John Craxton Paintings & Artwork for Sale | John Craxton Art Value Price Guide

Jul. 07, 2026
Winter Panorama
Est: £1,200 - £1,800
John Craxton, R. A. 1922 - 2009 Winter Panorama signed in pencil and numbered 3/20 etching and aquatint on wove paper plate: 160 by 285 mm. 6¼ by 11¼ in. Executed in 1959, this impression is number 3 from the edition of 20.
Sotheby's
Jul. 01, 2026
John Craxton RA, British 1922-2009, Sixteen prints for Visionary Poems and Passages or The Po
Est: £300 - £500
John Craxton RA, British 1922-2009, Sixteen prints for Visionary Poems and Passages or The Poet's Eye; sixteen lithographs in colours mounted across 5 sheets, from a series of illustrations created for 'The Poet's Eye' by Geoffrey Grigson, 1944, largest image: 19.5 x 13cm, (unframed, mounted) (ARR) (16)
Roseberys
Jul. 01, 2026
John Craxton, RA British, 1922-2009, Various plants; 9 monochrome lithographs on wove, m
Est: £300 - £500
John Craxton, RA British, 1922-2009, Various plants; 9 monochrome lithographs on wove, mounted as one sheet, sheet 30.2 x 40.5 cm, (unframed) (ARR) Note: Together with a book on the artist, 'A Modern Odyssey' published by Pallant House Gallery
Roseberys
Jun. 30, 2026
Â§ John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Barbary Ape
Est: £1,500 - £2,500
Â§ John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Barbary Ape signed with dedication 'For Lynne with love from John' (lower edge) charcoal and crayon Unframed: 20 x 12.4 cm. (7 7/8 x 4 7/8 in.) Framed: 42.4 x 32.6 cm. (16 5/8 x 12 7/8 in.) We are grateful to Dr Ian Collins and Richard Riley for their assistance in cataloguing this lot.
Chiswick Auctions
Jun. 30, 2026
Â§ John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Portrait of a gentleman
Est: £2,000 - £3,000
Â§ John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Portrait of a gentleman signed, inscribed and dated 'for VAGN, with allways/bedste Ã¸nske/John Craxton/ London 1955' (lower right) charcoal Unframed: 26.9 x 20.5 cm. (10 1/2 x 8 in.) Framed: 46.7 x 38.8 cm. (18 3/8 in. x 15 1/4 in.) Provenance: The artist, 1955, whom gifted to Private Collection Their sale; Bruun Rasmussen, Copenhagen, 7 June 2017, lot 960 We are grateful to Dr Ian Collins and Richard Riley for their assistance in cataloguing this lot.
Chiswick Auctions
Jun. 30, 2026
Â§ John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Landscape with House
Est: £4,000 - £6,000
Â§ John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Landscape with House signed, inscribed and dated '18.6.46. for sydy + peggy/with my gratitude/John Craxton' (upper left) chalk and mixed media Unframed: 38.1 x 50.2 cm. (15 x 19 3/4 in.) Framed: 53 x 67.5 cm. (20 7/8 x 26 5/8 in.) Please note there is a further work verso. Provenance: Private Collection, U.K. Their sale; Bonhams, London, 14 June 2017, lot 5, where purchased by the present owner We are grateful to Dr Ian Collins and Richard Riley for their assistance in cataloguing this lot. Notes: The year 1946 was a massive turning point in John Craxtonâ€™s life and art. Having felt claustrophobic and trapped in wartime Britain, Craxton finally managed to travel to Greece in the summer of 1946 alongside Lucian Freud. Landscape with House (1946), executed in mid-June just weeks after his arrival in May, sits excitingly within this period of profound geographical and artistic transition. Stylistically, the work displays Craxtonâ€™s strong Cubist influences. Compositionally, the angular, fragmented mountains, the heavy black outlines, and the striking geometric structures are defining traits of his mid-1940s style. The use of blue paper allows the white and yellow chalk to pop vividly, creating a strong sense of bright Mediterranean light and dramatic, sharp shadows. The verso features another vibrant, abstracted composition in chalk. It is dominated by similar sharp geometries, distinct red brick-like accents, and what appears to be an abstracted, Cubist profile or figure. The art Craxton produced in 1946 serves as the vital bridge between his early, sombre British works and his lifelong celebration of light and colour. This is the year Craxtonâ€™s deep admiration for Pablo Picasso and Cubism truly merged with his own vision. The sharp, structural lines in the present drawing show him using Cubist facets to organise the blinding Greek light and the geometric architecture of the villages. Shortly after his arrival, he also saw Byzantine mosaics for the first time, which deeply influenced his later use of vibrant, shattered colour. Rather than using oil and canvas, Craxton relied heavily on easily transportable mediums, such as pastels, pencils, ink, chalk, and gouache, during this period. This approach was born out of necessity: art supplies were strictly rationed in the wake of the Second World War, and his restless, nomadic lifestyle meant he lacked a permanent studio to accommodate oil painting. Craxton's works from this year perfectly capture a young artist shedding his wartime anxieties and finding his true voice. He began blending the linear, faceted structures of Cubism (heavily influenced by Picasso and MirÃ³) with the timelessness of the Greek landscape. Landscape with House is a prime example of how life-changing this relocation was. His works created during this time exploded with vibrant colour, Mediterranean light, and structural confidence, focusing at last on real people and places rather than imaginary dreamers.
