William Ratcliffe Paintings & Artwork for Sale | William Ratcliffe Art Value Price Guide

Dec. 15, 2022
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (BRITISH, 1870-1955) English landscape pencil, pen and bl
Est: £1,500 - £2,000
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (BRITISH, 1870-1955) English landscape pencil, pen and black ink and watercolour, heightened with touches of bodycolour on buff tissue paper 14 1/8 x 18 3/4 in. (36 x 47.5 cm.)
Christie's
Dec. 15, 2022
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (BRITISH, 1870-1955) Swedish farm pencil, pen and brown i
Est: £2,000 - £3,000
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (BRITISH, 1870-1955) Swedish farm pencil, pen and brown ink, pastel and watercolour heightened with touches of bodycolour on paper, lightly squared 12 x 15 in. (30.2 x 38.1 cm.)
Christie's
May. 27, 2022
William Ratcliffe (British, 1870-1955),
Est: £3,000 - £5,000
William Ratcliffe (British, 1870-1955), 'Still Life' - a dish of fruit, jug and pot plant on a table, signed l.r., titled, signed in pen with address 101 Wilbury Road, Ernest Brown and Philips Leicester Galleries labels and chalk date 4th June 1971 verso, oil on canvas, 40 by 50cm, framed. Note: William Ratcliffe was one of the Camden Town group of artists in the early 20th Century along his friend and mentor Harold Gilman. Note: Artist Resale Rights apply
Kinghams Auctioneers
Dec. 15, 2020
*WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (1870-1955)
Est: £2,000 - £2,500
*WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (1870-1955) *WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (1870-1955) High Street, Hampstead ink and watercolour 37.5 x 46.5cm, framed Provenance: A gift to the Victor Batte-Lay Trust in 1963 for the Colchester Contemporary Art Society, by the then curator of the Minories, Jack Wood Palmer. The work was included in the 1954 exhibition at Letchworth Museum and Art Gallery, priced at 10 guineas. *Artist's Resale Right may apply to this lot.
Sworders
Oct. 23, 2020
§ William Ratcliffe (British 1870-1955) The Red Curtain, circa 1916
Est: £20,000 - £30,000
§ William Ratcliffe (British 1870-1955) The Red Curtain, circa 1916 signed (lower right), oil on canvas (48.5cm x 49cm (19in x 19.3in)) Footnote Exhibited: The Goupil Gallery, London, The London Group, 1916, no.114. See R. Allwood, William Ratcliffe: paintings, prints and drawings, North Hertfordshire, 2011. The intimate domestic space and atmosphere in The Red Curtain instantly places this work amongst the Camden Town Group and their distinctive palette. As the critic Frank Rutter noted: 'tainted with the disease of purplitis. Messrs. Spencer Gore, Robert Bevan, William Ratcliffe, and many others of this group of artists, who attach themselves with real passion to the pictorial interpretation of their own daily surroundings and of modern life, all look up on the world with purple spectacles.' (Frank Rutter, The Observer, 14 July 1912, p.9.) Born near King’s Lynn, Ratcliffe grew up in Manchester where his father worked in the Mills. After leaving school Ratcliffe attended Manchester School of Art, partly studying under Walter Crane and by 1901 he was working as a wallpaper designer. The family moved to the new Garden City of Letchworth by 1906, perhaps tempted by the social idealism that was a central tenet of this new society and an emphasis on cooperative working. In 1908, the artist Harold Gilman (1876-1919) and his family moved to Letchworth as a neighbour of the Ratcliffe's and soon after Gilman became a mentor to Ratcliffe. By 1910, Gilman had introduced Ratcliffe to the members of the Fitzroy Street Group, and persuaded him to abandon his career as a pattern designer at the Wallpaper Manufacturers Combine, propelling him to a professional artist. When the Fitzroy Street Group had been succeeded by the Camden Town Group, Ratcliffe was nominated by Gilman and ended up exhibiting in all three Camden Town exhibitions. In The Red Curtain the heavy impasto handling of paint and compositional form of the interior particularly show the influence of Gilman, who alongside Charles Ginner had been investigating the use of thickly applied paint and a pronounced impasto throughout their Camden Town works. The curtains, wall hanging, and patterned rugs also hark back to his time as a wallpaper designer. The result in The Red Curtain is a harmony of colours, touches of green, next to pinks, purples and blues heightening the cool tone of the interior, with strokes of orange adding warmth. As a whole it produces a work clearly indebted to the Post-Impressionist movement that was sweeping through the British avant-garde