handsome and charismatic ladies’ man, Antonio Perez, in the late 1950’s, in Campana, a small city outside Buenos Aires. They married and had four children of whom Fabian is the youngest.

Edua was the creative force in Fabian’s life and Antonio was the inspiration for his work. Fabian witnessed his father’s unorthodox and often difficult life, portraying him in his paintings as “the cool guy” outside nightclubs and bordellos. Antonio owned a number of brothels and illegal nightclubs in Campana, and was frequently chased and closed down by the police. Nevertheless the young Fabian was constantly exposed to beautiful women who could seduce a man “simply by lighting a cigarette”. Today we see these “ladies of the night” exquisitely portrayed in many of Fabian’s paintings – memories of his youth and the nightlife he observed.
At the age of 16 Fabian was faced with the loss of his mother and 3 years later the loss of his father. The sadness and despair he experienced left him confused and searching for answers. In 1984 he had crossed paths with the greatest inspiration of his life – Sensei Oscar – who later became his teacher, master, close friend, and father figure. Heartbroken and alone, he therefore found strength and a degree of inner peace through the study of martial arts.

Then in 1987 Fabian set off on a journey that was to last until the the present day. After six months in Rio he took up residence in Padova, near Venice, where he stayed for seven years, studying with Oscar and painting daily before moving on to Okinawa, Japan. He finally decided to experience a different side of life in the USA, and in Los Angeles he worked as a busboy and a model, and ran odd jobs for Universal Studios. With his days full, he painted throughout the night and considers this the most creative period of his life.

In 2001 two art publishers and gallery owners saw and fell in love with an exhibition of Fabian’s work. They met Fabian two days later and they formed a partnership to promote, market and develop Fabian’s career as a fine artist. The collaboration was an overwhelming success; every painting Fabian created was sold immediately and the demand for his work exploded. Today his work is published by DeMontfort Fine Art in the UK.
Fabian wishes not to categorise his style as he does not want to limit himself or his work. His art is simply the passionate expression of his strong romantic feelings. Inspired by what is known in martial arts as the Muga (empty mind), Fabian finds himself in this almost meditative state of mind when he is at work, and the purity of his creativity flows. He now resides in Beverly Hills, California, where he paints, plays soccer, trains and teaches martial arts to close friends. He still travels the world for inspiration.