When Does The Artist's Name Matter Less Than The Art?
An etching by Alfred K Wiffen. Umm, who?
The art and antiques business is full of highly talented artists who just never quite made it. They may have enjoyed some success in their day, and even been tipped for the top at the time, but they never quite reached it. Like a failed firework. A bit of sparkle but no pizzaz.
Is it ever worth buying an artwork by one of these ‘faded fizzlers’? After all, in these days of instant information, most people can check comparative prices elsewhere in seconds, and art is no different. In fact art is even more applicable, as a buyer often considers a resale value later on. They don’t want to get caught out, and make a massive loss if they want to, or have to, sell. There’s also security in finding comparable prices and knowing that an artist’s work is collected by others.
Wandering around a charity shop recently, I wondered whether to buy this really rather good etching. Regular readers know that I have bought etchings since I was a teenager. It has clearly been removed from its mount and frame. We all know that charity shops have risen in price over the past 15-20 years, and I have to say I gasped a little at the £60 price tag. And I never, ever barter in a charity shop! Reading the artist’s name as ‘Alfred K. Wiffen’, I reached for my phone as I hadn’t heard of him before.
Darn, there wasn’t much to read. An entry on the ever-useful ArtUK site, which lists a brief biography, and the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool and Nottingham City Museums & Galleries as holders of a couple of examples of his work. Alfred Kemp Wiffen was born in 1896 and died in 1968. After fighting in World War One and then being a farmer, he studied at Nottingham School of Art. From 1928-61, he taught graphics at the Liverpool School of Art, and was a member of the Royal Academy and the Royal Cambrian Academy. So, most of his work will have been done in the 1920s-50s.
But that’s pretty much all, so there’s little to mark him out. Next step - check his prices. I wasn’t hopeful, and I was right not to be. He doesn’t appear on the ‘bible’ artprice.com at all, and prices in the salerooms are low. Ranging from around £10-50 for framed etchings and even drawings. Only a handful of pieces have even appeared at auction.
And now let’s look at the condition. It’s been completely ‘defrocked’, and the acids in the mount have left bad ambering which will be expensive to remove professionally. And, worse, the mount was rather quirkily placed, giving a diamond effect that just nudges into the plate mark at the corners. And the image itself is discoloured too. Ugh. Ugly.
So the etching is really very good, showing he had skill, but he’s largely unknown and unexceptional. And the condition isn’t at all great. What to do - should I buy it for £60? Let’s look beyond what most buyers consider.
