A Cedric Morris painting of farm buildings at Benton End in Hadleigh is going up for auction later this month.

The painting dated back to the 1940s, but thought to have been unseen in public was gifted to Lucy Harwood - an artist from the Benton End group.

Depicting farm buildings at Benton End on one side, and a floral scene on the other and has an estimated value of £10,000 to £15,000.

Cheffins' are acting it as part of their Art & Design Sale in Cambridge on February 23.

Cedric Morris

Morris co-founded the East Anglian School of Painting and Drawing in Dedham in 1937 with Arthur Lett-Haines but following a fire school moved to Benton End in Hadleigh.

Lucy Harwood was a student at the school when she was gifted the painting by Cedric Morris, who also helped launch artists including Lucian Freud and Maggi Hambling.

Benton End is now under the charge of The Garden Museum, and is currently being restored with plans to reopen to the public.

Artists associated with Benton End, including Harwood, have seen the value of their work jump with her paintings that could be bought for a few hundred pounds a decade ago, a still life from a London collection sold at Cheffins for £6,500 in 2022.

Cheffins director Brett Tryner is convinced Morris' work is having a resurgence with prices for his works soaring over the past 10 years.

Benton End

It is thought the his popularity had rebirth around 2016, when three of his paintings were sold as part of David Bowie's estate, brought him back into the public eye,

Exhibitions at Gainsborough's House, the Garden Museum hosting an exhibition of his work in 2018, the first in over 30 years, and another exhibition hosted by dealer Philip Mould, "Beyond the Garden Wall" haven reinforced the resurgence.

Mr Trainer believes paintings from the Benton End Group have a wonderfully figurative feel and this, coupled with a bright palette, has really helped their works to appeal to contemporary tastes.