William Edward James (James) Cook New Zealand, Australia, 1904-60
Past Sales
Sales by Medium
Where to buy or sell art works by James Cook
Auction Houses
About James Cook
James Cook was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, and studied at the Canterbury School of Fine Arts, training under Richard Wallwork and Francis Sturrock. He then taught at Canterbury School of Fine Arts from 1927 to 1933. Cook won a Travelling Scholarship in 1924 allowing him to study in Scotland and Italy. In Europe, and particularly in London, he met Australian artists, including Douglas Dundas and Arthur Murch. During World War II he was an official new Zeland war artist. He later taught art in Sydney at the National Art School and wrote art reviews for the 'Daily Telegraph' from 19952-59. He was also Director of the Art Gallery of Western Australia for three years from 1942-53.
We have records of art auction sales by James Cook from 1986 and in total 84 works by the artist have been offered for sale, of which 66 (79%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $4,314 for Portrait of Alfred Cook and Rita Angus sold by Watson's Auctioneers in November 2005. No works have been offered for sale this year, and the last sale we have recorded for the artist was in 2023. Works by James Cook are held by the Christchurch Art Gallery, Museum Of New Zealand and a further six major public national galleries (see list below).
James Cook is listed in the following standard biographical references:
- McCulloch, Alan McCulloch, Susan McCulloch, Emily McCulloch-Childs. The New McCulloch's Encyclopedia of Australian Art. 4th Edition, Aus Art Melbourne & The Miegunyah Press, 2006. Page 342
- Germaine, Max. Artists and Galleries of Australia, Volumes 1 & 2, Third Edition. Craftsman Press, Sydney, 1990. Page 138
- Campbell, Jean. Australian Watercolour Painters: 1780 to the Present Day. Craftsman House, Sydney, 1989. Page 299
- Gil Docking, with additions by Michael Gunn covering 1970-90. Two Hundred Years of New Zealand Painting, David Bateman Ltd., New Zealand, 1990 Page 110
- McGahey, Kate. The Concise Dictionary of New Zealand Artists Painters Printmakers Sculptors, Gilt Edge Publishing, Wellington, New Zealand, 2000. Page 50
- Dictionary of Australian Artists Online, an online resource for biographical data about Australian artists, designers, craftspeople and curators.
- The Find New Zealand Artists web site: a database of artist names that directs researchers to the rich resources found in New Zealand's libraries, art society exhibition histories and published sources.
- Australian Prints + Printmaking, a database listing printmaking artists from Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region based on the print collection of the National Gallery of Australia.
Artists' Resale Royalty
Could the second and subsequent works by this artist sold after June 9, 2010 for over $1,000 be liable for the Artists' Resale Royalty? More info…
Yes, eligible, subject to the artist satisfying the residency test. The artist is alive or has been deceased for less than 70 years. Contact the Copyright Agency for information on the residency test.
The Australian Art Sales Digest is a database of over 610,000 works by more than 12,000 artists who are listed as having either lived or worked in Australia or New Zealand, and an additional 36,000 foreign and other artists, offered for sale by auction in Australia and New Zealand from the early 1970s to the present day.
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