Chiswick Auctions
Jun. 24, 2026
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Standing Figure by a Sea Wall 46.5 x 30 cm. (18 1/4 x 11 3/4 in.)
Est: £30,000 - £50,000
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Standing Figure by a Sea Wall signed and dated 'Craxton-54' (lower left); further signed, titled and dated again 'Standing Figure by a Sea Wall/John Craxton/Poros 1954' (on a board attached to the backboard) gouache, pen and ink on paper laid on board 46.5 x 30 cm. (18 1/4 x 11 3/4 in.)
Bonhams
Apr. 16, 2026
John Craxton, RA Various plants
Est: £700 - £1,000
John Craxton, RA British, 1922-2009, Various plants; 9 monochrome lithographs on wove, mounted as one sheet, sheet 30.2 x 40.5 cm, (unframed) (ARR) Note: Together with a book on the artist, 'A Modern Odyssey' published by Pallant House Gallery
Roseberys
Apr. 16, 2026
John Craxton RA, Sixteen prints for Visionary Poems and Passages or The Poet's Eye
Est: £600 - £800
John Craxton RA, British 1922-2009, Sixteen prints for Visionary Poems and Passages or The Poet's Eye; sixteen lithographs in colours mounted across 5 sheets, from a series of illustrations created for 'The Poet's Eye' by Geoffrey Grigson, 1944, largest image: 19.5 x 13cm, (unframed, mounted) (ARR) (16)
Roseberys
Mar. 31, 2026
§ John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Poet in a landscape
Est: £10,000 - £15,000
tempera on board Painted circa 1944 Size:(48.3 x 39.2 cm. (19 x 15 1/2 in.)) Provenance:With Gillian Jason Gallery, Camden, circa 1990, where purchased by the present owner Please note there is a drawing verso of Chichester Cathedral, where Craxton was a boy chorister. We are grateful to Richard Riley and Dr Ian Collins for their assistance in cataloguing this lot Notes: Painted around 1944, Poet in a Landscape belongs to the formative early period of the British painter John Craxton, whose work emerged during the final years of the Second World War and quickly established him as one of the most distinctive figures of his generation. Born in London in 1922, Craxton developed largely outside the conventions of academic training, instead forging a highly personal style shaped by friendships with writers, musicians and fellow artists. His early work reflects the atmosphere of wartime Britain, often combining solitary figures with dreamlike or pastoral landscapes that evoke both introspection and a longing for escape. The present work exemplifies this early lyrical phase. Executed in tempera on board, the composition depicts a seated figure, identified as a poet, absorbed in quiet contemplation within an abstracted landscape. The figure’s bowed head and loosely folded hands convey a mood of introspection, while the surrounding space is suggested through rhythmic, calligraphic lines and softly brushed tonal passages. Craxton’s economy of means is striking: the composition is built from spare but expressive outlines, with washes of pale colour that create a delicate sense of atmosphere rather than detailed description. Such imagery reflects Craxton’s close engagement with contemporary literary culture. During the early 1940s he moved within a circle that included writers such as Lucian Freud and the poet Dylan Thomas, and the meditative figure in this work evokes the creative introspection of that milieu. At the same time, the work reveals the influence of European modernists, particularly the linear elegance and poetic symbolism associated with artists such as Pablo Picasso, whose work Craxton admired. Paintings from this wartime period are particularly significant within Craxton’s oeuvre. Created before his first visit to Greece in 1946, an experience that would transform his palette and subject matter, they capture the artist at a moment when his visual language was still shaped by the muted atmosphere of Britain during the war years. The restrained palette, spare composition and contemplative subject combine to produce a work of remarkable quiet intensity. Poet in a Landscape therefore stands as a compelling example of Craxton’s early poetic vision: intimate in scale yet emotionally resonant, it reveals the foundations of the lyrical sensibility that would later define his celebrated Mediterranean paintings.
Chiswick Auctions
Mar. 19, 2026
JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (1922-2009). Study for Dark Landscape. pastel on blue pa
Est: £35,000 - £55,000
JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (1922-2009). Study for Dark Landscape. pastel on blue paper16 ¾ x 21 5/8 in. (42.5 x 55 cm.).
