Xavier Martinez (1869-1942).:

A grouping of 16 sketches from Xavier Martinez’s time in Paris. Together with a collection of Paris advertisements, programs, and other miscellaneous ephemera, including an advertisement for Whistler Academy (approx. 20 total). Artist: Xavier Martinez (1869-1943). Title/Description: 1.) “Le Parthenon du Luxemburg – Paris”. 2.) “Paris – Sept 2/98” (Notre Dame). 3.) “Rue Gassendi – Paris 1901”. 4.) “Paris – Luxembourg – May 1901”. 5.) “Rue a Gentillia”. 6.) “…6 May 1900” (haystack in countryside). 7.) Street/cafe scene. 8.) “Au Tete du Lion de Belfort – Paris”. 9.) “Avenue du Maine, 14 Juillet /99”. 10.) “Le Quai Saint Michel, Paris October /98”. 11.) “Paris” (Seine). 12.) “Paris, au bourth Colus…, Nov. 1900” (a stern lady). 13.) “du Brasserie Louvre, S. Feo, Dec.- 1901” (young lady). 14.) “The Teacher” (profile of rotund gentleman). 15.) a gentleman (artist/teacher?) in spectacles. 16.) “Paris 98” (a caricature of a woman with bare breasts, drawn on the back of a blank California contract form). Signature: 11 signed with monogram stamp; 3 signed/inscribed; 2 unsigned. Date Created: 1895-1901. Medium/Ground: Charcoal/Conte crayon, pencil, ink on paper. Size: Ranging from 4 3/8in x 3 1/4in to 8 1/4in x 7 1/2in. Condition: Overall good; several with considerable spotting. Most tipped-on at top margin to both sides of four sheets of black paper (some first tipped-on to backing paper), a few loose. Ephemera: The collection consists of approx. 20 pieces, including an advertisement for the Anglo American School, Whistler Academy, art classes taught by James A. McNeill Whistler (who, according to Elsie, Martinez encountered at the Louvre [Bancroft Library 1962-1969:65]; it is also understood by the family that Martinez studied with Whistler.) and Frederick MacMonnies, c. 1899 (toning, edge tears, creases, spotting); a Galeries Durand-Ruel Camille Pissarro exhibit brochure, 1898 (with tape repairs); exhibit brochure for Eugene Carriere “Maternite”, 1901; “Les Peintres Orientalistes Francais” Exposition 1898; a Galerie E. Druet card with Martinez’s handwritten art notes on back; L’Odeon Theater program; ticket for the Nouveau-Theatre; “Concerts Lamoureux” 1901 program. In addition, there are several pieces from Elsie Whitaker Martinez and Harriet Dean’s Paris trip in 1923 (that were saved together with the others), including a souvenir Foujita print; a Paul Gauguin retrospective and Noa Noa subscription brochure, and other misc. Together with two typescript pages/notes of Elsie Whitaker Martinez telling the story of Martinez’s time in Paris, and the covers of a folder marked with Martinez’s monogram and “1895-19…” In her oral history, San Francisco Bay Area Writers and Artists (Bancroft Library, 1962-1969:66), Elsie relates an anecdote of Martinez being in the Louvre copying a Velazquez painting, and Whistler was passing by, stopped, and said: ‘”You have great talent, young man’, and walked off”. In 1897 Xavier Martinez entered the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, Atelier Gerome (Jean-Leon Gerome, 1824-1904), and in 1900 the Academy of Eugene Carriere (1849-1906). From the Family of Xavier Martinez (1869-1943), Elsie Whitaker Martinez (1890-1984), and Micaela Martinez DuCasse (1913-1989).

