The Phillip Lucas Collection, Spitalfields House

'Collecting' - never was there so fraught a term in today’s furniture trade, yet in Phillip Lucas, there is something of the great collectors of old. A true marriage of taste and scholarship, Lucas’s collection is laser sharp in taste and style, and yet with this specific focus is tremendous breadth.

At first glance, and to the untrained eye, the originality of Lucas’s collection may not be apparent; but therein lies its brilliance. It’s the minute details that clearly excite him, for each piece, whether something so perfunctory as a hall chair, upon close examination are the finest - or most unusual of their kind. 

To say nothing of his taste — while I was once described as living in a house that was ‘perfectly imperfect’, in reality it’s Lucas’s house that truly deserves such a fitting epithet. There are perhaps no Georgian houses in London of greater purity than those in Spitalfields; indeed they’ve become something of legend for today’s generations of aesthetes. That Phillip Lucas has come to make his home in one is no coincidence - the restrained, almost sober, but ideally proportioned and detailed interiors are the perfect foil for his possessions. 

While moments of quiet beauty abound, certain pieces illustrate Lucas’s eye for scale and architectural triumphs. A George II pedimented bookcase is striking and robust, with shades of Cobb and Vile. Standing sentry in one of Lucas’s sparsely furnished and unpretentious drawing rooms, it’s a testament to the enduring power and overlooked modernity of very good Georgian furniture.  

Lucas’s voracious buying is a blessing to the rest of us. Once the gavel comes down on the last of these brilliant lots, we can all take comfort in knowing that surely more will follow. Something to look forward to.

Remy Renzullo is an Interior Decorator and Antique Advisor based between America and Great Britain. His work has a strong focus on eighteenth century furniture and amongst his current projects is a redecoration of the private wing of Castle Howard.

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Auction Details

DAY ONE:
Fine Furniture, Sculpture, Carpets, Ceramics and Works of Art
Wednesday 30 November, 10.30am GMT
Browse the auction

DAY TWO: 
Property from the Phillip Lucas Collection, Spitalfields House and other Properties including Garden Furniture and Statuary
Thursday 1 December, 10.30am GMT
Browse the auction

VIEWING:

• Viewing in Newbury:
  • Friday 25 November: 10am - 4pm
  • Saturday 26 November: 10am - 3pm
  • Sunday 27 November: 10am - 3pm
  • Monday 28 November: 10am - 4pm
  • Tuesday 29 November: 10am - 4pm
  • Day of sales: from 8.30am         
• Dreweatts 360 Virtual Auction Tour | Available from Friday 25 November