Bullfinches on a Snow Covered Branch
Woodcut printed in colors, circa 1911, edition 100. 8 3/8 x 8 1/2 in. Signed and numbered in pencil. This is a superb impression with the colors especially vibrant. The margins are full and the condition is very good. (There's a slight suggestion of toning within an earlier mat opening.) A cropped version of this print is illustrated on page 62 of Allen W. Seaby, Art and Nature by Martin Andrews and Robert Gillmor (2014).
SOLD

Goat With Two Kids
Woodcut printed in colors, 1920s, edition probably 50-100. 8 7/8 x 12 3/8 in. Signed in the block with the monogram. Signed in pencil, lower right. This is a fine impression printed on cream Japanese paper, a paper typically used by the artist. The margins are narrow but substantial enough. The condition is very good with very faint light toning showing in the image. Seaby was one of the best known students of Frank Morley Fletcher and he became Professor of Fine Art at the University of Reading from 1920-1933. He mastered the art of Japanese style woodblock printing and his work has a special place within the history of graphic art in England between the wars.
$850

Magpie
Woodcut printed in colors, circa 1920-30, edition unknown. 9 1/4 x 8 3/4 in. Initialed in the block, lower right corner. Signed in pencil. This is a superb impression with probably the full margins. The condition is excellent. There's an impression of Magpie in the Victoria & Albert Museum.
$1,300

Osprey
Woodcut printed in colors, 1920s, edition 100. 14 x 9 in. Signed and numbered in pencil. This is a superb, early impression of this majestic woodcut. The margins are full and the condition is fine apart from very slight light toning within an early mat opening. This impression varies somewhat from one we have a few years ago; there's less definition in the trees in the background and the monogram in the lower right is not yet clearly defined. A new catalogue on Seaby is now available: Allen W. Seaby, Art and Nature, by Martin Andrews and Robert Gillmor (2014) by Two Rivers Press. There is no formal listing of the prints but it's a very nice publication with plenty of illustrations and informative text.
SOLD

Ponies
Woodcut printed in colors, 1930s, edition 100. 5 7/8 x 7 7/8 in. Signed and numbered in pencil. This is a fine impression with exceptional colors. The margins are modest but this is probably what the artist intended. Fine condition. Seaby spent time in Dartmoor which is in southern Devon, South West England. There's a similar woodcut by the artist illustrated on page 55 of Allen Seaby, Art and Nature by Martin Andrews and Rober Gilmor (2014).
SOLD

Redwings in Flight over the Berkshire Downs
Woodcut printed in colors, circa 1925-30, edition 150. 8 3/4 x 13 1/2 in. Signed and numbered in pencil. This is a very fine impression of this uncommon print. The margins are modest but this is probably the full sheet as printed. Fine condition. Seaby specialized in wildlife woodcuts and he was strongly influenced by the prints of Frank Morley Fletcher. These painterly woodcuts reflect the profound influence of Japanese printmaking in England at the time. Seaby established his own distinctive style which combined great design, careful observation of his subjects and an elegant sense of color. Seaby never dated his prints which does present a challenge.
$1,300

Saint-Paul- de-Vence
Woodcut printed in colors, undated, probably 1920s, Edition unknown. 7 1/2 x 12 1/4 in. Initialed in the block, lower left. Signed in pencil. This is a fine impression of this uncommon print. The margins are full and the condition is fine. (There's some stray printer's ink here and there in the outer margins.) St Paul-de-Vence is a medieval town in the Provence-Aples-Côte d'Azur region of Southern France. It's near Nice. We are aware of a pencil study for this charming print.
$1,000

Spring in Dartmoor (Dartmoor Ponies)
Woodcut printed in colors, 1930s, edition unknown; perhaps 50-100. 8 1/2 x 13 in. Initialed in the block, lower left, with the artist's monogram. Signed in pencil. Here we have a fine impression with probably the full margins. The condition is excellent. "Seaby, perhaps more so than his contemporaries, embodied in his woodcuts the spirit and dynamic composition of the Japanese print and fully exploited the texture of the brush stroke and blending of colour. Yet at the same time his work is quintessentially British, steeped in the countryside and wildlife..." See page 34 of Allen W. Seaby, Art and Nature, by Martin Andrews and Robert Gillmor, published by Two Rivers Press (2014).
SOLD

Swans in Flight
Woodcut printed in colors, probably 1927, edition 100. 8 1/2 x 13 3/8 in. Initialed in the block, lower left. Signed and numbered in pencil. Here we have a fine, fresh impression with probably the full margins. The condition is very good apart from stray printing ink in the margins here and there and remnants of two small old paper hinges. This print was illutrated as a frontispiece to "The Woodcut of Today at Home and Abroad," which was a Studio publication. "Seaby, perhaps more so than his contemporaries, embodied in his woodcuts the spirit and dynamic composition of the Japanese print and fully exploited the texture of the brush stroke and blending of colour. Yet at the same time his work is quintessentially British, steeped in the countryside and wildlife of this island." See page 34 of Allen W. Seaby, Art and Nature, by Martin Andrews and Robert Gillmor, published by Two Rivers Press (2014).
SOLD

The River
Woodcut printed in colors, undated (probably 1900-1914), edition 150. 5 15/16 x 7 1/2 in. Signed, titled and numbered in pencil. Here we have a fine impression with probably the full margins. The condition is fine. (There's a very small wrinkle in the lower margin, center, just to the image. This is very minor.) Given the dating for Seaby's two Swans, we will suggest ca. 1900-1914.
$1,000

Three Swans
Woodcut printed in colors, circa 1925, edition possibly 100. 8 1/8 x 13 1/8 in. Initialed in the block with the artist's monogram, lower right. Signed in pencil. This is a superb impression with modest margins. This is probably the full sheet as printed. The condition is fine apart from paper tape along the edges of the sheet, verso. The most important contribution to date about the artist is a catalogue by Martin Andrews and Robert Gilmore, Allen W. Seaby, Art and Nature (2014) Two Rivers Press.
$1,350

Two Swans
Woodcut printed in colors, undated; circa 1910-15, edition perhaps as much as 100. 8 3/4 x 8 1/2 in. Signed in pencil. This is a fine impression with modest buy probably the full margins as printed. Fine condition. Seaby rarely if ever dated his prints. Since his style is consistent over the years that adds to the confusion. The British Museum and the V & A own impressions of this print and they date it to 1900-1914 and 1900-1908 respectively. This is not a common print.
$1,200

Winter
Woodcut printed in colors, circa 1900-1908, edition unknown. 8 5/8 x 14 1/4 in. Signed in pencil. Here we have a fine atmospheric impression of this rare print. The margins are narrow and the condition is fine. Seaby studied printmaking at the Reading School of Art with Frank Morley Fletcher. He ultimately became a staff member at Reading and remained there for the rest of his career. We located one impression at the Victoria & Albert Museum and their records provided us with a date for this print. It's interesting to compare the two impressions: Ours is a dusk, early evening view and the V & A impression is a daylight study.
$1,200