Commonly known as Grandma Moses, Anna Mary Robertson was an American painter best known for her folk paintings. Engineer and art collector Louis Caldor discovered her work in 1938 when he saw her paintings displayed in a New York drugstore window. She then gradually rose to popularity. Coeur d’Alene Art Auction’s upcoming Fine Western & American Art online sale highlights Grandma Moses’ The Church in the Hills. Completed in 1944, the oil painting reflects the artist’s life on farms.
Eanger Irving Couse’s Repose is another lot of interest. Founder of the Taos Society of Artists, Couse is widely recognized for depicting Southwest Native Americans in his own distinct style. According to art historian Mary Carroll Nelson, “Couse was always the painter, not the reporter. Yet he was so involved with the Taos people that he conveyed a feeling of contact with their sacred rituals.” The offered lot shows a Native American from Taos Pueblo laying on a river bank while playing a flute. View each available lot and register to bid online on Bidsquare.
Displayed in the upcoming Sotheby’s auction are 35 pieces of the 65-piece Macklowe Collection. Real estate developer Harry Macklowe and his wife Linda acquired an extensive art collection from some of the most notable modern artists of the 20th century during their nearly 60-year marriage. The marriage ended in 2016 when Linda filed for divorce. As a resolution to the long and bitter divorce proceedings, a New York Supreme Court judge ordered the couple to sell their art collection and split the profits. Several major pieces from the Macklowe Collection will now come to market. Alberto Giacometti’s 1949 Le Nez sculpture is highlighted in this auction. With a head-like form and elongated nose, the sculpture contains the “Giacometti” and foundry mark inscriptions. Giacometti cast this version of the 1947 original piece in 1965.
Bidders can also consider Andy Warhol’s Nine Marilyns. Based on a 1953 publicity photograph, the 1962 work depicts Marilyn Monroe’s headshot at various exposures. Additionally, pieces by such artists as Jackson Pollock, Pablo Picasso, Jasper Johns, and others appear in the catalog. Explore the complete offerings from the Macklowe Collection and register to bid by visiting Sotheby’s.
With an oeuvre of over 500 artworks, Chilean artist Claudio Bravo is best known for his hyper-realistic depictions of paper bags. Inspired by the imagery of paper packages placed on the table, Bravo also painted everyday objects like aluminum cans, helmets, and other packaging. The upcoming timed auction of Post War and Contemporary Art, presented by Rago, will showcase Claudio Bravo’s Untitled Work (Bolsas de Papel). The 1969 piece is a pastel and gouache on paper that captures the color and texture of paper packaging.
Cuban American artist Carmen Herrera’s minimalist artwork is available at the event. The untitled 2013 acrylic on canvas is covered entirely in red with two rectangular patches of blue at the corners. The auction will also offer Big Wheel of Shiva, a wrapped and threaded sculpture by Sheila Hicks. To view the full catalog or to place a bid, visit Rago.
This fall, decoy and sporting relic collectors will find over 300 lots in Guyette and Deeter’s upcoming auction. Session one starts with a Native American princess figure (circa 1880). She wears a feathered headdress, and she holds tobacco leaves in her right hand and a bundle of cigars in her left. The dress she wears features carved tobacco leaves painted in the same color palette as her headdress. The cigar store figure is attributed to Thomas Brooks (1828 – 1895) or Samuel Robb (1851 – 1928). Both were New Yorkers and former ship carvers.
Other notable lots include a selection of decoys. A hollow carved Canada goose decoy is a leading item. It dates back to the early or mid-20th century. The branding iron label underneath reads A.T. Shearer. It bears a slight tuck from the hunting rig of Dr. Ansley Thomas Shearer in Wisconsin. A fish plaque from Oscar Peterson is also available in the sale alongside furniture, watches, and decorative art. Find the full catalog on Bidsquare and register to place a bid.
Born in France, François-Xavier Lalanne (1927 – 2008) studied drawing, painting, and sculpture at the Académie Julian. The sculptor and installation artist famously created whimsical furniture pieces that resemble animals. In 1965, Lalanne made a striking artistic statement by designing 24 furniture items with sheepskin and bronze. Lalanne fashioned them in the living room of a Paris apartment he shared with his wife and art partner Claude Lalanne. Moutons de Pierre, Lalanne’s faux sheep sculptures, are among the key highlights of this upcoming Freeman’s auction. A pair of Moutons de Pierre designed with epoxy stone and patinated bronze leads the listings.
Chaïm Soutine’s Le Viaduc Rouge Près de Vence (circa 1919) may be of interest to fine art collectors. The oil on canvas exemplifies Soutine’s signature style. His paintings explore colors, textures, and shapes rather than figural representation. Another significant painting on offer is Jules Pascin’s Les Nus Allongés (1927). The oil over pencil on canvas depicts nude images of two women resting casually. To view the complete catalog and register to bid online, visit Bidsquare.