art scene at this particular moment in time. Ratcliffe was constantly on the move, living an itinerant existence and altering his lodgings almost on a yearly basis, periodically staying with family and friends, which makes pinning down the exact location of most of his domestic works difficult. However, in this work there are close compositional similarities to The Artist’s Room, Letchworth in The Tate Gallery collection, with similar furnishings, curtains, wall hangings, rugs and art & crafts furniture, and a day bed running underneath the hanging which suggest that the present work shows the sitting room where Ratcliffe stayed at 102 Wilbury Road in Letchworth Garden City, the home of Stanley and Signe Parker. This could in fact be a more finished example of the Tate Gallery’s work, although taken from a different angle. 102 Wilbury Road was designed in the arts and crafts tradition for the Parker family in 1908, by Stanley Parker’s brother Barry Parker (1867-1947) and his partner Raymond Unwin (1863-1940), who were the quintessential arts & crafts architects of Letchworth, and Wilbury Road is considered a major and complete example of their best work in the Arts & Crafts idiom. The arts and crafts elements of the interior are clearly evident in The Sitting Room, including a Clissett ladderback armchair, an oak circular table (a similar model table can also be found in Cottage Interior, circa 1914, also identified in a photograph of the Interior of the Parker’s home, circa 1909), and overall the scene depicted reflects a relaxed and simple life that many of the occupants of the Garden City aspired to. Like Ratcliffe, Stanley Parker had also studied at the Manchester School of Art, and it was possible that they became friends at this point. Ratcliffe is noted as staying with the Parkers at Wilbury Road at least twice, between 1930-2 and 1946-54, but the fragmentary nature of Ratcliffe’s life and the particular colour palette make it possible that The Sitting Room was painted on an earlier stay. It is remarkable and a reflection on Ratcliffe’s talents as an artist, that although he was perpetually on the move without a home of his own, he manages to create a warmth and intimacy in The Sitting Room, and an authentic depiction of a domestic space that also positions him as a significant painter in the Camden Town grouping. As N. D. Deuchar noted in the artist’s obituary '...his subjects were quiet and perhaps almost tame, but he had such exactitude and care in handling the shapes of building and apparatus, as well as great skill in laying his colour, that he was marked out as a true artist.' (N.D.Deuchar, The Citizen, 21 January 1955)
Lyon & Turnbull
Dec. 11, 2019
*WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (1870-1955)
Est: £2,500 - £3,000
*WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (1870-1955) BARGES ON THE THAMES (CAMDEN TOWN SCHOOL) Signed l.r., pen and ink and watercolour 38 x 43.5cm *Artist's Resale Right may apply to this lot.
Sworders
Apr. 16, 2019
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (1870-1955)
Est: £8,000 - £12,000
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE (1870-1955) The breakfast table signed 'W. Ratcliffe.' (lower right) oil on canvas 31 1/2 x 25 1/4 in. (80 x 64 cm.) Provenance: with Ernest, Brown, Phillips, Leicester Galleries, London. Private collection, UK. Ratcliffe spent almost 20 years designing wallpaper before turning to painting upon the strong encouragement of Harold Gilman who he met in 1908. In 1910 he attended the Slade School of Fine Art and in the meantime attended Fitzroy Street meetings. He was part of the Camden Town Group before World War I and amongst the founder members of the London Group. With the guidance and support of Gillman, Ratcliffe spent time with Sickert painting in Dieppe and also went to Sweden. He exhibited in a number of the leading London galleries at the time: Carfax, NEAC, Goupil, Roland, Browse and Delbanco and in America. Typical for his interiors, The breakfast table focuses on the domestic kitchen space and view behind. The paint is applied in a broken touch, a technique learned from Lucien Pissarro, who moved to London in 1890. His use of separate touches of pure colour inspired many of the Firzroy Street Artists. The breakfast table with its luminous palette and beautiful details is a great example of Ratcliffe's own approach to still life and a showcase for the need of a wider appreciation of the talent of this lesser known Camden Town Group artist. (See R. Allwood, William Ratcliffe: paintings, prints and drawings, North Hertfordshire, 2011 pp 20-22.) Artist's Resale Right may apply on this lot.
