May 16,2015 | 10:00 EDT By Bidsquare
Sculptor Michele Oka Doner may be best known these days for her large scale outdoor productions, but it is her smaller, earlier work that will command attention at Cowan’s Auctions Modern Ceramics sale on Thursday, May 28. Lot 67, a set of eleven porcelain sculptures of varying heights, created when the artist was freshly graduated from the University of Michigan, offers a rare opportunity for collectors to access this much-lauded international artist. Early work by Michele Oka Doner is sure to be in hot demand! Born and raised in Miami Beach, Oka Doner’s prolific career has spanned over four decades. Her work had been acquired by museums the world over, including the MoMA, the Musée des Arts Dècoratifs at the Louvre, the Cooper-Hewitt, the National Design Museum, the Art Institute of Chicago, and many others. Her most famous work however, ...Read More
May 14,2015 | 18:00 EDT By Bidsquare
On February 3, 1908, eight artists, disillusioned with the prevailing status quo, launched an exhibition at New York’s Macbeth Galleries that would change the face of American art. Lot 17, Bridget Lavelle (left) by Robert Henri (right) Previously, artists submitted their works to academic juries and experts before they were showed to the public. The group, who came to be known as The Eight, sidestepped the strict rules laid down by the National Academy of Design, relying instead on press and the public to promote their exhibition. The show was a sensation, with thousands of people crammed inside the gallery and lined up outside, desperate for a glimpse of the paintings. When the show closed on February 19, the way artists exhibited their work was changed forever. Lot 25, Ernest Lawsons Reflections The significance of The Eight and their gro...Read More
May 11,2015 | 20:00 EDT By Bidsquare
Ivan Aivazovsky is anything but a household name in modern-day America, yet in the world of seascape painting his reputation is unsurpassed. A graduate of Russia’s Imperial Academy of Arts in 1835, he went on to become one of the greatest marine artists in history. Aivazovskys "Survivors in a Stormy Sea" Born of an Armenian family, Aivazovsky had close ties with the military and political elite of the Russian Empire and often attended military maneuvers. He was sponsored by the Imperial Family and was well regarded during his lifetime both at home and abroad. Aivazovsky liked to keep busy, creating approximately 6,000 painting during his 60-year career. The vast majority are seascapes, but he also depicted battle scenes, Armenian themes, and portraiture. Most of Aivazovskys works are kept in Russian, Ukrainian and Armenian museums. Ivan Aiv...Read More
May 08,2015 | 18:50 EDT By Bidsquare
A 260-year-old writing desk once belonging to Virginias Royal Governor is set to steal the show on Day Two of Brunk Auctions’ Fine Art and Decorative Works sale, set down for Saturday, May 16. Selling as Lot 420, the Mahogany Ceremonial Desk, attributed to Scottish émigré cabinetmaker Robert Walker, is among the most significant discoveries in Southern furniture in recent decades. The mahogany desk remarkable iconography — including hairy paw feet, knees carved with lion heads, and the bust of a Roman statesman raised in relief on its prospect door — is exceptional for colonial America. Evidence suggests that Thomas Lee, one time Royal Governor of Virginia, once owned this fine piece of furniture. Lot 491 has a rich history of its own. Two North Carolina card tables descended from John Haywood, North Carolina’s first treasurer and Raleigh...Read More
May 07,2015 | 16:00 EDT By Bidsquare
In 1941, 23-year-old Jacob Lawrence completed a series of 60 small tempera paintings on the Great Migration, the mass movement of African Americans from the rural South to the urban North that started around 1915. Lawrence, who would go on to become one of the best known African-American painters of the 20th century, gained national recognition from the series. He described his style as "dynamic cubism," though by his own account his primary influence was the shapes and colors of Harlem. One-Way Ticket: Jacob Lawrence’s Migration Series and Other Visions of the Great Movement North reunites all 60 panels for the first time at MoMA in 20 years. The exhibition runs from April 3 to September 7. Along with Lawrences series, the exhibition includes other accounts of the Migration, including writings, music, photography, paintings, and sociologic...Read More
May 06,2015 | 17:00 EDT By Aaron Rich
