Painting by Captain Beefheart of The Magic Band Leads Freeman’s Eccentric Art and Design Sale

Captain Beefheart created Day Barrette in 1989. This oil on canvas leads the upcoming Art and Design Auction from Freeman’s. Captain Beefheart, born Don Van Vliet (1941 – 2010), was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist of the Magic Band. Beefheart began painting and sculpting at a young age. At nine, he won a sculpting competition for children organized for the Los Angeles Zoo. He painted dinosaurs, fish, African mammals, and lemurs. His artworks reflect his obsession with animals. In an interview with David Letterman, Beefheart tells the audience that he started calling himself Captain Beefheart because he has a lot of beef towards human actions regarding animal cruelty. Apart from being famous for his enigmatic persona, he has claimed to be a descendant of Peter Van Vliet, a Dutch painter who knew Rembrandt. Beefheart also claimed to be related to adventurer and author Richard Halliburton and cowboy actor Slim Pickens.

Peter Voulkos was known as a master of expressive ceramics. Voulkos (1924 – 2002) was an American artist who established the ceramics department at the Los Angeles County Art Institute and UC Berkeley. His hand-built, glazed stoneware piece from circa 1951-52 is another leading lot in the sale. This bull sculpture is one of two unique pieces created by the artist at the Archie Bray Foundation in Montana. Other notable lots include a birch cabinet by John Cederquist and glass sculptures by Dale Chihuly. View the complete catalog of the Art and Design Auction and register to bid by visiting Freeman’s.