Chiswick Auctions
Feb. 05, 2019
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE | Swedish Landscape
Est: £3,000 - £5,000
oil on canvasboard
Sotheby's
Nov. 22, 2017
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE | Swedish Landscape
Est: £5,000 - £8,000
oil on canvasboard
Sotheby's
Jun. 23, 2016
Attributed to William Whitehead Ratcliffe, gouache on paper, cottage in a snowy landscape, possibly Sweden, bearing signature lower right W. Ratcliffe, 23cm x 32cm,
Est: £100 - £200
Attributed to William Whitehead Ratcliffe, gouache on paper, cottage in a snowy landscape, possibly Sweden, bearing signature lower right W. Ratcliffe, 23cm x 32cm,
Ewbank's
May. 19, 2016
William Whitehead Ratcliffe (British, 1870-1955) Boatbuilders, Hammersmith
Est: £100 - £300
William Whitehead Ratcliffe (British, 1870-1955) Boatbuilders, Hammersmith signed in pencil in the margin (lower right) woodcut18cm x 17.4cm, unframed.
Mallams
Mar. 03, 2016
*Ratcliffe (William Whitehead, 1870-1955). Cottage in the snow,
Est: £200 - £300
*Ratcliffe (William Whitehead, 1870-1955). Cottage in the snow, gouache on paper, showing a cottage in a wintery landscape, possibly Swedish, signed lower right, slightly worn to edges and small hole with slight loss, 23 x 32cm (9 x 12.5ins) mount aperture, framed and glazed (1)
Dominic Winter Auctions
Jul. 16, 2015
William Ratcliffe (1870-1955) - Flower Garden
Est: £800 - £1,200
watercolour on paper, signed at lower right 13 1/2 x 11 3/4 in., 34.5 x 29.5 cm IMPORTANT: This lot is sold subject to Artists Resale Rights, details of which can be found in our Terms and Conditions.
Dreweatts 1759
Dec. 12, 2013
William Ratcliffe (1870-1955)
Est: £1,500 - £2,500
William Ratcliffe (1870-1955) Landscape with field workers pen, ink and watercolour 19.3/4 x 14 in. (50.1 x 35.6 cm.)
Christie's
May. 23, 2012
William Whitehead Ratcliffe (British, 1870-1955)
Est: £8,000 - £12,000
William Whitehead Ratcliffe (British, 1870-1955) The living room, looking out to the garden, the Townsend house, Stotfold Bury, Stotfold, Nr. Letchworth, signed, oils on canvas, 17 1/2" x 23 1/4". Provenance: Given directly by the artist to Charles Townsend and thence by descent. Charles Townsend was a chemical engineer and editor, married to Eleni Zompolides who was an artist/designer at a book binding works associated with Douglas Cockerell. The family were central figures in the emerging Arts & Crafts movement in Letchworth and knew most of the leading figures, including the Parker family and Harold Gilman. Zompolides was the model for Harold Gilman's The Blue Blouse (Leeds Museum & Art Gallery). The family were good friends of the Camden Town artist William Ratcliffe and he use to walk over the hills from Letchworth to visit the family in Stotfold. This work shows the influence of the Camden Town group with its distinctive palette. The leading contemporary critic Frank Rutter wrote: 'tainted with the disease of purplitis. Messrs. Spencer Gore, Robert Bevan, William Ratcliffe, and many others of this group of artist, who attach themselves with real passion to the pictorial interpretation of their own daily surroundings and of modern life, all look up on the world with purple spectacles.' (see Rosamond Allword, William Ratcliffe, North Hertforshire District Council, 2011, p.24 and 'Art & Artists', The Observer, 14 July 1912, p.9.)
Mallams
Mar. 20, 2012
William Ratcliffe (British, 1870-1955) Haystacks
Est: £3,000 - £5,000
Haystacks signed 'W Ratcliffe' (lower right), oil on canvas 25 x 35.5cm (9 13/16 x 14in).
Bonhams
Mar. 12, 2010
William Ratcliffe (1870-1955) - Hayrick in a
Est: £500 - £700
William Ratcliffe (1870-1955) - Hayrick in a field, oil on artist board, 29.5 x 34.5cm
Lacy Scott & Knight
Mar. 12, 2010
William Ratcliffe (1870-1955) - Trees in winter,
Est: £500 - £700
William Ratcliffe (1870-1955) - Trees in winter, oil on artist board, 19 x 31cm. Ratcliffe was a founder member of the Camden Town Group and later the London Group. He exhibited widely and four of his paintings are held in the Tate Gallery.