A few days ago we looked at some fantastic vintage watches coming up in this Sunday’s Antiquorum auction of Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces, and now we’ll take a look at some great dressier pieces from that sale. Generally speaking a dress watch is something you can wear to the office or when you dress up in a suit, naturally. In practice, this normally means the watch has a gold case and might only tell time and have a rather conservative design if it has any other functions. Left: Lot 18 OMEGA REF. 14355 SC GRAND LUXE CONSTELLATION YELLOW GOLD Omega, "Chronomètre Officially Certified, Constellation," No. 14921630, case No. 11402490, Ref. 14355 SC. Made circa 1954. Middle: Lot 106 ROLEX REF. 1646 PRINCE IMPERIAL OBSERVATORY RARE BLACK DIAL YELLOW GOLD Rolex, "Prince Imperial", No. 1003236, Ref. 1646. Made circa 1940. Right: Lot 285 C...Read More
May 05,2015 | 10:55 EDT By Bidsquare
For those collectors of a more literary bent Leslie Hindman Auctioneers’ Fine Books and Manuscripts sale offers a plethora of mouthwatering options. Set down for Thursday, May 7, this auction offers over 400 lots and includes letters, sheet music, first editions, manuscripts and more by history’s leading lights in literature, music, politics and beyond. Lot 304 is sure to cause a stir – a first American edition, first issue binding of Herman Melville’s iconic Moby Dick; or, the Whale. This book is a true literary classic, a work to which every English Lit Major in the country seems indelibly bound. They love it or hate, idolize or loathe it, want to bow to it or burn it. Whatever your take is, there’s no questioning its place in the annals of literature. Historical architectural works are always popular with bidders and Lot 215 should prove...Read More
May 05,2015 | 09:00 EDT By Aaron Rich
Buying a watch can be an incredibly intimidating task. Watch geeks love using technical jargon for things that we know by other words, we worry about troubles with authenticity in a complicated piece that has so many components, the movement of the watch—the part that makes it tick—is hidden from view and entirely mysterious. The auction of Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces coming up this Sunday at Antiquorum, however, is a great venue to find some fantastic watches that are not too expensive and have a great look. First things first, it can be somewhat daunting to bid in an auction abroad in a foreign currency. Don’t worry about this. Antiquorum is in the business of selling watches globally and will make this part of the process painless. You can easily make payment by wire transfer in Swiss Francs (or any other currency if you’re buy...Read More
Apr 30,2015 | 15:00 EDT By Bidsquare
Ahlers & Ogletree Auction Gallery has long been renowned for the quality of their curation. Building catalogues that please consigners and bidders alike, they leave no stone unturned in their efforts to bring a quality auction together. The May Salon sale, set down for Saturday, May 2 and Sunday, May 3, is yet another example of the companys discerning eye. This sale is overflowing with pieces of interest, none more so than Lot 241 - Willem de Kooning’s “Woman” (above left). Created in the summer of 1952 when de Kooning (above right) took refuge at his summer home in Easthampton, this pastel on paper, with its color palette and form, probably served as a study for his later piece, "Marilyn Monroe." Lot 263 (above) is sure to have its share of admirers. Produced by the legendary Russian designers Faberge in 1890, this gold mounted nephrite j...Read More
Apr 29,2015 | 08:00 EDT By Bidsquare
In 1922 sculptor Malvina Hoffman completed three bronze portrait busts of legendary pianist and statesman Ignacy Jan Paderewski. She titled these "Paderewski the Man," "Paderewski the Artist," and "Paderewski the Statesman." The three sculptures were first exhibited at New York’s Knoedler Gallery in 1923, an opening attended by Paderewski himself. These days, Paderewski the Man resides in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, while Paderewski the Artist holds court at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In his later years, Ignacy Jan Paderewski gave concerts in support of the Polish Relief Fund Paderewski the Statesman sells as Lot 101 in Leslie Hindman Auctioneers’ 20th Century Decorative Arts sale. The piece stands 76 inches tall, is signed and dated on the back, and is expected to bring between $10,000-15,000. Paderewski and...Read More