Works by Keith Haring, Joseph Cornell, and Paul Howard Manship lead in Rago's $3.4 Million Fall Fine Art Auction

Lambertville, NJ: Rago’s November Fine Art sale realized $3,430,969 across two days, Friday, November 8 and Saturday, November 9. 

The highest selling lot of the weekend came from Friday’s Post War + Contemporary Art sale; lot 135, an untitled ink on poster board rendering of the classic “Crawling Baby” by Keith Haring that sold for $117,500 against a high estimate of $50,000. Other works by Haring also fared admirably in the sale, including lot 136, a women’s leather jacket featuring a drawing and signature by the artist which sold for $6,875 and lot 137, a wooden paddle also sporting a drawing and artist’s signature, which sold for $10,625.

Lot 135, Keith Haring, Untitled (Crawling Baby), 1989, Ink on poster board; Sold for $117,500

Other highlights from Post War + Contemporary Art include: lot 190, Joseph Cornell's mixed media box construction Grand Hotel-Hotel Taglioni from the Collection of Allan Stone which sold for $106,250; lot 32, an untitled Ribbon Painting by Carl Holty that vaulted past its $10,000 high estimate to sell for $62,500, setting a record for the artist at auction; lot 146, David Hockney’s Three Singers on Stage which sold for $62,250; lots 128 and 129, two works by Robert Longo titled Edmund and Gretchen that sold for $47,500 and $56,250, respectively; lot 40, a work by Grace Hartigan after Francisco Goya y Lucientes that sold for $37,500, more that 7x its $5,000 high estimate; and lot 144, a 1989 lithograph by Christo titled Arc de Triomphe Wrapped (Project for Paris) depicting the artists long planned and finally to be realized project to wrap the iconic Parisian landmark, which sold for $16,250 against an estimate range of $5,000 – 8,000.

Lot 190, Joseph Cornell, Grand Hotel-Hotel Taglioni, 1954, Mixed media box construction; Sold for $106,250

Several works from the Collection of Allan Stone, offered within the Post War + Contemporary Art sale, also sold above estimate including: lot 181, an untitled graphite on paper by Arshile Gorky that sold for $25,000 against a $12,000 – 18,000 estimate range; lot 185, a pencil on paper by Willem de Kooning titled Abstraction (Study for Mailbox) which sold for $22,500 against a $8,000 – 12,000 estimate; and lot 183, Robert S. Neuman’s White Painting which defied a $9,000 high estimate to sell for $12,500.

Lot 630, Paul Howard Manship, Adjutant Stork, 1932, Bronze on marble base; Sold for $96, 250

Highlights from Saturday’s American + European Art auction include: lot 630, a bronze sculpture by Paul Howard Manship titled Adjutant Stork which graced the American + European Art auction catalog’s back cover and sold for $96,250 against a $50,000 high estimate; lot 547, Hermann Ottomar Herzog’s Razorbacks on the Florida Coast which shattered its high estimate of $12,000 to sell for $81,250; lot 511, and George William Sotter’s Titans of Space which sold for $68,750.
Also of note in the American + European Art auction, works by Otis Kaye enjoyed healthy interest with all three works on offer by the artist selling at or above estimate, including lot 594, Hang the Wash, which sold for $30,000 against a $15,000 – 25,000 estimate range. Works by Salvador Dalí, represented in this sale by three complete folios - The Opera Carmen, Aliyah, and The Marquis de Sade – also performed well with all three selling above their identical $15,000 high estimates for $27,500, $22,500 and $18,750, respectively.

"We are thrilled with the positive response to our November fine art sales. From early 20th century American painting through contemporary sculpture, bidder enthusiasm was strong throughout." 
-Meredith Hilferty, Director of Fine Art

"The quality of the property in both fine art sessions this Fall was exceptional, which resulted in a healthy turnout from both seasoned and new collectors alike."
- Lauren Bradley, Fine Art Specialist