Contemporary Art at Swann June 10

Elaine de Kooning, Joan Mitchell, Kara Walker & More Feature Feminist Art from the Collection of Harriet Lyon to be Offered

New York—Swann Galleries’ sale of Contemporary Art on Thursday, June 10 will feature impressive works from blue-chip artists working across the different schools of the last several decades. 

The sale is led by Photorealist pioneer John Salt with the 1969 Riviera 2—a hyper-realistic oil-on-canvas work of a car interior, a common motif in his works ($30,000-50,000). During Salt’s time teaching at the Maryland Institute College of Art his style evolved into the photorealist manner seen in Riviera 2 through discovering the work of photographers such as Garry Winogrand and Lee Friedlander. Artists also practicing in photorealism include Vija Celmins with Comet, linoleum cut, 1992 ($12,00-18,000); Richard Estes with Qualicraft Shoes, color screenprint, 1974 ($3,000-5,000); and Howard Kanocitz with André Champagne, color screenprint, 1972, and Street Scene, color screenprint, 1972 ($1,000-1,500, offered together).

Feminist artworks from the collection of Harriet Lyons will be on offer. Lyons was a founding editor for the famed Ms. Magazine covering art and general assignments, and member of a feminist consciousness raising group which included members such as Pat Steir, Joan Snyder, Elke Solomon and Nancy Azara. Highlights from the collection include a color crayon, watercolor, gouache and pencil portrait of Lyons by Alice Neel ($20,000-30,000); Judy Chicago’s Red Flag, photolithograph, 1971 ($1,00-,1,500); Mary Beth Edelson’s Some Living American Women Artists / Last Supper, offset lithograph, 1972 ($1,000-1,500); as well as works by Pat Steir, Miriam Schapiro and Linda Stein.

Following the recent success of Elaine de Kooning’s Bacchus in the house’s May 20 sale of Modern & Post-War Art, which earned $57,000, works by the abstract expressionist are on offer in different mediums: a circa 1980-85 oil-on-silk work in hues of pink, orange and yellow ($20,000-30,000), a circa 1980 watercolor ($4,000-6,000), and a circa 1985 bronze relief sculpture Untitled (Cave), cast circa 1992–95 ($25,000-35,000). Joan Mitchell is present with Brush, color lithograph, 1981 ($20,000-30,000), and Sides of a Ricer III, color lithograph, 1981 ($15,000-20,000). The section of AbEx also includes works by Helen Frankenthaler, Louis Nevelson, Dorothy Dehner, Willem de Kooning and Robert Motherwell among others.

Among the Andy Warhol works on offer are portraits Mick Jagger, color screenprint, 1975 ($30,000-50,000), and Blackglama (Judy Garland), color screenprint, 1985 ($30,000-50,000). Also of note is a 1964 color offset lithograph Flowers ($25,000-35,000); and Electric Chair, a 1971 color screenprint in turquoise and yellow ($12,000-18,000). Warhol’s contemporaries are also featured with prints by Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Indiana, and Keith Haring. 

Art of the last two decades will feature Julião Sarmento with A Body to Touch, mixed-media on canvas, 2006 ($15,000-20,000). Sarmento’s works are often rendered in androgynous and simplified forms, and reflect on desire and intimacy as well as the possessive aspect of the male gaze. Kara Walker is here with The Emancipation Approximation (Scene #9), color screenprint, 2000 ($8,000-12,000), and Pack-Mules in the Mountains, screenprint, 2005 ($8,000-12,000). Julie Mehretu’s Untitled (Pulse), color lithograph, 2013, is available ($5,000-8,000). Concluding the sale are works by Christopher Wool, Jeff Koons, Peter Doig, Takashi Murakami, and others. 

Limited previewing (by appointment only) will be available through June 9, to be scheduled directly with a specialist in advance and conforming to strict safety guidelines. Swann Galleries staff will prepare condition reports and provide additional photographs of material on request. Advance order bids can be placed with a specialist for the sale or on Swann’s website, and phone bidding will be available. Live online bidding platforms will be the Swann Galleries App, Invaluable, and Live Auctioneers. The complete catalogue and bidding information is available at www.swanngalleries.com and on the Swann Galleries App.

Additional highlights can be found here.

Captions:

Lot 298: John Salt, Riviera 2, oil on canvas, 1969. Estimate $30,000 to $50,000.

Lot 318: Alice Neel, Portrait of Harriet Lyons, mixed media, 1974. Estimate $20,000 to $30,000. 

Auction date: Thursday, June 10, at 10:30 am

Specialist: Todd Weyman • [email protected] • 212-254-4710 x 32

Chief Marketing Officer: Alexandra Nelson • [email protected] • 212-254-4710 x 19

Public Relations Associate: Kelsie Jankowski • [email protected] • 212-254-4710 x 23

Social media: @swanngalleries  

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PRINTED CATALOGUE & ADDL. DIGITAL IMAGES AVAILABLE ON REQUEST

Swann Auction Galleries is a third-generation family business as well as the world’s largest auction house for works on paper. In the last 75 years, Swann has repeatedly revolutionized the trade with such innovations as the first U.S. auction dedicated to photographs and the world’s only department of African-American Fine Art. More than 30 auctions and previews are held annually in Swann Galleries’ two-floor exhibition space in Midtown Manhattan, and online worldwide. Visit swanngalleries.com for more information.