CHATSWORTH FINE ART SALE April 29th, 30th & May 1st 2026

90 IMPERFECTIONS NOT STATED Fonsie Mealy’s Est. 1934 “Chrysanthemums and Christmas Roses, 1897”O.O.C., Initialled l.l. ‘ROC’ and dated ‘97’ approx. 50cms x 59cms (19½” x 23”). (1) Bears label verso ‘No. 5 Roderic O’Conor Chrysanthemès et Roses de noel’
Bears Godolphin Gallery label verso. Provenance: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, Vente O’Conor, 7 February 1956;
Sotheby’s London, 9 February 1977, no. 31;
Godolphin Gallery, Dublin
Private Collection. Exhibition: Paris, Salon des Independents, 1904 (1785);
Dublin 1978. (18) Literature: Included in Jonathan Benington’s catalogue Raisonné, as No. 52, where listed as ‘Coll: untraced’
The re-emergence of this painting by Roderic O’Conor, after many decades in a private collection, is a significant event in the re-discovery, pioneered by Jonathan Benington, Paula Murphy, Roy Johnston and Julian Campbell, of this remarkable Irish artist. The painting was clearly regarded by O’Conor as one of his finest, having been shown in Paris in 1904 in the Salon des Independents. It is a joyful work; within a composition formed by the curving outlines of plates, platters and bowls, O’Conor depicts a bouquet of flowers as a riot of reds, pinks and greens, against a backdrop of white cloth. In the foreground a blue saucer rests on a wrinkled cloth, while alongside are two apples on a white plate. Several large pears are contained in a red earthenware dish, behind which is an earthenware platter, glazed black on the inside, standing on its side. The plates on both sides are cropped by the edge of the canvas. This painting relates closely in subject and date, to O’Conor’s Still Life with Apples and Breton Pots in the National Gallery of Ireland.
Born in Co. Roscommon, and educated at Ampleforth, O’Conor studied at the Metropolitan School of Art in Dublin and then in Antwerp, before returning to Ireland in 1885. Two years later he moved to Paris, enrolling at the studio of Carolus-Duran. After spending some time at Grez, O’Conor made the first of several visits to Pont Aven, where he associated with progressive artists such as Armand Seguin, Cuno Amiet and Eric Forbes-Robertson. But it was his friendship with Émile Bernard that was of key importance in his development. Bernard showed him a series of letters from Vincent Van Gogh, some illustrated with drawings, which made a profound impression on the Irish artist. Over the following decade O’Conor spent a great deal of time in Brittany, staying at Pont Aven and Poldou, painting landscapes and portraits, and in 1894 forming a friendship with Paul Gauguin. Peter Murray 2026 €80,000 - €100,000 826. Roderic O’Conor (1860-1940)