Lacy Scott & Knight
Nov. 06, 2007
William Ratcliffe , 1870 - 1955 cottage under snow, sweden oil on canvas
Est: £10,000 - £15,000
signed oil on canvas
Sotheby's
Oct. 24, 2007
Letchworth landscape
Est: £3,000 - £5,000
William Ratcliffe (1870-1955) Letchworth landscape oil on canvas 12 x 16 in. (30.5 x 40.7 cm.)
Christie's
Mar. 01, 2007
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE, 1870 - 1955
Est: £800 - £1,200
PAGHAM 35x54cm.; 13¾x21¼in. signed watercolour and pen and ink
Sotheby's
Nov. 23, 2006
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE, 1870 - 1955
Est: £1,500 - £2,000
LANDSCAPE WITH FIELD WORKERS LANDSCAPE WITH FIELD WORKERS 50.5x36cm.; 20x14¼in. signed pen, ink and watercolour
Sotheby's
Oct. 24, 2005
WILLIAM RATCLIFFE 1870 - 1955
Est: £20,000 - £30,000
STILL LIFE BY THE FIRE 51 by 37.5cm., 20 by 14 3/4 in. signed twice; also signed and inscribed with title on an artist's label attached to the reverse oil on canvas PROVENANCE Probably acquired directly from the Artist by the previous owner, by whom bequeathed to the present owner EXHIBITED Southampton, Southampton Art Gallery, The Camden Town Group Exhibition, 1951, no.108; Letchworth Garden City, Letchworth Museum and Art Gallery, Exhibition of Paintings by William Ratcliffe, 1954, no.21; Letchworth Garden City, Letchworth Museum and Art Gallery, Garden City to Camden Town: The Art of William Ratcliffe, September - October 2003, no.65. NOTE Probably executed circa 1920. The intimate atmosphere and everyday domestic subject matter of Still life by the fire immediately belies Ratcliffe's involvement with the Camden Town Group of artists. More specifically, the heavily impastoed handling and the interior composition reflects the direct influence of Harold Gilman (1876 - 1919) whom Ratcliffe first met circa 1908 and who crucially encouraged him to abandon his career as a commercial wall-paper designer and, at the age of 38, devote his life to being an artist. The two met when Gilman moved with his wife Grace and two children to Letchworth Garden City where Ratcliffe had been living since 1906. Depite being several years younger, Gilman acted as Ratcliffe's artistic mentor and urged him to attend evening classes at the Slade in London and invited him to the Fitzroy Street Group's Saturday afternoon 'At Homes' to exhibit his works and exchange ideas. Although the exact location of the present work is unknown, the artist's label on the reverse lists his address at 102 Wilbury Road, next door to Gilman's old house at 100 Wilbury Road and the home of his friends Stanley and Signe Parker. Stanley Parker had studied at the Manchester School of Art where Ratcliffe had also received his formative training under Walter Crane and it is possible that the two became friends in that city. Ratcliffe is recorded to have stayed with the Parkers at 102 Wilbury Road on at least 2 occasions; he appears to have lodged there from 1930 - 32 and again from 1946 - 54. It is possible that Still Life by the fire depicts a room in their house painted on an earlier stay with them, however, the exact location is difficult to pin down as Ratcliffe was constantly on the move, changing lodgings on an almost yearly basis guided by the generosity of his family and friends. As such, the familiarity and warmth imbued in the present work is a testament to his artistic ability to compose such authentic depictions of intimacy and domesticity despite never having a permanent home of his own. Ratcliffe's friend N.D.Deuchar aptly surmised in the artist's obituary that '...his subjects were quiet and perhaps almost tame, but he had such exactitude and care in handling the shapes of building and apparatus, as well as great skill in laying his colour, that he was marked out as a true artist' (N.D.Deuchar, The Citizen, 21 January 1955).
Sotheby's
Jun. 04, 2004
William Ratcliffe (1870-1955)
Est: £5,000 - £7,000
The Window signed and dated 'W Ratcliffe 1913' (lower right) oil on canvas 20 x 16 in. (50.8 x 40.7 cm.)
Christie's