Alice Baber, (1928-1982), “Axe in the Grove,” 1966, Oil on canvas, 48″ H x 64″ W:

Alice Baber
(1928-1982)
“Axe in the Grove,” 1966
Oil on canvas
Signed near the lower edge, left of center: Baber; titled on the stretcher, verso; dated and inscribed on the stretcher, verso: Paris [partially crossed out] 1966 New York
48″ H x 64″ W
Provenance: A.M. Sachs Gallery, New York City
Private Collection, Long Island, New York (acquired from the above on November 29, 1966)
Gift from the above to the present owner, c. 1980

Exhibited: A.M. Sachs Gallery, New York City, November 15 n December 3, 1966

Literature: Grace Glueck, iArt: A Many-Sided Bernini | Alice Baber,i New York Times, November 19, 1966, https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1966/11/19/issue.html.

This work is accompanied by a copy of the original invoice from A.M. Sachs Gallery, New York City, dated November 29, 1966.

Notes:
Alice Baber, who was born in Charleston, Illinois in 1928, began exhibiting her work in New York City in 1957 when she was included in the Stable Galleryis Sixth Annual Exhibition of New York artists. Baber, as one of the approximately twenty women included on the Annualis extensive roster, was shown alongside Grace Hartigan, Louise Nevelson, Lee Krasner, Mary Abbott, Joan Mitchell, and Elaine de Kooning. While many of the male artists featured in this exhibition have been recognized as key figures of the Abstract Expressionist movement, Baber n who died at the age of fifty-four in 1982 n has long been overlooked by museums and the art market at large.

Painted in 1966, The Axe in the Grove was included in Alice Baberis second exhibition at A.M. Sachs Gallery, which was located at 822 Madison Ave. and 67th Street. It was Baberis second one-person show with A.M. Sachs, and only the fifth in her career.

After the exhibition opened on Tuesday, November 15th, it was reviewed in the New York Times later that week. The noted arts journalist Grace Glueck, who authored the review, wrote the following passage about Axe in the Grove and its place within the exhibition overall:

Disks and puffs of pure bright color drift lyrically over a white field toward a gentle vortex, bumping one another like colored balloons at a childrenis party. Miss Baberis most successful work is large in scale, as iAxe in the Groove [sic],i where the white in the canvas is almost completely suppressed. The smaller the canvas, the larger the areas of white, and the greater the loss of focus.

Alice Baber spent her earliest years in a region of eastern Illinois known for its prairie land, before her parents relocated the family to Florida to escape the harsh winters that were having a detrimental effect on her and her motheris health. The title of this painting, The Axe in the Grove, likely refers to the region of Florida where spent much of her childhood. Yet, when one looks at the paintings that Baber created across all periods of her career, it is possible to find parallels between both the glowing irradiance of the Florida sunlight and the deep, rich tones of her earthy Illinois homeland o often, within a single painting.

On November 29, 1966, just five days before the exhibition closed, a couple from Long Island purchased “The Axe in the Grove.” The work hung in their home until the early 1980s, when a move into a smaller home prompted them to gift the work to the present owner.

Alice Baberis work has been exhibited alongside many key members of the Abstract Expressionist movement, including (but not limited to):

Mary Abbott, William Baziotes, Norman Bluhm, Louise Bourgeoise, Friedel Dzubas, Perle Fine, Sam Francis, Helen Frankenthaler, Dorothy Gillespie, Sam Gilliam, Michael Goldberg, Adolph Gottlieb, Grace Hartigan, Hans Hofmann, Paul Jenkins, Ray Johnson, Franz Kline, Elaine de Kooning, Willem de Kooning, Lee Krasner, Morris Louis, Joan Mitchell, Robert Motherwell, Robert Natkin, Louise Nevelson, Kenneth Noland, Jules Olitski, Charlotte Park, Ray Parker, Betty Parsons, Jackson Pollock, Richard Pousette-Dart, Ad Reinhardt, Milton Resnick, David Smith, Theodoros Stamos, Alma Woodsey Thomas, Bob Thompson, Jack Tworkov, Esteban Vicente

Select Museum Collections:
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA
Santa Barbara Museum of Art, Santa Barbara, CA
Solomon R Guggenheim Museum, New York, NY
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY

For additional information on the historical context of this painting, please see Joan Marter, Women of Abstract Expressionism, published by the Denver Art Museum in conjunction with Yale University Press, 2016.
ConditionVisual: Overall good condition. An approximately quarter-sized pressure mark in the peach color at the lower right. Some very unobtrusive, scattered specks of grime, pinhead-sized or smaller. A small series of approximately pea-sized spots of grime in the lower right corner. Dust accumulation, verso, commensurate with age.

