# Mary Fedden artist context and auction value notes Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/mary-fedden/ Profile generated: 2026-04-30T11:10:52.699Z Quality: high confidence, strong sources ## Artist identity - Birth date: 1915-08-14 - Death date: 2012-06-22 - Nationality: British - Common media: painting, graphic art ## About Mary Fedden Mary Fedden (1915–2012), born Adye Mary Fedden, was a British painter and graphic artist recognised for a distinctive body of work that spans more than six decades. She studied at the Slade School of Fine Art before serving as a driver in the Women's Land Army during the Second World War. In 1951 she married the painter and printmaker Julian Trevelyan, and together they lived and worked at Durham Wharf on the Thames at Chiswick, a studio that became a well-known gathering place for artists. Fedden held teaching posts including at the Royal College of Art, where she taught from 1958 to 1964. Her work is held in public collections including the Tate. The RKD and Library of Congress both maintain authority records for her, and she is documented in the Bénézit Dictionary of Artists. ## Common works and media Fedden is best known for still-life paintings, often featuring everyday objects, flowers, and domestic interiors rendered in a bold, flattened colour style. She also produced landscape and figurative compositions. Common media encountered at auction include oil on canvas, gouache, watercolour on paper, and limited-edition prints. Collectors may also encounter exhibition posters and illustrative commissions. ## Market and appraisal context Mary Fedden's secondary market is well established and liquid. Appraisily auction records index 432 lots, of which 342 carry a realised price, spanning from September 1999 through March 2026. The price distribution is wide but structured: the low end starts at £10/$10 (typically small prints and lithographs), the interquartile range runs from roughly £1,234 to £6,600, the median sits near £3,125, and the top of the observed range reaches £67,250 for a major oil. This dispersion reflects the medium divide—limited-edition lithographs and works on paper cluster below £1,000, while signed oils and larger canvases regularly trade in the thousands of pounds at mid-tier and blue-chip houses alike. Named auction houses handling her work include Sotheby's, Christie's, and Bonhams at the top end, with a strong regional UK presence through Dreweatts 1759, John Nicholson's, Gorringes, Mallams, Lyon & Turnbull, Forum Auctions, and Sloane Street Auctions. The last twelve months show 4 priced lots versus 14 in the prior twelve months, suggesting a modest slowdown in turnover but not a structural retreat; collectors should monitor upcoming seasons for renewed volume. ## Auction-house-backed market evidence Mary Fedden's secondary market is well established and liquid. Appraisily auction records index 432 lots, of which 342 carry a realised price, spanning from September 1999 through March 2026. The price distribution is wide but structured: the low end starts at £10/$10 (typically small prints and lithographs), the interquartile range runs from roughly £1,234 to £6,600, the median sits near £3,125, and the top of the observed range reaches £67,250 for a major oil. This dispersion reflects the medium divide—limited-edition lithographs and works on paper cluster below £1,000, while signed oils and larger canvases regularly trade in the thousands of pounds at mid-tier and blue-chip houses alike. Named auction houses handling her work include Sotheby's, Christie's, and Bonhams at the top end, with a strong regional UK presence through Dreweatts 1759, John Nicholson's, Gorringes, Mallams, Lyon & Turnbull, Forum Auctions, and Sloane Street Auctions. The last twelve months show 4 priced lots versus 14 in the prior twelve months, suggesting a modest slowdown in turnover but not a structural retreat; collectors should monitor upcoming seasons for renewed volume. ### Appraisal notes Appraisily would use these auction records as a comparable-sale anchor alongside the physical evidence a collector submits: photographs of the front, back, signature, and any labels; measured dimensions; confirmed medium (oil on canvas, gouache, watercolour, or print); edition number and paper type for prints; condition notes including any retouching, foxing, or fading; and provenance documentation such as gallery receipts, exhibition history, or studio provenance linking the work to Durham Wharf or the Julian Trevelyan circle. The appraisal would weight recent comparable lots most heavily—particularly sales at named houses within the past three years—adjusting for medium, size, subject (still lifes tend to be more sought after than landscapes), and condition. Prints and