Henley dame's art collection sells for £1m

AN auction selling works of art belonging to the late Dame Stephanie Shirley has raised over £1m.

The collection, which belonged to the computing pioneer, included modern art, sculptures, studio pottery and furniture.

Auction house, Dreweatts, presented the items to about 1,000 registered buyers, including a mix of private buyers and collectors from the UK and around the world, at Donnington Priory, in Oxford Road, on Tuesday.

The sale achieved a total of £1,127,166, with people bidding in the room, on the phone and online. Dreweatts sold every lot in the sale.

Pieces that appeared in the sale included a small-form limestone sculpture by Dame Barbara Hepworth, which was sold for £138,800, and a glazed white pitcher painted by Pablo Picasso, which was sold for £20,320.

A number of paintings were also auctioned. An oil painting on canvas entitled “Dark and Light Poppies” by British artist, Ivon Hitchens, went for £138,800.

Other auction highlights included a Nick Allen companion desk and meeting table from 2007 selling for £8,890, and a bronze by Dame Elisabeth Frink called Helmeted Man with Goggles selling for £55,640.

Dame Stephanie, known best as “Steve”, died in August last year, aged 91.

She had lived in Henley since 1995 after moving with her late husband, Derek, who died in 2021, and was the mother of an autistic son, Giles, who died aged 35 after suffering an epileptic seizure in 1998.

The proceeds of the auction, amounting to £819,350 after hammer price and buyer’s premium, will go to her autism research charity, Autistica, which she founded in 2004.

Rebecca Sterry, the chiefexecutive of Autistica, said: “Autistica is incredibly grateful to benefit from the sale of Dame Stephanie’s beloved art and furniture collection from her home in Henley.

“We will honour her legacy by investing these funds in the pioneering research and innovative solutions she believed in, helping to create better understanding and opportunities for autistic people.”

Dreweatts also hosted The Newbury Arts Society for an event the night before with a panel of speakers, including Pat Jordan-Evans, who had been Dame Shirley’s art advisor.

Joe Robinson, head of the house sales and private collections department for Dreweatts, said: “Dame Stephanie’s collection was defined by a clarity of taste and the confidence to live with exceptional works. Every piece reflected her belief in the therapeutic value of art and how it integrates into daily life.

“The result is a fitting tribute to an extraordinary woman whose vision and generosity enriched the lives of so many.”