Maine Antique Digest April 2015

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32-A Maine Antique Digest, April 2015
- AUCTION -
There’s a telling line in Gerald Brenner’s obituary: “Gerry was
thoughtful, kind and forgiving, qualities that complemented the
formidable standards of John L. Russell, his partner of 55 years....”
Brenner died onAugust 22, 2014, prompting the dispersal of the home
in Kingston, Ontario, he shared with Russell in their retirement and mark-
ing the end of Russell’s material legacy.
While Brenner may well have been Russell’s partner in business and
life for the better part of 55 years, he certainly lived under a “formidable”
shadow. It is virtually impossible to discuss Canadiana antiques and the
remnants of the estate Brenner inherited from Russell 11 years ago with-
out the spotlight shifting to the latter.
Over his career, John Laurel Russell nurtured connections in upper-
crust Montreal society, ultimately securing the trust and respect of patrons
at the highest levels in government and institutions. Through his stores
in Montreal and Gananoque, Ontario, he helped furnish the official res-
idences of the prime minister and governor general, and he sold exten-
sively to Canadian museums and archives. He was considered an expert
in Canadian silver and portraits, but his knowledge extended toward all
areas of Canadiana. Ultimately, he was awarded an Order of Canada for
his contributions.
Being considered the unofficial “dean” of the Canadian antiques busi-
ness put all Russell’s official transactions under scrutiny, as seen by the
reaction to a bed he advised the Canadian government to buy as part of
the official wedding gift for the Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spen-
cer (see M.A.D., September 1981, p. 24-A). Critics from all sides found
fault with the purchase, which created a rare national media blip about the
Canadian antiques business. The Prince and Princess of Wales received,
in the end, approximately 6000 wedding gifts from all over the world,
making the whole fiasco seem today something of a trifle, particularly in
light of how things ended for the royal couple.
In 1987 and again in 1990, Russell and Brenner began to thin their
personal collection with auctions at Sotheby’s Toronto, and by 1994 they
had consolidated their business and home in Gananoque. Tim Potter sold
the contents of Beaver Hall Antiques in 1996 (see M.A.D. , September
1996, p. 12-C), and Ritchies in Toronto sold a selection of items in 2004,
following Russell’s death in 2003.
Over the intervening decade, Gerry Brenner lived in the house in old
Kingston with their favorite and possibly most valuable antiques, both
in terms of dollars and historical value. It’s revealing, because Russell
appreciated provenance above all; he valued history and the context in
which the material was created.
Because of this, when the agents arrived to appraise and assess the
Brenner estate, they discovered notes and articles detailing the prove-
nance, by Russell’s assessment and research, attached behind and beneath
many pieces.
For such an estate, the agents in this case were a triumvirate of local
experts with long history in the business: Sandra Mercer, owner of On
Your Behalf, a company that manages estate sales; Tim Potter, an auc-
tioneer with deep roots in the Canadiana business; and Thomas Quirk, a
scholarly appraiser with a long resumé that includes positions at national
museums as well as work for national and international auction houses.
Simply put, between the three of them, they appraised and cherry-picked
the collection for a live auction to be held on Friday, November 21, 2014,
while the balance would remain in the house for a first-come/first-served
tag sale on Saturday and Sunday.
I attended the auction held in a posh, top-story salon at the downtown
Kingston Holiday Inn. Having seen the ads and downloaded the listing
written by Quirk, I had an idea of what to expect. The thought of moving
any massive case pieces up and down small service elevators must have
been all the organizers needed to decide to leave them in situ at the house,
while the best art, bronze sculpture, silver, and smaller furnishings made
it to the auction. There was, however, one grand 19th-century French
walnut daybed with high volute arms and serpentine apron that must have
made for an awkward elevator ride—the privilege to own it cost $2090
and included the trip back down again.
The order of sale had all the silver selling in a continuous roll, with
much of the porcelain and art moving together in groups toward the end
of the session. Brenner and Russell both possessed an aesthete’s taste for
decorating: bronze sculptures, highly decorative porcelains, and transfer
plates, much of which gave the nod to French tradition.
Oddly, for the estate of a well-known dealer/collector, it attracted many
from the trade hoping to, presumably, enhance their stock. Crowds are
difficult to gauge from the outside, though. Potter told me a great many
people left bids, and requests to bid by phone had already marked the sale
as a success, even before the 10 a.m. start.
The first lot to sell was a 20th-century bronze sculpture, 15" tall, Ball
Players by Esther Wertheimer (b. 1926), for $770 (includes buyer’s pre-
mium). Two dealers, Richard Flensted-Holder and Richard Fulton, both
out of Toronto, bid actively and competitively through 50-odd lots of
silver; on the whole, it seemed that dealers found it possible to bid and
Tim Potter Auctions, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
D. Holloway’s 19th-century oil on panel titled Kingston from Fort
Henry sold for $36,300.
The unsigned oil on canvas Portrait
of Major General James Wolfe fetched
$29,700. A similar one is in the col-
lection of the National Portrait Gal-
portraits-catalogue-wolfe.php/#37)
An unsigned 18th-century French
oil on canvas (70" x 48"), titled
Elopement, garnered $1650.
A photograph of one room of the Russell-Brenner residence.
This Dehua porcelain 34" high stand-
ing figure of the bodhisattva Guanyin
from 17th-century China, bearing the
“fisherman” mark to the upper mid-
dle back, sold for $7425. It was a gift
to John L. Russell from Mrs. Beard-
more, sister of Lady Allen, Montreal.
A pair of 13" wide bronze sphinxes on fabric-covered plinths (not
shown) fared well enough in earning $3850.
Russell appreciated provenance
above all; he valued history
and the context in which
the material was created.
Brenner Estate Collection Marks End of
John Russell’s Material Legacy
by Larry Thompson
All prices in Canadian funds
Photos courtesy Tim Potter, Thomas Quirk, and Sandra Mercer