Christie's
Feb. 11, 2026
⊕ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009)
Est: £3,000 - £4,000
⊕ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009) GOAT REACHING FOR THORN FRUIT signed and dated 1.8.46. / Craxton upper right; oil and gouache on paper laid down on card; 41.5 x 29cm; 16 1/4 x 11 1/2in (54 x 41.5cm; 21 1/4 x 16 1/2in framed) Provenance: (probably) Abbott & Holder, London The present work was painted shortly after Craxton’s arrival on the island of Poros. Stymied by war Craxton had been desperate to leave the claustrophobic darkness of Britain, and yearned for more exotic climes. His arrival in Greece proved to be utterly transformational and he remained there, on-and-off, for the next 60 years. He said of his new homeland, ‘It’s possible to be a real person – real people, real elements, real windows – real sun above all. In a life of reality my imagination really works. I feel like an émigré in London and squashed flat.’ Goats played an important role within daily life among the shepherds on Poros and become incorporated into many of Craxton’s most important paintings from the period, including Pastoral for P.W., 1948 (Tate Britain). Iconographically the goat plays a crucial role in Craxton’s depiction of the Arcadian idyll which was Greece. These creatures, much like he, were free to roam, living a ‘real’ life.
Olympia Auctions
Feb. 11, 2026
⊕ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009)
Est: £6,000 - £8,000
⊕ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009) SLEEPING BOY pencil on paper laid down; 28 x 20cm; 11 x 8in (49.5 x 40.5cm; 19 1/2 x 16in framed) Exhibited: London, Christopher Hull Gallery, Freud and Craxton, 1983, no. 74 Executed in 1942. There appears to be a sketch of two birds with long necks, possibly swans, on the verso, just visible through the paper. On a label on the reverse JRT notes his conversation with Craxton at the time of the 1983 exhibition: 'this drawing comes from a sketchbook which was used turn-and turn-about by John Craxton and Lucien Freud in 1942, when they were sharing a studio and socially inseperable. In the 1983 Christopher Hull show it was classified as a Craxton, but Craxton himself told me that he really could not remember for sure and thought it was more likely to be by Freud - something I think one might guess anyway from comparing it with the known contemporary works of the two artists'. Catherine Lampert, however, disputes this interpretation of the drawing considering it technically and stylisticaly to be by Craxton alone, a view also shared by Ian Collins, author of John Craxton, A Life of Gifts.
Olympia Auctions
Feb. 11, 2026
⊕ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009)
Est: £1,000 - £1,500
⊕ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009) LANDSCAPE WITH FIGURE dated 3.1.45 lower right; pencil and black chalk on paper; 20 x 32cm; 8 x 12 1/2in (33.5 x 45cm; 13 1/4 x 17 3/4in framed) Provenance: William Murray (from whom purchased) The present work, a page from a sketchbook, bears the considerable influence of Craxton’s greatest inspirations, including Pablo Picasso, Joan Miro, Graham Sutherland and Samuel Palmer. The subject and composition is typical of John Craxton’s work from the mid-1940s. Both surreal and Neo-romantic it belongs to a series of paintings, prints and drawings he produced focused on solitary figures. Later in life he would describe them as, ‘my means of escape and a sort of self protection. A shepherd is a lone figure, and so is a poet.’ Hemmed in by the structures of British society and the realities of war Craxton was, for a great many years, a man unsure of his place in the world. He drew the present landscape at the same time that he was working on the illustrations for A Poet's Eye, an anthology of poetry selected by Geoffrey Grigson (see lot 286). Both the poetry and the art which decorates the book powerfully speaks to the escapist mood of wartime Britain. The somewhat menacing landscape of the work also finds inspiration from the time Craxton spent painting in Pembrokeshire, alongside his mentor, Graham Sutherland.
Olympia Auctions
Dec. 10, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) Moon Tree, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm.
Est: £60 - £100
John Craxton (1922-2009) Moon Tree, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm. At present, there is no condition report prepared for this lot, this in no way indicates a good condition, please contact the saleroom for a condition report.
Mallams
Dec. 10, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) Tangled Roots, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm.
Est: £60 - £100
John Craxton (1922-2009) Tangled Roots, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm. At present, there is no condition report prepared for this lot, this in no way indicates a good condition, please contact the saleroom for a condition report.
Mallams
Dec. 10, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) Clawed Form, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm.
Est: £60 - £100
John Craxton (1922-2009) Clawed Form, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm. At present, there is no condition report prepared for this lot, this in no way indicates a good condition, please contact the saleroom for a condition report.
Mallams
Dec. 10, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) Full Moon Over Hilly Landscape, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm.
Est: £60 - £100
John Craxton (1922-2009) Full Moon Over Hilly Landscape, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm. At present, there is no condition report prepared for this lot, this in no way indicates a good condition, please contact the saleroom for a condition report.
Mallams
Dec. 10, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) The Dreamer Within The Tree, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm.
Est: £60 - £100
John Craxton (1922-2009) The Dreamer Within The Tree, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm. At present, there is no condition report prepared for this lot, this in no way indicates a good condition, please contact the saleroom for a condition report.
Mallams
Dec. 10, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) Yellow Trees from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm.
Est: £60 - £100
John Craxton (1922-2009) Yellow Trees from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm. At present, there is no condition report prepared for this lot, this in no way indicates a good condition, please contact the saleroom for a condition report.
Mallams
Dec. 10, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) Meandering Path from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm.
Est: £60 - £100
John Craxton (1922-2009) Meandering Path from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm. At present, there is no condition report prepared for this lot, this in no way indicates a good condition, please contact the saleroom for a condition report.
Mallams
Dec. 10, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) Green Tree, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm.