lithographs would be benchmarked against the lower quartile, while unique works on canvas or paper would draw from the median-to-upper range depending on provenance strength. ### Valuation factors - Medium is the single strongest price differentiator: oil on canvas commands significantly more than gouache or watercolour, which in turn outperform limited-edition lithographs and prints. - Dimensions matter; larger oils (e.g. 59.5 × 49.5 cm and above) regularly achieve mid-four-figure to five-figure results at named houses. - Subject category affects demand: still-life compositions (flowers, jugs, fruit, tabletop scenes) are the most frequently traded and sought-after subjects in Fedden's oeuvre. - Provenance linking a work to the Durham Wharf studio, the Julian Trevelyan circle, or a named gallery or exhibition history can lift realised prices above the median. - Condition reports are essential; watercolours and works on paper are vulnerable to foxing, fading, and acid mount burn, each of which can materially reduce value. - Signature and authentication: Fedden's lithographs often carry printed rather than hand signatures—pencil-signed and numbered prints carry a premium over unsigned or plate-signed examples. - Currency and market: the majority of turnover is in GBP at UK regional and London houses; USD and AUD results exist but are less frequent and should be currency-adjusted for comparison. ### Collector notes - If you own an oil painting by Fedden, expect the strongest results at a UK mid-tier or London house such as Sotheby's, Forum Auctions, or Sloane Street Auctions, all of which have handled her work recently. - Prints and lithographs (e.g. 'Chiswick', 'Cat on a Cornish Beach', 'Whitby Harbour', 'The Matisse Jug') are affordable entry points, typically realising £100–£300 at auction, but are unlikely to appreciate significantly. - A collector considering purchase should request a condition report and verify whether a print is pencil-signed and numbered versus plate-signed, as this distinction materially affects value. - The observed price range of £10–£67,250 means a professional appraisal is advisable before committing to a sale, since the difference between a print and a major oil could represent tens of thousands of pounds. - The current 12-month lot count (4) is below the prior 12-month count (14); reduced supply at auction can sometimes support prices, but it also means fewer recent comparables for valuation. ### Market caveats - All prices are drawn from Appraisily's auction-record index and a limited set of public marketplace URLs; private sales, dealer transactions, and some auction results may not be represented. - Prices span multiple currencies (GBP, USD, AUD) and are not currency-normalised here; direct comparison requires conversion to a common currency at the sale date. - Attribution of unsigned or undocumented works to Fedden requires expert verification; the presence of her name in a lot title does not confirm authorship. - The recent 12-month lot count is low (4 priced lots), which increases statistical noise when estimating current market value; a broader lookback period provides more reliable comparables. - This addendum does not constitute an appraisal or a guarantee of value; it summarises observed auction evidence to help collectors decide whether to request a formal Appraisily appraisal. ### Market evidence sources - Appraisily auction record index: https://appraisily.com/api/scraper-search/artists/mary-fedden/seo-profile?recentLimit=24&relatedLimit=0 - Invaluable / Leonard Joel: https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-mary-fedden-british-1915-2012-still-life-with-lilies-1991-oil-on-canvas-59-5-x-49-5cm-8-c-29bbe7098d - Invaluable / Clark's Fine Art & Auctioneers Inc.: https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-mary-fedden-1915-2012-british-44-c-cba4c06b77 - Invaluable / Sloane Street Auctions: https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot-mary-fedden-british-1915-2012-potted-ivy-on-a-white-chair-481-c-95a4574bf8 ## Appraisily data basis Appraisily artist pages combine structured artist-identity research from authority files and museum collections with auction-house context, public sale records, realised prices, and comparable lots where those records are available. This page draws on Tate, RKD, VIAF, and Library of Congress sources. ## Sources - RKD: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/27493 - Tate: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/mary-fedden-1084 - VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/95841355/ - Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n94093012 - Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3492587 - Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Fedden