Everard Auctions presents estate-fresh paintings, furniture, sculpture and jewelry, June 25-27
Featured: Paintings by Ernst Fuchs, Maxfield Parrish, Rodolfo Nieto, William Aiken Walker, and Michael Triegel; Chippendale chairs, contemporary sculpture, Tiffany silver, luxury watches, Jack Leigh photos
SAVANNAH, Ga. – Premier fine and decorative-art objects from Southern residences and collections will be offered during Everard’s June 25-27 Spring Auction, which is highlighted by property from the Savannah estate of Lorlee and Arnold Tenenbaum. Among the categories of prominence in this auction are fine American and English furniture, paintings by German and Austrian artists, contemporary sculpture, Tiffany silver, and a collection of Jack Leigh photographs. The Tenenbaum selection will be auctioned during the June 27 session, together with other important consignments.
An oil-on-board painting by Ernst Fuchs (1930-2015) titled The Fall of Sodom and Gomorrah leads the event with an estimate of $40,000-$60,000. The painting is illustrated in a 2003 book by Friedrich Haider titled (translated) Ernst Fuchs: Drawings & Graphics from the Early Creative Period. Fuchs was an Austrian artist and co-founder of the school of Fantastic Realism. Influenced by Klimt, Dali and Schiele, his paintings, sculpture and prints address themes of religion and mysticism. His importance was recognized in 1988 with the opening of The Ernst Fuchs Museum, which is located in the former Otto Wagner Villa in Hutteldorf, outside Vienna.
Coming from the same consignor, a 1961 work by Rodolfo Nieto (Mexico/France, 1936-1985), titled No. 114, is offered with an estimate of $10,000-$15,000. It is accompanied by a copy of the original 1965 bill of sale from Galerie de France, Paris. Nieto was a noted Mexican painter of the Oaxacan school. He was well received by his contemporaries in Paris, where he was exposed to the work of Edvard Munch and experimented in printmaking. He apprenticed under Diego Rivera and worked alongside his friend and artistic influence Rufino Tamayo. Nieto grew to be regarded as a 20th-century Mexican master.
Other fine art highlights include notable works by American illustrator Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966) and Southern painter William Aiken Walker (1839-1921). A circa-1898 oil-on-paper work by Parrish, Portrait of Henry Barnhurst in Uniform, depicts the subject in a Spanish-American War uniform and is estimated at $8,000-$12,000. Barnhurst is known to have been friends with Parrish and is the great-grandfather of the artwork’s South Carolina consignor. Charleston-born and the son of a prominent cotton agent, William Aiken Walker studied art in Dusseldorf, Germany, but was primarily self-taught. He drew acclaim for his depictions of emancipated Black Americans in the post-Reconstruction South. His oil painting titled Possum Hunter is entered with a $3,000-$5,000 estimate.
A contemporary mixed-media still life by painter and illustrator Michael Triegel (German, b. 1968-), titled Still Life with Melon and Artichoke, comes from a Ponte Vedra, Florida, private collection and is estimated at $12,000-$18,000. A member of the New Leipzig school, Triegel paints many religious and Christian subjects and is heavily influenced by Renaissance art. In 2010, he painted an official portrait of Pope Benedict XVI, and in 2022, he completed a commission for an altar piece at Naumburg Cathedral.
The Tenenbaum estate collection is distinguished for its fine paintings and sculpture, folk art, turned wood bowls, and art glass. A painting by Southern folk artist Jimmy Lee Sudduth (Alabama, 1910-2007), titled Bicycle Man, is composed of paint and mud on board and has an auction estimate of $1,500-$2,500. Sudduth was an imaginative folk artist and blues musician from Fayette, Alabama, who turned to natural sources – clay, sand, soot, and colors extracted from weeks and vegetables – to create his works. Aside from his engaging self-portraits, Sudduth’s favorite subjects included dogs, television personalities, and the architecture and landscape near his home and in large American cities.