Est: £60 - £100
John Craxton (1922-2009) Green Tree, from The Poet’s Eye, 1944 lithograph unframed 20.5cm x 13.5cm. At present, there is no condition report prepared for this lot, this in no way indicates a good condition, please contact the saleroom for a condition report.
Mallams
Nov. 27, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) Lion drinking
Est: £200 - £300
John Craxton (1922-2009) Lion drinking Linocut, worked up with original hand-colouring, 1970, on sturdy buff wove paper, sheet 148 x 217 mm (5 3/4 x 8 1/2 in) (unframed) Provenance: Gifted by the artist to Brian Hawkins Anonymous sale; private collection, UK ⁂ Another variant impression of the present print was sold by Christies London, who noted that the present work was the outcome of a trip to Kenya by Craxton. The work is one of 200 that were sent as Christmas cards by the Craxton family.
Forum Auctions - UK
Nov. 19, 2025
§ John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Self-portrait
Est: £50,000 - £80,000
signed and dated 'Craxton 44' (upper right) oil on canvas Painted in 1943-4 Size:(61 x 47 cm. (24 x 18 1/2 in.)) Provenance:Ian L Phillips, circa 1944, thence by descent to the present owner Exhibited: Possibly: London, The Leicester Galleries, Paintings and Drawings by John Craxton, June 1944, cat.no.16 London, Whitechapel Art Gallery, John Craxton, Paintings and Drawings 1941-1966, Jan-Feb 1967, no.4 We are grateful to Dr Ian Collins and Richard Riley for their assistance in cataloguing this lot Notes: London-raised John Craxton (1922-2009), largely self-taught as an artist, came to public attention at the age of 19. It all began when patron Peter Watson reproduced a bravura drawing Poet in Landscape in Horizon magazine. An ensuing war-time flow of lonely figures in menaced terrain were emblematic portraits of the artist himself. He became the poster boy for the Neo-Romantic movement before the term was coined. At 19 Craxton also met Lucian Freud, and the teenage renegades were promptly set up in adjoining studios by the faithful Peter Watson and left free to work as they wished on highly imaginative paintings and drawings. Although both artists were distinctive and divergent from the outset, there was a great deal of cross-pollination between them. As each evolved subtle and idiosyncratic motifs and symbols, Craxton and Freud flirted with surrealism. At dinners in Soho's Barcelona restaurant hosted by Belgian painter E.L.T. Mesens, they met Roland Penrose and photographer Lee Miller, painters Eileen Agar and Conroy Maddox, and Jacques Brunius, assistant director to Luis Buñuel on the film L'âge d'or. Through Watson, Craxton had also become close to Graham Sutherland, John Piper and Paul Nash. He went with Sutherland to Pembrokeshire, whose spiky vegetation and rugged landscape was as near as he could get to the Greece of his dreams. For him, it was nowhere near enough. This pivotal 1943 Craxton self-likeness, to which the artist probably added a finishing touch in 1944, hence the date upper-right, evolved around the time of Freud's Man with a Feather. The strange juxtaposition of the 21-year-old painter with a plant prefigures the later Freud images Man with Thistle (Self-Portrait) (1946) and Self-Portrait with Hyacinth in a Pot (1947-8). The tropical Dracaena fragrans foliage depicted here is a fitting choice for an artist who hated the cold, dark constriction of war-bound England and longed to escape to a life in the sun. Having been forced back from Paris in the summer of 1939 by approaching conflict, he wilted on a besieged island. Failing an army medical, Craxton was frequently ill: in a 1943 Freud drawing Boy in Bed with Fruit, quinces hint at the yellow of his jaundiced skin. The wary look was characteristic of his war-time persona where nervy energy and bouts of debilitation pointed to undiagnosed tuberculosis. He needed a hot climate more than he ever knew. Craxton's breakthrough would come in the spring of 1944, at a sell-out Leicester Galleries exhibition. The show coincided with the D-Day Landings which began the liberation of Europe and would ultimately allow his flight abroad. By the summer of 1945 Craxton and Freud could roam only as far as the Aegean-like Scilly Isles. They were foiled in a bid to stow away on a Breton fishing boat to get to Paris, Picasso and then the Mediterranean. John Craxton flew to Greece in the spring of 1946. Freud joined him for five months, but Craxton never looked back - working on sunburst Greek inspired pictures (absorbing mythology, archaeology, Byzantine mosaics and modernism in a very personal iconography) for the rest of his life. The self-absorbed figure of a haunted youth was left far behind. He became a portraitist of other people - flowering in the sunshine; living for pleasure and painting it too. The vivid red and yellow tie in this poignant picture is a premonition of a bright world to come. We are grateful to Dr Ian Collins for compiling this catalogue entry (Dr Ian Collins is the author of the Runciman Prize-winning biography John Craxton: A Life of Gifts (Yale University Press) and curator of numerous Craxton exhibitions.