Akiba Antiques will bring nearly 850 lots of fine art, furniture, decorative art, and collectibles under the hammer in November. Among the top lots is an artist-proof screenprint from Andy Warhol. Created in 1984 for the Details from Renaissance Paintings series, the available work shows a landscape scene with a peach-colored mountain and ominous trees. In the foreground, a hand reaches into view with a blessing gesture. Another hand rests on draped fabric or a book. This composition appropriates Leonardo da Vinci’s The Annunciation from 1472. Warhol divorced the original work from its context, applied vibrant Pop Art colors, and offered a critique of art consumption. Another notable fine art piece on offer is The Robe, a 1988 oil painting by Jim Dine.
The upcoming November’s Treasures sale will include several notable pieces of decorative art. Among them is a figural bronze sculpture by Erté. The Art Deco designer prioritized glamor and elegance in his works. The available Erté sculpture, King’s Favorite, shows a woman reclining on a golden pillow. While her pose is casual, she looks boldly toward the viewer. Other lots of interest include a Chinese carved jade pumpkin sculpture, a bronze lion desk set from Austria, and various silver items. Find the full catalog on LiveAuctioneers and register to place a bid.
Hindman’s upcoming two-day auction includes fine books, manuscripts, and more from the collections of Barry Moser, Dr. Eugene Vigil, Norman and Florence Blitch, and others. Showcased in the auction is a copy of the Federalist Papers, authored by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay, dated September 17th, 1787. This first edition includes a collection of 85 essays written in favor of the United States Constitution, the complete text of the Constitution, and resolutions of the Constitutional Convention.
Also found in this auction is the first official publication of the first session of the United States Senate, held in New York City on March 4th, 1789. This journal contains President George Washington’s opening address to the Senate, the official tally of electoral votes in the first presidential election, and the Judiciary and Treasury Bills. Regarded as one of the earliest printed versions of the Bill of Rights, this publication includes 12 proposed amendments to the Constitution, ten of which would become the Bill of Rights once ratified. View the entire collection and register to bid by visiting Hindman.
By February of 1974, Steve Jobs had dropped out of college and was living in a cabin by the foothills of the Santa Cruz mountains. He penned a letter to his childhood friend Tim Brown. In the letter, he writes about Zen Buddhism and traveling to India for the Kumbh Mela. He ends the letter with a poetic and circular sign-off: “i will end by saying i do not even know where to begin. / shanti / steve jobs.” This letter leads the upcoming History of Science and Technology auction at Bonhams. Jobs rarely wrote personal letters to his friends and family, and this is the first autographed letter by Steve Jobs to ever appear at auction.
A wide selection of books and manuscripts dominates the auction catalog. Notable lots include an anti-vaccine comic strip from 1802 that mocks the use of the cowpox virus to prevent smallpox. Bidders will also find a computer software development agreement by Apple that set the stage for desktop publishing. Other pieces of Apple memorabilia up for bid include the earliest known prototype of the Apple Macintosh computer, a prototype for the first Apple iPad, and complete Apple IIC systems in sealed boxes. There is also a letter written by Wilbur Wright concerning glider construction, notes handwritten by Richard Feynman regarding quark theory, chromogenic color photographs taken during NASA space missions, and more. View any of these lots and register to bid on Bonhams.
The upcoming Willow Auction House sale features the extensive fine art collection of Steve and Pauline Balogh. Over several decades, the couple built up their collection of European art with a particular focus on Hungarian artists whose works stand out in the auction catalog. Bidders can consider a semi-nude portrait by Mária Szánthó, a titan of 20th-century Hungarian art. The subject wears flowing aqua and violet silks as she looks off to one side. Laszlo Neogrady is another Hungarian painter with work available. He was best known for his sweeping, atmospheric landscapes. In one offered painting by Neogrady, pink-tinted mountain peaks crest above a wintery scene.
Beyond Hungarian art, this auction includes a 19th-century painting by German artist Wilhelm Beckmann. The Surrender of the City of Rosenberg in the Hussite War chronicles the 15th-century conflict between Christian Hussites and Catholics in Central Europe. Beckmann’s painting shows a crowd gathered near a rocky outcrop. The populace leaves their shelter under the watchful eye of an armored soldier. Collectors can also find paintings by Darío de Regoyos and Antonio Rotta. Find the complete catalog and place a bid on Hibid.
Robinson Crusoe is the eponymous castaway in Daniel Defoe’s famous 1719 novel. In the story, Crusoe washes up on an island far from the rest of the world. He creates an umbrella out of things he finds on that island to remember his former civilization. Inspired by an illustration of that umbrella, Claes Oldenburg created Crusoe Umbrella in 1977. It is a watercolor and crayon on paper piece that will be available in the upcoming Fall Auction, presented by Grogan & Co. The husband-and-wife team of Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen have also created monumental sculptures inspired by everyday objects.
The Fall Auction features over 200 pieces of fine art and jewelry. Auction highlights include works by Ellen Gallagher, Wolf Kahn, Elaine de Kooning, Grandma Moses, Ogden Pleissner, and William Merritt Chase. The auction also features jewelry from Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier, Buccellati, and Tiffany & Co. One notable lot is an 18-karat gold and platinum ring. It centers two radiant-cut white diamonds and a 10.04-carat intense yellow diamond. The accompanying GIA report states that the diamond is natural with VS2 clarity. To view the complete auction catalog and register to bid online, visit Bidsquare.
