Art Rooted in Nature: Day Sale

Timed Online Auction, 7 - 25 June 2024

Botanical Art with a focus on Phillip Grieve
About the Session

Contemporary plant portraiture in South Africa has a rich history, intertwining botany and art. These depictions possess both aesthetic allure and serve as invaluable documentation of the increasingly diminishing natural world. Marion Arnold astutely observes that contemporary plant portraiture is a hybrid genre with a complex history, situated within both botany as a scientific discipline and art as a transformative visual practice.

In this session, artists pay homage to the delicate balance between scientific precision and artistic ingenuity. Phillip Grieves' 29 lots of butterflies showcase a profound mastery of the watercolour medium. They, along with the rest of the session, echo Arnold's sentiment that the true essence of botanical art transcends scientific accuracy. These pieces exemplify the enduring significance of botanical art in contemporary society.


Sold for

ZAR 1 173
Lot 81
  • Phillip Grieve; Precis octavis (Gaudy Commodore Butterfly) Artwork
  • Phillip Grieve; Precis octavis (Gaudy Commodore Butterfly) Artwork
  • Phillip Grieve; Precis octavis (Gaudy Commodore Butterfly) Artwork


Lot Estimate
ZAR 1 500 - 2 000
Selling Price
Incl. Buyer's Premium & VAT
ZAR 1 173

About this Item

Phillip Grieve
South African 1937-?
Precis octavis (Gaudy Commodore Butterfly) Artwork

signed and inscribed with the title

watercolour on paper
10 by 10cm excluding frame; 26,5 by 24 by 1,5cm including frame


Other lots that might interest you
Phillip Grieve; Dira oxylus (Pondoland Widow Butterfly) Artwork
Phillip Grieve
Dira oxylus (Pondoland Widow Butterfly) Artwork
ZAR 1 500 - 2 000
Phillip Grieve; Choraxes voranes (Pearl Emperor Butterfly) Artwork
Phillip Grieve
Choraxes voranes (Pearl Emperor Butterfly) Artwork
ZAR 1 500 - 2 000
Phillip Grieve; Charaxes guderiana guderiana (Blue-Spangled Emperor Butterfly) Artwork
Phillip Grieve
Charaxes guderiana guderiana (Blue-Spangled Emperor Butterfly) Artwork
ZAR 1 500 - 2 000
Phillip Grieve; Charaxes bohemani (Large Blue Emperor Butterfly) Artwork
Phillip Grieve
Charaxes bohemani (Large Blue Emperor Butterfly) Artwork
ZAR 1 500 - 2 000
Phillip Grieve; Morpho anaxibia butterfly Artwork
Phillip Grieve
Morpho anaxibia butterfly Artwork
ZAR 2 000 - 3 000
Phillip Grieve; Papilio glaucus (Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly) Artwork; Papilio Ulysses (Ulysses Butterfly) Artwork, two
Phillip Grieve
Papilio glaucus (Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly) Artwork; Papilio Ulysses (Ulysses Butterfly) Artwork, two
ZAR 2 000 - 3 000