Chiswick Auctions
Nov. 12, 2025
Craxton (John, 1922-2009). Four lithographs from the Poet’s Eye, 1944
Est: £150 - £200
Craxton (John, 1922-2009). Four lithographs from the Poet’s Eye, 1944 * Craxton (John, 1922-2009). Four lithographs from the Poet’s Eye, 1944, lithographs in colour, including Clawed Form and three others, printed by W. S. Cowell, multi-aperture mount, each aperture 12.5 x 19 cm (5 x 7 1/2 ins), framed, together with Colquhoun (Robert, 1914-1962). Four lithographs from Poems of Sleep and Dream, 1947, lithographs in colour, multi-aperture mount, each aperture 16.5 x 10 cm (6 1/2 x 4 ins), framed QTY: (2)
Dominic Winter Auctions
Jul. 16, 2025
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) A Craxton Cat (unframed) (Executed in 1965)
Est: £1,000 - £1,500
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) A Craxton Cat pencil on paper 14 x 10cm (5 1/2 x 3 15/16in). (unframed) Executed in 1965
Bonhams
Jun. 18, 2025
John Craxton (1922-2009) Clawed Form, 1944 lithograph printed by W.S. Cowell for 'The Poet's Eye' 14 x 20cm. Provenance: Collection of Professor John Chambers.
Est: £70 - £100
John Craxton (1922-2009) Clawed Form, 1944 lithograph printed by W.S. Cowell for 'The Poet's Eye' 14 x 20cm. Provenance: Collection of Professor John Chambers.
Mallams
Jun. 11, 2025
⊕ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009)
Est: £30,000 - £50,000
⊕ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009) BOY WITH A DOG signed Craxton lower right oil on paper mounted on card 61 x 43.5cm; 24 x 17 1/4in 69.5 x 52cm; 27 1/2 x 20 1/2in (framed) Property from a Private Collection, Notting Hill Provenance Sale, Christie's London, 5 November 1999, lot 83 Purchased by the present owners in the early 2000s Exhibited Athens, The British Council, John Craxton, 1946, no. 15 (as Boy with a Dog) The London Gallery, John Craxton, 1949, no. 14 (as Shepherd Boy) London, The Mayor Gallery, John Craxton, 1950, no. 10 (as Boy with a Sheep) Literature Ian Collins, John Craxton, Surrey, 2011, no. 105, p. 90, illustrated I can't tell you how delicious this country is & the lovely hot sun all day and at night tavernas: hot prawns in olive oil & great wine & the soft sweet smell of greek pine trees. I shall never come home. how can I? (Craxton, Greece, 1946) Painted on the island of Poros in 1946, Craxton included the present work in his first exhibition in Greece held at the British Council on Kolonaki Square in Athens that December, opened by the painter Nikos Ghika. The striking image of the boy with the animal across his shoulders gave rise to a number of works in which a shepherd is featured with a sheep in the same pose, notably the oils Greek Farm of 1946 and Shepherds near Knossos of 1947 (both private collection). It may well have been his success with this latter motif that led Craxton to re-title the work Boy with a Sheep for his 1949 London Gallery show, as written in his hand on the London Gallery label, which in turn was reduced to Shepherd Boy in the printed catalogue. The initials LG and MG also on the label seem to reference the London Gallery and possibly the artist Meraud Guinness whom he had met through Lucien Freud (fig. 1) Ian Collin's lyrical and utterly absorbing biography John Craxton A Life of Gifts captures the artist's gilded existence as a young man to perfection. A natural charmer, with piercing good looks to match, Craxton had a winning way of navigating life with a fair degree of pluck and bountiful luck. His big break came with his chance meeting of the young, wealthy and generous aesthete Peter Watson in the early 1940s. Watson, who had launched Horizon magazine with Cyril Connolly and Stephen Spender, quickly took Craxton under his wing. He cultivated his interest in literature and music and the work of William Blake and Samuel Palmer in particular. Early on he published Craxton's drawings, and introduced him to a wealth of new friends, amongst them another protégé Lucien Freud and the influential Lady Norton, co-founder of the London Gallery, and wife of Sir Clifford Norton, British Ambassador to Greece. Craxton and Freud became instant kindred spirits and inseparable, soon sharing a studio in London which their benefactor Watson was happy to finance. In the spring of 1946 Watson arranged for Craxton to have an exhibition at Galerie Gasser in Zurich. At the opening dinner Craxton sat next to Lady Norton. A passionate collector, decorator and lover of contemporary art, she answered Craxton's long held ambition to travel to Greece, and in style. As Collins puts it: 'Lady Norton had left a borrowed bomber in Milan during a mission to buy curtains for the threadbare embassy. She would give him a lift. The Craxton exhibition had barely opened when Craxton vanished' (Ian Collins, p. 141). Craxton not only stayed at the Embassy - Lady Norton diplomatically arranged for him to stay in a room over a garage to appease her husband - but she also provided him with considerable largesse, including an allowance of £15 a month. Once again the artist had fallen on his feet. But following an Embassy dinner during which he drew the ire of guest of honour General Montgomery (Monty) of Alamein, Craxton was obliged to move on. Recommended by Patrick Leigh Fermor, who was working for the British Council in Athens and had become a good friend he headed for the island of Poros. There Craxton lodged with Efstathia Mastropetros, a widow with five children, in the best rooms in the house with a glorious outlook over the bay. It was the beginning of another happy and enduring friendship, the artist for ever after referring to the Mastrepetros family as his Greek cousins. Before Freud joined him on Poros that September, Craxton painted the present work. We are grateful to Ian Collins and the Estate of John Craxton for their help in cataloguing the present work.
