Editor’s picks | | | Painted in situ in 1826, The Rialto, Venice shows the remarkable skill of the artist Richard Parkes Bonington, whose view of the bridge at the heart of the city delicately captures the effect of late-afternoon sunlight. Delacroix once shared a studio with him and said his paintings were ‘like diamonds that ravish the eye’ View Lot Estimate: £2,500,000-3,500,000 2 July, London | | | | The Van Winkles have been respected Kentucky distillers for generations, and the highly prized Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve 23 Year Old bourbon is named after their founding patriarch. In keeping with its special status, it is released in very small quantities each year, making this a rare opportunity to acquire two bottles View Lot Estimate: HK$45,000-70,000 until 3 July, Online | | | | The mournful central figure in Marc Chagall’s Clown with a Basket, painted between 1937 and 1938, is one of an extensive cast of circus performers that populate the artist’s work. Reflecting on this, Chagall once said: ‘Why am I so touched by their make-up and their grimaces? With them I can move towards new horizons’ View Lot Estimate: £60,000-90,000 until 26 June, Online | | | | This inscription is on a book of 18th-century poetry containing works by Oliver Goldsmith, Tobias Smollett, Samuel Johnson and William Shenstone; but its value lies in its association with another writer. It belonged to the 14-year-old Oscar Wilde when he was a pupil at Portora Royal School in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, and was signed by him in 1868 View Lot Estimate: £3,000-5,000 10 July, London | | | Browse Auctions | |
