As the National Gallery of Australia prepares to celebrate the 40-year career of the remarkable Cressida Campbell next month, savvy art investors are capitalising on her surging profile. No fewer than four works by Campbell are for sale in Smith & Singer’s Important Australian Art auction next week.

“It’s like what we witnessed with Jeffrey Smart with the exhibition at the NGA,” says Smith & Singer chairman Geoffrey Smith, referring to the hugely popular survey show that ended in May. “When an artist’s work becomes the topic of more general conversation it encourages and inspires people to release and acquire and it’s that paradigm that brings work forward.”