Have you ever heard the theory that pets look like their owners? By Lucy Lethbridge Lucy Lethbridge is a journalist and writer. She has written several history books, including, most recently, Tourists: How the British Went Abroad to Find Themselves. A portrait of a pet dog or cat is often simply an expression of their human’s emotion: the love of an owner for an animal companion. It’s difficult not to see one of Gwen John’s self-contained cats without seeing there a reflection of the artist’s own austere and self-sufficient aesthetic vision. In an eighteenth-century painting by George Stubbs, horses and dogs bestride the landscape like their aristocratic owners, grand tourists surveying a world of which they are the heirs and overlords. The pre-eminent early twentieth-century painter of horses, Alfred Munnings, shows the world not only of the racing plutocrats of his time but the poignant dignity of horses in the man-made hellscapes of the First World War. A painting by Munnings, full of excitement and energy, recently displayed by the Rountree Tryon Gallery was commissioned by Baron Mildmay to depict his son on the horse Davy Jones, just before the 1936 Grand National. The great Victorian animal artist Edwin Landseer often placed his animals in theatrical tableaux: a large white poodle, for example, playing the judge in ‘Trial by Jury’ (1840). Even Nipper, the terrier made famous in Francis Barraud’s 1898 ‘His Master’s Voice’ was intended to advertise the hours of companionable family pleasure to be found in listening to a phonograph. Sir Alfred James Munnings, P.R.A., R.W.S. 'Davy Jones with the Hon. Anthony Mildmay up' Image courtesy of Rountree Tryon Galleries Even though that kind of anthropomorphism is less fashionable now, animal portraits speak vividly to us still. And a whole new generation of animal artists has emerged to capture horses, dogs, cats and even farm animals for their owners. Michael J Austin, whose wonderful depiction of a horse’s head, Inception 2023, is on show with the Jonathan Cooper gallery at the Treasure House art fair this year, is a fan of Landseer. But he sees Landseer’s dogs as belonging to a particular context; they belong to a ‘wider scene.’ And Martin is less keen than the Victorian artist on ‘fluffy’ animals: he prefers, for example, whippets or beasts in which you can ‘see the musculature.’ His own paintings are vivid examples of painstakingly close observation of the bones working beneath the skin. His horse’s head bends forward in profile with a combination of submission and nobility. It’s a gesture Martin finds particularly powerful and he observes that it is a feature of un-bridled horses, noting that the steeds found in, for example, ancient Greek reliefs, have reins pulled tight in battle and heads lifted.  Sir Edwin Landseer, R.A., R.I. 'The rounded English pig and the scrawny French pig pen and brown ink' Image courtesy of Rountree Tryon Galleries Originally Martin painted primarily human portraits but since moving to Devon several years ago became interested in cattle, particularly bulls with their rippling muscles and bulk. In bulls too, he tells me, it is the downward head that speaks most strongly of the nature of the entire animal, even when they have lost their horns. They are in battle mode, ‘ready to charge, forehead to forehead.’ Sculptor Mark Coreth, whose depiction of a guide dog (that most moving of animal/human co-dependencies) will be shown by the Sladmore Gallery at Treasure House in maquette, is similarly eloquent on the importance of capturing the elusive ‘essence’ of his animal subjects. Because an animal model of course won’t stay still to order, the artist has to use on other senses. Correth works as far as possible ‘face to face’ and though he takes photographs, he says, he doesn’t end up using them much: the process of capturing the form of the animal is more about memory and feeling. ‘One’s eyes are the lenses and one’s memories are on the memory stick,’ he says. ‘It comes from within, an internal recording.’ Mark Coreth in his studio, Wiltshire, 2021 Image courtesy of Sladmore Gallery Coreth has sculpted animals in the wild and also animals for commission. His most famous is probably his 2016 bronze of Frankel the racehorse, unveiled by the Queen at Newmarket. ‘There is,’ he says, ‘a very deep bond between an artist and his animal. You’ve got to become the animal, to understand it.’ Coreth, like Martin, is fascinated by the brute strength of bulls. He created a bronze of Rodmead Prague, a splendid, prize-winning ‘solid-A’ bull from Wiltshire, beloved of his proud farmer owner. Coreth tells of a gorilla model he once studied in London Zoo. The two of them, artist and ‘beastie’ stood eye to eye for hours in mutual communion. ‘It’s portraiture in its raw form,’ he says. Making a portrait of an animal, revealing something truthful about animal nature, is a pilgrimage of empathy. Guide Dog ‘Grady’, maquette, 2024 by Mark Coreth (British, b.1958), Bronze, Height: 38” (97cm) Image courtesy of Sladmore Gallery

