Toomey & Co. Auctioneers will close 2020 with two impressive sales

OAK PARK, IL.-Toomey & Co. Auctioneers will conclude its 2020 auction schedule with two upcoming sales featuring a wide variety of material, including several rare and important items. On Thursday, December 3, the third annual Tradition & Innovation will feature a limited, expertly curated range of works from painters, sculptors, ceramicists, furniture designers, architects, and jewelry makers who have helped define their respective fields for more than a century. On Sunday, December 6, Art & Design will offer a few hundred carefully selected lots of fine and decorative artworks, early 20th century and modern furniture, art pottery, lighting, metalwork, and more. In 2018 and 2019, the total of all prices realized for these December sales averaged over $2 million.

Bidding in Tradition & Innovation on December 3 and Art & Design on December 6

Tradition & Innovation on Thursday, December 3 will start at 6:00 p.m. CST and Art & Design on Sunday, December 6 will start at 10:00 a.m. CST. Both sales will take place at Toomey & Co. Auctioneers, 818 North Boulevard, Oak Park, Illinois. However, in light of COVID-19, neither sale will be open to the public. Bidders may participate by phone (708-383-5234) or leave absentee bids ([email protected]). The auction catalogs are available online at toomeyco.com and early registration is recommended. In addition, bids may be placed via two real-time, third-party digital platforms (LiveAuctioneers and Invaluable). Prior to the sales, preview is available virtually and by appointment. Those interested should contact [email protected] to request further condition information or schedule a preview time.

Highlights of Tradition & Innovation on December 3

Two oil paintings by American Impressionists will be auctioned in Tradition & Innovation on December 3: Edward Willis Redfield’s Overlook at Boothbay Harbor, Maine, circa 1930 ($70,000-90,000 estimate) and Joseph Kleitsch’s Artist’s Paradise, showing Laguna Beach, California ($20,000-30,000). Midwestern Regionalist Thomas Hart Benton’s Huck Finn lithograph from 1936 ($8,000-12,000) will appeal to art and book lovers alike. Works from Chicago artists include surrealist Gertrude Abercrombie’s oil on masonite, Levitation, 1964 ($10,000-20,000) and a large Ruth Duckworth stoneware sculpture ($7,000-9,000). In contemporary art, the sale has a Keith Haring screenprint, Pop Shop II, 1988 ($8,000-12,000), a Jeff Koons Balloon Dog from 1995 ($6,000-8,000), and Kathleen Mulcahy’s glass-and-steel wall panel, Rain on the Suwanne ($8,000-12,000).

The auction boasts many remarkable table lamps from the early 20th century, such as: a very rare copper example from Frank Lloyd Wright ($80,000-120,000), a lamp with W.D. Gates’ Teco pottery base and a glass shade by Orlando Giannini ($60,000-80,000), a Tiffany Studios Roman form ($20,000-30,000), plus lamps from Charles P. Limbert, Dard Hunter of The Roycrofters, and Chicago’s George Trautmann. Modern architect Louis Sullivan’s last-known drawing, The Christmas Spirit of Joy, 1923 ($20,000-30,000) will go to the highest bidder. In American Arts & Crafts, the auction has a Gustav Stickley early serving table ($20,000-30,000), vases from Arequipa Pottery / Frederick Hurten Rhead and Roberta Kennon for Newcomb College ($10,000-20,000 each), as well as metalwork and jewelry from Chicago’s Robert Jarvie and the Kalo Shop.

A significant collection of Danish furniture from Poul Kjærholm for E. Kold Christensen stands out within modern design, in particular, eight PK 11 dining chairs ($30,000-50,000) and a PK 80 daybed ($8,000-12,000), along with an Architect’s desk by Hans Wegner for Johannes Hansen ($8,000-12,000). Dutch architect Gerrit Rietveld’s Elling sideboard with exposed joints ($30,000-50,000) is guaranteed to make a statement as is French designer Martin Szekely’s sprawling 00 table ($15,000-25,000). American studio craft woodworker Sam Maloof’s lounge chair and ottoman ($8,000-12,000) were once owned by Hollywood producer William Kayden and Los Angeles-based, mid-century design icons Charles and Ray Eames have multiple lots in the sale for Herman Miller, including a prototype sofa ($8,000-12,000) and a pair of 670 / 671 lounge chairs and ottomans ($7,000-9,000).

Highlights of Art & Design on December 6

In Art & Design on December 6, many notable works of art will be available: two Gustave Baumann woodcuts ($7,000-9,000 each) and a carved woodblock ($4,000-6,000); a Dimitri Hadzi granite sculpture ($7,000-9,000); a Rashid Johnson print ($4,000-6,000); a Roy De Forest drawing with hand-painted frame ($4,000-6,000); a Pablo Picasso earthenware pitcher ($3,000-5,000); and lots by Keith Haring, Andy Warhol, and Alexander Calder.

Early 20th century design will include: a Tiffany Studios Linen Fold table lamp ($10,000-20,000); a Prairie Style vanity from George Washington Maher ($3,000-5,000); John Scott Bradstreet’s Arts & Crafts breakfast room suite ($10,000-20,000); a Gustav Stickley early china cabinet ($8,000-12,000); a bookcase from The Roycrofters ($8,000-12,000); Mary Chase Perry Stratton’s scenic tile for Pewabic Pottery ($3,000-5,000); and several vases from Rookwood Pottery and other Arts & Crafts makers ($2,000-3,000 or less).

Modern design offers much to admire: Vladimir Kagan’s Serpentine sofa ($10,000-20,000); a Studio L’Opere ei Giorni dining table ($8,000-12,000); Angelo Lelii’s easel lamp ($4,000-6,000); a Paolo Venini vase ($3,000-5,000); a Gio Ponti jug ($2,000-3,000); Hans Wegner’s Cube Bar storage system ($6,000-8,000); an Arne Jacobsen Egg chair with ottoman ($5,000-7,000); Edward Wormley’s open-frame sofa ($4,000-6,000); two settees from Mies van der Rohe ($4,000-6,000); and Paul Evans’ Cityscape coffee table ($2,000-3,000).

Upcoming Auctions and Consignments

Toomey & Co. will open its 2021 schedule with two auctions in late winter: Modern Design + Post-War & Contemporary Art on Thursday, February 25 and Fine Art + Furniture & Decorative Arts on Sunday, March 14. Consignments are now invited and photographs of items may be submitted for estimates to [email protected]. To learn about past or future sales, please visit toomeyco.com.