Antique dealer Leonard Joel arrives on Queen Street, Woollahra
Some 95 years after selling its first artwork in Melbourne, Leonard Joel, Melbourne's oldest auction house, will make its Sydney art auction debut this weekend.
It will be at its new Woollahra salesroom, part of the expansionary moves by managing director John Albrecht.
Albrecht says his leased Sydney premises at 39 Queen Street, Woollahra, “retains the original character and atmosphere of a 19th-century auction room”.
Photo: (L-R) John Williams and John D'agata of Leonard Joel.
Its refurbished rooms in Sydney have two distinct gallery spaces and catering facilities, with exhibition space able to be hired out.
John D’agata, the head of the Sydney office, acknowledges that the precinct was "once the antique precinct of Sydney," but goes onto suggest Queen Street has now been transformed into the most vibrant collection of designer boutiques, fantastic cafes and eclectic homeware stores.
"Nonetheless the cultural heart of the street beats strongly with Leonard Joel Sydney at number 39, sitting squarely amongst it all," he said. The auction is on Sunday August 24.
The Sotheby's premium art auction-house bought last year on Queen Street, Woollahra spending $2.75 million on the former shop of the interior decorator, Ros Palmer.
The purchase of the 200 square metres of retail space reversed the recent trend of Woollahra's Queen Street fast becoming fashion central as its Dickensian antique dealers departed.
Ms Palmer relocated to Launceston where she has an antiques shop in Longford, south of Launceston, called Parkview Antiques.
Ros Palmer, who helped furnish the Lodge in Canberra, had initial $4 million plus hopes in 2010.
The 30 Queen Street premises (pictured below) in Sydney's eastern suburbs sold through Bill Bridges and Meagan Pokorny of Ballard Property Group.
The Sotheby's syndicate bought it through Woollahra Land Investments, which is directed by the art division Sotheby's Australian chairman and vice chairman, Geoffrey Smith and Samuel Cullen.
Sotheby's has been renting elsewhere on Queen Street for decades.
The shop was last traded at $2.2 million in 2000.
Shapiro Auctioneers are at 162 Queen Street, taking the space that had been with Phillips International Auctioneers and Valuers.