A more pared back approach to interior design shows antique furniture in a new light. By Giles Kime   For at least a decade there has been speculation in the press about the health of the market for antiques imprecisely described as ‘brown furniture’ that could refer to anything from a piece of post war utility furniture to a George II walnut secretaire. Like the fashion for flares and German Riesling it's either on the way in or the way out, usually at the same time. Those who love antiques will tell you two things; one is that it’s a market driven less by prevailing taste and more by the size and proportions of the piece (ie not everyone has room for an eight foot Regency sideboard); the other is that the demand for good antiques has never gone away - it has simply evolved, as it has done for centuries.    ‘Twas ever thus. There are simply times when period and styles are  a little more sought after than others - Georgian, Regency, Victorian, Biedermeier, Gustavian have all had their day in the sun. However such is the glorious variety of antiques, one has never (and will never) eclipse another. Our relationship with antique styles is like a parent with children - they are all loved for different reasons, and you never go off them.  Photograph Courtesy of Godson & Coles   What changes, however, is how furniture is presented; the unhinged eclecticism of the Victorian era, the burden of historicism that dominated the first half 20th century until it was dispelled by the pervasive influence of  Nancy Lancaster and John Fowler who lightened the mood of classic interiors with delicate curtain treatments, chintz and painted furniture as well as the atmospheric tableaux of the dealer decorators of the 1970’s and 1980’s. These are subtle and nuanced shifts that happen over decades rather than years.    In the early decades of the 21st century it happened again. After the minimalist revolution of the 1990’s came, as it always does, counter revolution. Decoration became sexy again;  with a revival of everything from wallpaper and chintz to lustreware and antique furniture. But this time it was different; there was none of the heavily layered fullness of the 1980’s. Photograph Courtesy of Godson & Coles In a sense, it was a more disciplined approach that invoked the spirit of the pared back interiors of the early 19th century.    Mario Praz’s Illustrated History of Interior Decoration reveals the rigour of continental interiors in the early 19th century when few extraneous objects disturbed the linearity of an interior. Even as late as the 1850’s RS Tait’s portrait of Thomas and Jane Carlyle in their house in Cheyne Row demonstrated an ordered simplicity that dominated Victorian interiors before the more full throttle style typified by the home of the Punch illustrator Linley Sambourne in Stafford Terrace in Kensington. It is a monument to the materialism stimulated by the possibilities of mass manufacture and growing global trade. Like the Carlyle’s home it’s still intact and open to the public.  Photograph Courtesy of Godson & Coles  The new mood in decoration relies on a variety of elements; quality over quantity and a carefully curated eclecticism, a spirit that is perhaps most eloquently expressed by the Ben Pentreath Studio; the interiors arm of the architectural and masterplanning practice. The Studio demonstrates how a pared back approach can bring pieces to life with a clarity that is often lacking in more crowded interiors. More pared back still is the work of the interior designer Rose Uniacke in which antiques bring a distinctive look to large rooms  which take on the look of large, gallery-style spaces. Antiques are also a regular feature in the work of a new generation of designers such as Rita Konig, Nicola Harding and James Thurstan, for whom they bring all the qualities that we love about good antiques - colour, craftsmanship and exquisite design.