Olympia Auctions
May. 01, 2025
§ JOHN CRAXTON R.A. (BRITISH 1922-2009)
Est: £2,000 - £3,000
JOHN CRAXTON R.A. (BRITISH 1922-2009) STANDING GIRL, 1953 signed and dated 3rd October 1953 (lower right), charcoal on paper 57cm x 35cm (22 ½in 13 ¾in) The Leicester Galleries, London;Edward Le Bas Esq., R. A.;The Collection of Gillian Raffles. Exhibited:Ernest, Brown and Phillips Ltd at The Leicester Galleries, John Craxton, 1954;Royal Academy of Arts, London, A Painter's Collection - An Exhibition of Paintings, Drawings and Sculptures from the Collection of Edward le Bas R.A., 1963, cat. 280.
Lyon & Turnbull
Feb. 12, 2025
§ JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009)
Est: £1,500 - £2,500
JOHN CRAXTON RA (BRITISH 1922-2009) Night Ravine 1971 signed in red pencil, titled and numbered 25/26 in pencil etching with carborundum and aquatint on wove plate 48 x 22.4cm framed ARR
Chiswick Auctions
Nov. 27, 2024
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) A Craxton Cat (unframed) (Executed in 1965)
Est: £2,000 - £3,000
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) A Craxton Cat pencil on paper 14 x 10cm (5 1/2 x 3 15/16in). (unframed) Executed in 1965
Bonhams
Nov. 20, 2024
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Eleni Psari 60.2 x 44.5 cm. (23 5/8 x 17 1/2 in.)
Est: £15,000 - £20,000
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Eleni Psari signed and dated '6.8.47/Craxton' (upper right); and titled 'EɅENI' (lower right) gouache and conté crayon on board 60.2 x 44.5 cm. (23 5/8 x 17 1/2 in.)
Bonhams
Nov. 20, 2024
JOHN CRAXTRON (1922-2009) Chèvre
Est: €3,000 - €5,000
JOHN CRAXTRON (1922-2009) Chèvre signé, daté et inscrit ' For Aleca with love / John Craxton 55' en bas à droite encre sur tissus 39 x 50 cm. (14 15/16 x 19 11/16in.) Peint en 1955. signed, dated and inscribed ' For Aleca with love / John Craxton 55' lower right ink on fabrics
Bonhams
Oct. 25, 2024
§ John Craxton RA (1922-2009)
Est: £50,000 - £80,000
§ John Craxton RA (1922-2009) A Fisherman signed and inscribed 'to my Gigi . June 48 / Craxton' (lower right) oil on canvas, unframed 63 x 43.5cm Provenance: Given by the artist to Gigi Richter in 1948 by whom gifted to the present owner John Craxton was a British artist for whom life and work were steeped in foreign experience, especially in Greece. Although he had begun his career in London with shows alongside the best of his generation, such as Lucian Freud, it was his move to Greece in the late 1940s that transformed both his artistic vision and his sense of personal identity. Craxton first visited Greece in 1946 and was immediately entranced by its brilliant light and rich, complex culture. This was a seismic turning point in his artistic direction. Whereas much of his earlier work, often rooted in English surrealism, had been dark and introspective, the Greek experience hailed an age of vibrant colour, dynamic form, and celebration of the Mediterranean way of life. Perhaps his most iconic subject matter during this period was the Greek fisherman. The simplicity of their lives attracted him, and he recorded them in a series of paintings that framed their rough dignity and affinity with the sea. In the best of these works, Craxton balances figuration and abstraction to extraordinary effect. His fishermen stand solidly before us, yet appear to merge into the surroundings - the lines of their bodies echoing the waves of the sea, fusing man with nature and suggesting the possibility of harmonious coexistence of man and nature. The rest of Craxton's career was spent depicting Greek subjects, from the landscape of the locale to mythological incidents; however, it is in the way he captured local fishermen-quartets that perhaps his most long-lasting legacy lies. His work here in Greece, therefore, represents not only the stylistic evolution of his work but also his personal transformation in becoming more attuned with the elemental forces of nature and timelessness of Greek culture. His art spoke toward the place where past and present combined - human life totally dependent on land and sea. The present work is a wonderful example of this portion of his œuvre, though it was not until recently that the piece was discovered. In the late 1940s, Craxton visited the late Gigi Richter, botanist and art restorer, to have the canvas relined. Upon receiving his £37 invoice, Craxton, who was always famously short of money, suggested to Gigi that she retain the work in lieu of payment, inscribing the lower edge of the canvas "to my Gigi . / June 1948 / Craxton." The painting is executed in oil on a canvas support which has been lined. Some of the original tacking edges have been removed and edges that remain have been folded over the stretcher with some deep cracks to the paint layer. The lining involved a heavy amount of wax which is visible on the reverse of the lining canvas. There are a few small dents to the canvas, notably above the figures proper left hand. The paint layers are stable overall. Old losses have been filled and retouched, these are not extensive. The overpaint appears matte compared to the surrounding area. The surface gloss varies across the picture depending on the paint.
