Q & A

B.F. of Winnipeg, Manitoba writes:

I just sold a 1955 work by Fenwick Lansdowne, signed, dated and titled "Western Meadowlark." I bought it for $5.00 at my friend's estate sale and sold it for $700.00. My husband thinks it was worth far more. I think I did alright. What say you?

We asked Ian Lumsden to respond:

It is difficult to do an appraisal on this work without more information and a better photograph. The dimensions of the work and any inscriptions it bears would also help. It would appear that the inquirer might have a lithograph by Lansdowne or after Lansdowne in which case $700 is a pretty good return. If the work is a watercolour, which I do not think it is, the price range should be between $3000 - $6000 depending upon size and appeal of the subject. It appears that there is no background, only a bird on a branch which is a bit unusual for Lansdowne. It all boils down to whether the seller had an original lithograph by Lansdowne, a commercial reproduction or an original watercolour. Without examining the work, an appraiser is extremely reluctant to ascribe any value. The way the work is framed would indicate to me that it is probably just a commercial reproduction after Lansdowne in which case the seller did pretty well.