With shades from palest petal through to bubble gum, fuchsia and rose, pink diamonds have captivated us for centuries, says Kim Parker.  Kim Parker is a writer, journalist and Executive Fashion and Jewellery Director at Harpers Bazaar.   Ever since diamonds were first discovered in India around the 4th century B.C, their scarcity, sparkle and unparalleled strength (the word ‘diamond’ is derived from the Greek ‘adamas’, meaning ‘indestructible’) has meant they are historically regarded above all other gemstones, the preserve of royalty, nobility and the very powerful.   Colourful or ‘fancy’ diamonds are even rarer than their neutral relatives (only one in 10,000 natural diamonds is graded a fancy stone) making them some of the most precious of all the earth’s resources. And amongst the most exclusive of these are the pinks, which can be up 20 times more expensive than their colourless equivalents.  Haute Joaillerie collection ring by Chopard in 18k white and rose gold set with a pear-shaped, 2.4 carat fancy pink diamond and white diamonds, price on request. Courtesy of Chopard.com. “They are a true gemological treasure, accounting for only 0.1% of the 20 million carats of diamonds that are mined each year, and the majority of these are under two carats in size,” says Jean Ghika, global director of jewellery at Bonhams. While pink diamonds can be found in regions of Africa and Russia, the recent closure of one of the most prolific sources of the stones - the Argyle mine in Western Australia, which ceased operations in 2020 - has only exerted further pressure on their supply in recent years.  Unlike other coloured gemstones, the origins of a pink diamond’s romantic colour – long associated with love - also remains shrouded in mystery. “Their hue is not caused by trace elements in their chemical composition but by a miracle of nature, a distortion in their atomic lattice caused by pressure exerted on them during their formation,” Ghika explains, adding that the purer and more intensely saturated the shade, the more valuable the stone. “The most desirable hue is one designated a straight pink. There are a range of secondary hues including purple, orange and brown, however the ideal diamond is one that exhibits only one true colour – pink.” Small wonder, then, that whenever a remarkable stone weighing more than a few carats goes up for auction it makes international news. Indeed, six of the ten most expensive diamonds ever sold have been pinks, including the 14.93-carat ‘Pink Promise’, the 24.78-carat ‘Graff Pink’, and the 18.96-carat ‘Pink Legacy’, which was acquired by the jewellery house Harry Winston in 2018. Just one year beforehand, the 59-carat, internally flawless ‘Pink Star’ became the most expensive diamond of all time when it achieved US$71.2million at Sotheby’s Hong Kong. So intense was the bidding war, it lasted just five minutes and ended with a round of astonished applause.  High jewellery bangle by David Morris in 18k white and rose gold, set with 9.97-carats of pink diamonds and a 6-carat D internally flawless pear shape white diamond, price on request. Courtesy of Davidmorris.com. Many other renowned pinks have become cherished parts of royal collections, too valuable to ever be sold. The late Queen Elizabeth II, who had amassed one of the world’s greatest jewellery collections by the time of her death in 2022, owned the Williamson pink diamond pin – a floral piece set with a flawless, 23.6-carat pink stone given to her as a wedding gift by the Canadian geologist, Dr. John Williamson. Meanwhile, the Noor-ol-Ain Tiara, which was commissioned by the last Shah of Iran in 1958 and whose name means “the light of the eye”, features an incredible 60-carat pink diamond in its centre, one of the largest examples ever found.  ‘Pink de Boodles’ earrings by Boodles with pink and white diamonds set in platinum and 18k SMO pink gold, £28,900. Courtesy of Boodles.com. Today, the rarity and romance of pink diamonds ensures they remain a tempting prospect for any jewellery lover looking to make a statement. According to Jody Wainwright, who sources some of the finest pinks in the business as the director of precious gemstones at Boodles, buyers should seek out jewels that are “nicely proportioned, not asymmetrical or too deeply cut, which can cause the stone to look smaller than it is.” As ever, it’s crucial to thoroughly research the market, seek independent advice and ensure the diamond has the correct grading certificate from a trusted laboratory, such as the GIA (Gemological Institute of America). When it comes to selecting the right shade of pink, Wainwright’s advice is to follow your heart. “What we really love at Boodles is a purple-ish tinge to the pink. More baby pink, or ‘Hubabubba’, as I remember it!’  Ideally, you should choose the stone that causes you to fall-head-over-heels - hopefully you’re going to be together for years to come.      Five pink diamond jewels to invest in right now: ‘Pink de Boodles’ earrings by Boodles with pink and white diamonds set in platinum and 18k SMO pink gold, £28,900. Boodles.com. Portraits of Nature Butterfly ring by De Beers in white and rose gold, set with fancy pink diamonds, price on request. Debeers.co.uk. High jewellery bangle by David Morris in 18k white and rose gold, set with 9.97-carats of pink diamonds and a 6-carat D internally flawless pear shape white diamond, price on request, Davidmorris.com. Haute Joaillerie collection ring by Chopard in 18k white and rose gold set with a pear-shaped, 2.4 carat fancy pink diamond and white diamonds, price on request. Chopard.com. One-of-a-kind Dragonfly brooch by Hirsh London with pink diamonds set in platinum and 18k rose gold, price on request. Courtesy of Hirshlondon.com.