The Tenenbaum estate is also the source of a beautiful turned and segmented wood bowl by Bud Latven (Philadelphia/New Mexico, b. 1949-). Latven’s masterful wood creations have been widely exhibited, including at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Created in 1999 and titled Open Conic Form Wood Sculpture, the bowl is composed of turned and segmented prairie retusa, cocobelo, African ebony and aronite woods. It is entered in Everard’s sale with a $2,500-$3,500 estimate.
A large, contemporary mirrored wall sculpture from the Tenenbaum collection is by contemporary American artist Heather McGill, who incorporates paper, beads and other materials into her imaginative creations. Also worthy of note are a George Ohr ceramic mug, a Han Dynasty figure, and a set of vintage Louis Vuitton luggage.
Other contemporary sculpture highlights include a Jane Manus (NY/FL, b. 1950-) bright red painted aluminum sculpture titled Red River. Manus is one of the few women, alongside Louise Bourgeois and Louise Nevelson, who were making metal sculptures on a scale similar to male artists such as Mark di Suvero and David Smith. Over the years that followed, Manus switched to working with aluminum rather than steel, preferring its lightness and flexibility. The auction lot is estimated at $4,000-$6,000.
Virtually every auction hosted by Everard includes outstanding estate furniture. Over the course of June 25-27, bidders will be able to choose from both antique and contemporary styles, with the common thread being great quality and provenance. A pair of circa-1750 Philadelphia Chippendale mahogany side chairs would add grace and elegance to any room. On the seat rail of one of the chairs is a handwritten inscription indicating them to be the property of the Hon. Charles Thomson, first Secretary of the First Congress of the United States. The other chair retains a typed label also indicating prior ownership by Thomson. The chairs comprise a single lot estimated at $3,000-$5,000. Also, a particularly fine circa-1800 George III rosewood and parcel gilt console carries a $2,000-$3,000 estimate.
Sterling silver highlights include a lovely pair of marked, 13-inch-tall Tiffany sterling silver Palm Tree candlesticks with painstakingly reticulated trunks and realistic leaves. Made in Italy and standing 13 inches high, the duo has a total weight of 75.64 troy ounces and is estimated at $3,000-$5,000.
The array of fine jewelry is led by an 18K gold and sapphire cuff bracelet by the premier Italian firm Buccellati. It is marked by the maker and has a total weight of 34.8 grams. Estimate: $12,000-$18,000. Among the stellar timepieces to be auctioned is an Audemars Piguet 18K white gold and diamond watch with a lapis lazuli dial. The Swiss-made luxury watch is estimated at $8,000-$12,000. The jewelry section also includes several other beautiful bracelets and ladies’ watches by Rolex and Tiffany.
Two collections of photographs by Jack Leigh (1948-2004) are sure to draw attention. One of the collections is a 1980 portfolio titled Oystering: A Way of Life, which includes five silver gelatin images of some of Leigh’s more-iconic oystering images. A Savannah native, Leigh is perhaps best known for his photo of the “Bird Girl” statue appearing on the cover of the John Berendt novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Leigh’s work recorded the people, environments and rapidly changing lifestyles of the American South. His oystering portfolio will cross the auction block with a $5,000-$7,000 estimate.
On Day 3, history buffs can immerse themselves in a fine collection of American Civil War-related manuscripts and ephemera. The documents are tied to such notable figures as Confederate General Robert E. Lee (1807-1870), Jefferson Davis (1808-1889, president of the Confederacy), Alexander Hamilton Stephens (1812-1883, vice president of the Confederate States), and John C. Calhoun (1782-1850, American statesmen and seventh vice president of the United States), amongst others.
The June 25-27 auction will start on all three days at 10 am EST. There will not be live gallery bidding for this sale. Bid absentee or live online via Everard, LiveAuctioneers, Bidsquare or Invaluable. The public is invited to a June 18 preview reception from 5-7pm at Everard Auctions’ gallery, with additional previewing available June 19, 20 or 21 or by appointment. For more information on any item in the auction, call 912-231-1376 or email [email protected]. Everard is located at 2436 Waters Ave., Savannah, GA 31404. Online: https://www.everard.com.
For more information about upcoming events, checkout Auction Daily’s auction previews.
