A fresh-to-market collection of watercolours, pastels and Christmas cards by the British artist John Craxton (1922-2009) is expected to make up to £24,000 at Hansons Auctioneers’ Cornwall saleroom in January.
Some 23 works were inherited by the artist’s friend and housemate, Clifford Cook a writer and teacher, who was part of Craxton’s artistic milieu in Greece in the 1970s.
The majority depict cats in whimsical poses – one of Claxton’s most visited themes – and were consigned for sale by Cook’s sister.
She said: “My brother was a teacher in Monkton Wyld School in Dorset in the 1970s when he decided to give up his job and work his way around Europe. Someone gave him the number of John Craxton, who was living in Chania in northwest Crete, and when he got there he looked him up.”
The pair became good friends with Cook moving in to caretake the artist’s home when he was away.
She continued: “At the time John was moving between London and Chania and Cliff was able to help with odd jobs. I know they collaborated on several paintings, and I can see my brother’s face in some of John’s portraits.”
Before he moved to Greece Craxton rubbed shoulders with some of the best-known artists of the 20th century including Lucien Freud, Francis Bacon, Graham Sutherland, John Piper and John Minton.
He made his name in 1944, aged just 21, with a show at the Leicester Galleries. Despite finding fame, he quit England after the war, arriving in Athens aged 23 in 1946.
After the gloom of war-torn Britain, he fell in love with the country spending the next decade roaming the Greek islands, first visiting Crete in 1947.
The light, landscape and everyday island life transformed his work while the weather helped his pulmonary tuberculosis.
He moved permanently to Chania in 1960 attracted to its Greek culture and Minoan art and architecture, as well as the people and animals he found there.
Another artist part of the bohemian world was the American painter Dorothy Andrews (1917-2008).
Others included Eileen Ryan from Kilkenny who tutored English on the island and was married to the American diver Harold Hogan.
Many of cards feature felines and are dated from the 1970s to ‘90s, with several addressed to “Eileen and Hogan” or “Hoagie”.
His sister said: “Like Craxton, Eileen had a great interest in the island and its community. They were both fanatical cat lovers and at any one time her house was full of 30 or 40 strays.”
Craxton cats took on a great significance for Craxton, who dubbed them a “splendidly apposite vehicle” and ideal expressions of whimsy and humour, as well as independence and unpredictability.
Hansons Auctioneers Cornwall, Darren Ashley, said: “Stray cats frequently occur in his paintings, drawings and prints, often weaving them into scenes of everyday life whether roaming in Cretan tavernas or, in this case, on cards to friends. These works are a wonderfully intimate insight into his life in Crete.”
Claxton died in London in 2009 with his ashes returned to Greece to be scattered in Chania’s harbour.
Ashley continued: “Before he moved to Greece Craxton was among the enfant terribles of the Fitzrovia set. His work was hugely collectable and sold for more than that of even Lucien Freud.
“His oil on canvas paintings can sell for hundreds of thousands but, for my money, these small-scale works, many depicting his beloved cats are just as charming and offer a real insight into Craxton’s life and friendships on Chania.”
Cook’s sister inherited the collection after her brother died – he in turn having inherited them direct from the Hogans.
A Portreath resident, she was a regularly visitor to the Greek island while he brother livedthere. She said: “We also got to know John very well. I well remember him driving around the island on his motorbike, usually with his hair all over the place and unshaven. If we were out for a meal in one of the tavernas he would often appear. A fluent Greek speaker, he was very friendly and full of stories.”
The collection, to be sold in separate lots, has a total estimate of £15,000-£24,000 at Hansons Auctioneers’ Cornwall saleroom in Penzance saleroom on January 6.
Auction Details
Auction: Cornwall January Antiques Auction to include Jewellery, Silver & Watches, with Collectors & Asian
Auction date: 6th January 2026 | 10am
Location: Hansons’ Cornwall Saleroom
Auction contact: [email protected]
Catalogue/bidding: www.hansonslive.co.uk | www.the-saleroom.com
