King’s Road Kudos: BADA Hits SW3

King’s Road Kudos

The British Antique Dealers’ Association fair comes to Duke of York’s Square for 2015 with a number of rather delicious pieces to catch the eye

Article by Rupert Watkins

Once again, The British Antiques Dealers’ Association (BADA) fair hits SW3, bringing together some of the finest dealers from across the country. When this reviewer – chomping at the bit – went in for the press review, dealers were in an upbeat mood for the fair and also reported quiet satisfaction at how 2015 in general was going for the trade.

The BADA fair is regarded as the premier one in the UK. Almost 100 dealers are exhibiting this year with the usual broad spread of high quality art and antiques from Old Master pencil sketches, via Georgian furniture to Banksy screen prints all under the same marquee roof. Although the postcode and some of the upper end prices could make one think this is strictly for the two per centers of this world, there is an exceedingly wide selection of pieces in the £2,000-7,000 price bracket.

Two of watercolours by late 18th-Century English map-maker turned landscape painter Paul Sandby, offered by a couple of dealers (Guy Peppiatt Fine Art and John Spink) stand out, sitting at around the £10,000 mark. At the other end of the artistic spectrum, a limited edition and certified screen print of Banksy’s Applause catches the eye at £11,000 on Haynes Fine Art of Broadway’s stand. Gray Modern & Contemporary Art have a number of excellent original fashion drawings sitting at about £2,500 to appeal to the stylish girl about town, and also a wonderful original “Eric” drawing from that master of fashion illustration for a trifle more at £4,500.

The dapper gentleman could also seek out some excellent and stylish accessories. A couple of specialist dealers (including Nigel Norman) have a wonderful array of vintage Cartier and Hermès cufflinks for between £2,000 and £3,000; certainly, the elegant chap looking for either an original area to invest in or simply some discreet and beautifully understated links for that special occasion could do much worse.

The furniture is predominantly Georgian with plenty of wonderful examples of workmanship in the library bookcases, desks and drum tables on the various dealers’ stands (minimalist fans need not look here). For this writer, though, the two standout pieces are a naval oil painting by English marine artist Peter Monamy from Julia Korner Fine Art sitting at £16,000, and a Thomas Gainsborough drawing only recently rediscovered after being off the market for decades being offered by Guy Peppiatt for £90,000. Quite sublime.

The fair runs until March 24th and entry costs £10. Even for antique neophytes, this is a wonderful fair - complete with Taittinger champagne bar - that allows you to view some quite outstanding pieces of art and discover which eras and areas most draw you in.