Kebble Tretchikoff an original

2009-05-12 16:00

Johannesburg - The Vladimir Tretchikoff Lost Orchid painting sold during the recent Brett Kebble art auction is an original, art auctioneer Graham Brits said on Tuesday.

"Many artists visit the same subject matter [making] many versions," said Brits, who is owner of Graham's Fine Art in Broadacres, north of Johannesburg.

He said the Kebble painting was one of these versions and a completely original work of Tretchikoff's.

Earlier the newspaper Beeld reported that there were differences in detail between the painting owned by the murdered mining magnate, and a picture of the painting that appeared in a book by Howard Timmins on Tretchikoff's work in 1969.

Beeld quoted Professor Karel Nel, art lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, as saying it was possible that Tretchikoff had painted more than one version because both works were very similar, and the one could have encouraged him to do another version.

Brits said the origins of Kebble's painting were known and he would release more details about this on Wednesday.

He said the buyer of the painting was not concerned that it was a different version to the one seen in the 1969 book as it was still an original.

"It doesn't affect the value," he said.

- SAPA