Cheffins
Sep. 26, 2024
John Craxton (1922-2009) Tree Root signed, dated 1943, pencil sketch, 18.5cm x 23.5cm
Est: £150 - £200
John Craxton (1922-2009) Tree Root signed, dated 1943, pencil sketch, 18.5cm x 23.5cm
Bamfords Auctioneers and Valuers Ltd
Sep. 11, 2024
John Craxton, Goat and Birds, 1984;
Est: £3,000 - £5,000
John Craxton, British 1922-2009 - Goat and Birds, 1984; watercolour on paper, signed and dated lower right 'Craxton 5.84', 14.3 x 20 cm (ARR) Provenance: with Christopher Hull Gallery, London, MS No.1254 (according to the label attached to the reverse of the frame); Mrs Tennant, purchased from the above in 1985; private collection Exhibited: Christopher Hull Gallery, London, 1985, no.21 (according to the label attached to the reverse of the frame); Note: This charming work displays Craxton’s unique visual sense and enduring passion for the landscape and fauna of his adopted homeland of Greece. It was shown as part of a series of exhibitions with Christopher Hull Gallery between 1982 and 1993. Early in his career, Craxton shared a studio in London with Lucien Freud and developed close ties and friendships with many other notable British artists such as Graham Sutherland, Robert Colquhoun and John Piper. As soon as possible after the war, Craxton set off for the Mediterranean where he developed a strong fascination with Arcadian life, fueling his art for much of his career. Craxton became a Royal Academician in 1993 and his works are held in the Tate and V&A collections among many others. His work was recently the subject of major touring show launched at the Benaki Museum in 2022. Pallant House Gallery recently held the retrospective ‘John Craxton: A Modern Odyssey’ which opened October 2023.
Roseberys
Jun. 19, 2024
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Goatherd and Goat 127 x 104 cm. (50 x 40 in.)
Est: £100,000 - £150,000
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Goatherd and Goat signed and dated 'Craxton 1950' (lower right) oil on canvas 127 x 104 cm. (50 x 40 in.)
Bonhams
Jun. 19, 2024
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Two Cats Playing 18 x 28 cm. (7 x 11 in.)
Est: £7,000 - £10,000
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Two Cats Playing signed and dated 'Craxton -66-' (upper left) tempera on board 18 x 28 cm. (7 x 11 in.)
Bonhams
Jun. 07, 2024
Frontispiece for The Punishment of Wizards
Est: £8,000 - £12,000
Property from the Collection of Luke Gertler and Francis Guilfoyle John Craxton 1922 – 2009 Frontispiece for The Punishment of Wizards signed Craxton and dated .47 (lower left) brush and ink on paper, laid down on Japan paper unframed (sheet): 57 by 45.5cm.; 22½ by 18in. unframed (backing sheet): 58.5 by 47cm.; 23 by 18 ½ in. framed: 66 by 53.5cm.; 26 by 21in. Executed in 1947.
Sotheby's
Dec. 12, 2023
Â§ JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (BRITISH, 1922-2009)
Est: £4,000 - £6,000
Â§ JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (BRITISH, 1922-2009) JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (BRITISH, 1922-2009) Head of Shepherd chalk 65 x 50 cm. (25 1/2 x 19 3/4 in.) Executed circa 1940 Provenance Sale; NosbÃ¼sch & Stucke, Germany, 17 May 2019, lot 759, where purchased by the present owner Exhibited London, The Redfern Gallery, Advent Exhibition, 1-24 December 2022 âBetween 1941 and 1945, before I went to Greece, I drew and occasionally painted landscapes with shepherds or poets as single figuresâ¦ They were my means of escape and a sort of self-protection. A shepherd is a lone figure, and so is a poet. I wanted to safeguard a world of private mysteryâ - John Craxton Head of a Sheperd executed circa 1940 is an prime example of one such depiction of an isolated and lonely figure. These were executed before his time in Greece and during the war-years, where his awareness and influence of European styles are clear. He had studied in Paris in 1937, and on an earlier trip to France aged 14, he visited the Paris World Exposition where he witnessed firsthand, Picassoâs masterpiece Guerina. This drawing is inescapable of cubist elements, line, shape and colour dominate the composition rather than shadow and perspective. Similarly, the artistâs interest in Byzantine style is too indicated here, despite the early date of the work, the shepherd is displayed with compositional similarities to icons of Christ with paralleling features of angular lines and sharp contours. âThe light in Greece is wonderful versus the grey duvet that blankets Londonâ - John Craxton
Chiswick Auctions
Oct. 17, 2023
John Craxton RA (1922-2009)
Est: £200 - £300
John Craxton RA (1922-2009) ▴ John Craxton RA (1922-2009) Cat and butterfly a reproduction print with hand-colouring, inscribed 'to wish Joanna & Christopher a very happy christmas nineteen eighty eight with love from John' around the edge sheet 13.5 x 17.5cm Provenance: A gift from the artist Joanna Carrington and her husband, the artist and film director Christopher Mason, to the current vendors - as seen on the inscription. Christopher Mason and John Craxton were good friends and spent time together in Greece. Condition Report: Framed: 19.5 x 24cm The work has been trimmed and stuck down to a sheet of grey card. There is a light ripple to the upper right. Not viewed out of glazed frame.
