AN ANTIQUES Roadshow guest was left speechless after discovering the whooping value of her own nude portraits from 1970.
The elderly lady gained a lot of attention when she handed the expert the pictures, which had been produced over 40 years ago.
During the Antiques Roadshow episode hosted by Fiona Bruce, the woman explained the background story of how she became the model for such a risqué piece of art, and it turns out that it isn’t quite as scandalous as it would seem.
The painting depicts her standing completely naked with a thin open robe around her while holding on to her pregnant belly in the streets of Bethnal Green.
In the background of the painting are her cats, a pram for the unborn baby and a rather intriguing depiction of her husband looking over the balcony at her.
While the image was amusing, to say the least, the most mind-boggling part of the story was that the baby in her belly at the time of the painting was now her adult son, who was standing right next to her.
The mother and son duo appeared on the BBC show, eager and determined to learn how much the painting would be worth.
The woman told the antiques expert: “My neighbour was Nerissa Garnett, the great-niece of Virginia Woolf. The portrait is of me, and that was about, more than 45 years ago!”
She then revealed that she didn’t actually stand naked on the streets of London while being painted.
Instead, the nude photograph was taken inside her flat, which was later given to the artist.
Her son then proudly stated, “I’m the bump!” as his mum confirmed: “He was the baby who was born the next year.”
The expert then shared with the mother-and-son duo that Nerrissa Garnett had come from a “very influential artistic family,” which would add to the attraction and, most importantly, the value.
She explained: “Her grandmother was Vanessa Bell.
“I think her style is very, very distinct. I love these dark lines. Every single brick is a different colour, it’s astonishing.”
Speaking on her relationship with the artist, that guest revealed: “We were good friends, she was also a good friend of my husband as well.”
The expert then added: “Isn’t it great to have a portrait by a female artist of a female nude?
“She’s not hugely well-known at auction in terms of estimates, but she does come from this really great family. And she’s a female artist, and we like to see those.”
She concluded: “So, what was it worth? At auction, I think you’re probably talking maybe £1,500, £2,000.”
The delighted owner responded: “Ok! Alright…” as the valuer added: “A really, really brilliant story.
“Well, we can’t say we’ve ever heard of nudes being worth that much…”
Elsewhere on the episode, another Antiques Roadshow guest was left gobsmacked when they discovered their My Little Pony toy collection was worth a fortune.
Spanning all the way from the 1980s, the woman revealed she had amassed an impressive 600 pieces.
Mark Hill asked the guest: “What are we thinking about a global value for your collection, for the whole thing? Can I say £10,000?”
She swiftly replied, “It’s a bit higher than that”, before revealing she’s previously had it valued.
The woman explained: “So when I last valued it last year, it was coming in at around £30,000.”
Mark agreed, telling her: “I feel that money is safe, and I think, I’m going to guess and say that, over the past five or so years, particularly during lockdown, you’ve seen prices go up.”
Antiques Roadshow airs Sundays on BBC One and iPlayer.
