William Boissevain United States, Europe, Australia, 1927-2023
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About William Boissevain
Born in New York in 1927, the son of a Netherlands diplomat, he studied at the Central School of Arts and Crafts, London and the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris before coming to Australia in 1947. His flourishing career as a full-time artist was set in motion when he started exhibiting at Skinner Gallery in Perth and Holdsworth Gallery in Sydney. Before this significant stride, Boissevain had sustained his livelihood primarily through commissioned portraits. Boissevain's collection, encompassing portraits, landscapes, nudes, animal and still life pieces, has enjoyed extensive popularity across Australia. His remarkable skills earned him recognition as one of Australia's most exquisite draughtsmen. He won the Helena Rubinstein Prize for portraiture in 1961 and the Perth Prize for Drawing International in 1971. Boissevain's works are represented in The National Gallery of Australia in Canberra, The Art Gallery of Western Australia in Perth, The Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery in Hobart, Curtin University in Perth and the personal collection of HRH Prince of Wales. He passed away on July 23, 2023 at the age of 95.
William Boissevain is one of the most prolific of the artists listed in our database, with the number of works offered for sale by auction since 1974 of 1,389, of which 1,041 (75%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $32,200 for Startled Bird sold by GFL Fine Art in November 2021. This year 17 works have been offered for sale. Works by William Boissevain are held by the Art Gallery of Western Australia and National Portrait Gallery.
William Boissevain 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 266
- Germaine, Max. Artists and Galleries of Australia, Volumes 1 & 2, Third Edition. Craftsman Press, Sydney, 1990. Page 64
- Campbell, Jean. Australian Watercolour Painters: 1780 to the Present Day. Craftsman House, Sydney, 1989. Page 288
- 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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