Sworders
Sep. 12, 2023
John Craxton RA, Samiotissa, 1982
Est: £1,500 - £2,000
John Craxton RA, British 1922-2009 - Samiotissa, 1982; pencil and chalk on paper signed lower left 'Craxton', 58.3 x 45.4 cm (ARR) Provenance: Christopher Hull Gallery, London (according to the label attached to the reverse of the frame); Charles Goodman, purchased in 1985; private collection Exhibited: Christopher Hull Gallery, London, 'Portraits 1942-1992', no.18 (according to the label attached to the reverse of the frame) Note: This charming portrait displays Craxton’s observational expertise and subtlety of technique. It originates from the beginning of a series of exhibitions with Christopher Hull gallery between 1982 and 1993. Early in his career Craxton shared a studio in London with Lucien Freud and developed close ties and friendships with many other notable British artists such as Graham Sutherland, Robert Colquhoun and John Piper. As soon as possible after the war, Craxton set off for the Mediterranean where he developed a strong fascination with Arcadian life, fueling his art for much of his career. Craxton became a Royal Academician in 1993 and his works are held in the Tate and V&A collections among many others. His work was recently the subject of major touring show launched at the Benaki Museum in 2022. Pallant House Gallery is also showing a retrospective ‘John Craxton: A Modern Odyssey’ beginning October 2023.
Roseberys
Jun. 21, 2023
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Summer Triptych (Boy on Wall, Girl on the Seashore, Goat and Tree) 142 x 60.5 cm. (55 7/8 x 23 5/8 in.); 142.3 x 59.7 cm. (56 x 23 1/2 in.); 142.8 x 60.4 cm. (56 1/4 x 23 3/4 in.) (Painted circa 1958)
Est: £80,000 - £120,000
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Summer Triptych (Boy on Wall, Girl on the Seashore, Goat and Tree) tempera on board 142 x 60.5 cm. (55 7/8 x 23 5/8 in.); 142.3 x 59.7 cm. (56 x 23 1/2 in.); 142.8 x 60.4 cm. (56 1/4 x 23 3/4 in.) Painted circa 1958
Bonhams
Oct. 28, 2022
§ John Craxton R.A. (British 1922-2009) Artichokes, 1987
Est: £1,500 - £2,000
§ John Craxton R.A. (British 1922-2009) Artichokes, 1987 signed and dated in pen (lower left), pastel on paper (32.5cm x 49.5cm (12 3/4in x 19 1/2in)) We would like to thank Richard Riley and the John Craxton Estate for their assistance in cataloguing this work.
Lyon & Turnbull
Oct. 20, 2022
JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (1922-2009) The Bouzouki Player JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (1922-2009) /The Bouzouki Play
Est: £8,000 - £12,000
JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (1922-2009) The Bouzouki Player JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (1922-2009) /The Bouzouki Player/ signed and dated 'Craxton .56.' (lower left) gouache on paper 11 3/4 x 9 1/4 in. (29.7 x 23.5 cm.) Executed in 1956.
Christie's
Oct. 04, 2022
John Craxton RA (1922-2009)
Est: £3,000 - £5,000
John Craxton RA (1922-2009) ▴ John Craxton RA (1922-2009) Figures outside a cottage in Wales signed 'Craxton' l.l., indistinctly inscribed and dated 44 l.r., with a sketch of the cottage and figure studies in pencil verso, gouache with pencil and pen and ink 19 x 24.5cm We are grateful to Richard Riley for his assistance in the cataloguing of this lot. Condition Report: Framed size 35 x 41cm As viewed through frame, there do not appear to be any condition issues. Out of frame, the paper taped town to mount. Additional old tape and staining to back of paper.
Sworders
Sep. 21, 2022
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Night Ravine Etching with carborundum and aquatint, 1971, on wove, signed, titled, dated and inscribed 'artist's proof' in pencil, with wide margins, 475 x 230mm (18 5/8 x 9in)(PL)
Est: £1,500 - £2,000
John Craxton R.A. (British, 1922-2009) Night Ravine Etching with carborundum and aquatint, 1971, on wove, signed, titled, dated and inscribed 'artist's proof' in pencil, with wide margins, 475 x 230mm (18 5/8 x 9in)(PL) For further information on this lot please visit the Bonhams website
Bonhams
May. 25, 2022
JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (1922-2009) Two Goats among Rocks tempera and polyfilla
Est: £25,000 - £35,000
JOHN CRAXTON, R.A. (1922-2009) Two Goats among Rocks tempera and polyfilla on panel 48 x 24 in. (121.9 x 61 cm.)
Christie's