Blacklight: No evidence of restoration.

Frame: 48.5″ H x 64.5″ W x 2″ D
Condition reports are offered as a courtesy and are typically published in Moran’s catalogue or can be made available upon request. The absence of a condition report does not imply that an item is free from defects or restoration, nor does a reference to particular defects imply the absence of others. Buyers are responsible for determining to their own satisfaction the true nature and condition of any lot prior to bidding. Though buyers are not legally required to inspect lots prior to purchase, failure to do so may constitute a waiver of complaint that an item was not delivered in a condition equal to the existent condition at the auction.

Xavier Martinez (1869-1943).:

Artist: Xavier Martinez (1869-1943). Title/Description: Mexican mother and child. Signature: Signed with monogram lower right. Date Created: c. 1930s. Medium/Ground: Oil on art board.� Size: 30in x 23in. Condition: There are several creases/dings at the margins, and several in the border of the painting (top and bottom), with old repairs/small spots of old in painting; dampstaining verso/lower margin, but it does not affect the image. Exhibited at the Laguna Art Museum, “East of Eden: Images of Steinbeck’s California”, 1998-1999. From the Family of Xavier Martinez (1869-1943), Elsie Whitaker Martinez (1890-1984), and Micaela Martinez DuCasse (1913-1989).

Leo Lentelli (1879-1961). Portrait of artist Xavier Martinez:

Artist: Leo Lentelli (1879-1961). Title/Description: “X. Martinez” (Portrait of artist Xavier Martinez). Signature: Signed, dated, and copyrighted at base. Date Created: 1916. Medium/Ground: Patinated bronze. Size: Approx. 18 1/2in high x 7 x 10. Condition good. Resting (not attached) on marble slab (7 1/2in x 10 1/2in). Note: Heavy for shipping. From the Family of Xavier Martinez (1869-1943), Elsie Whitaker Martinez (1890-1984), and Micaela Martinez DuCasse (1913-1989).

Doulton Lambeth Stoneware Salt Glaze Mantel Clock:

Mini grandfather-shaped clock; adorn with an Art Nouveau style with a blue diamond-shape pattern and white flowers.
Doulton Lambeth impressed stamp. Artist’s mark on the base. Stoneware Clock Depth: 3.75in. Swiss World Electric face clock: 2.25in Dia.

Issued: c. 1884
Dimensions: 4.25″W x 12.5″H
Manufacturer: Doulton Lambeth
Country of Origin: England
Condition
Age related wear. Not tested, function not guaranteed.

6pc Beswick Character Busts Set, Thunderbirds:

Glossy finish. Characters from British Sci FI action show.
The Hood, Parker, Virgil Tracy, Scott Tracy, Brains, and Lady Penelope. Beswick and ITC Entertainment Group Limited by Copyright Promotions Limited backstamps. This item has no reserve.

Issued: c. 1992
Dimensions: 4.5″ H
Edition Number: 228 of 2500 Manufacturer: Beswick
Country of Origin: England
Condition
Age related wear.

Joseph Stalin D7284 – Large – Royal Doulton Character Jug:

Russian tank, pipe, and minarets handle.
Issued 2008 in a Limited Edition of 100.Series: WWII Politicians. Royal Doulton backstamp.

Artist: Caroline Dadd
Issued: 2008
Dimensions: 7.5″H
Edition Number: 88 Edition Size: 100
Manufacturer: Royal Doulton
Country of Origin: England
Condition
Age related Wear.

Dahl Jensen DJ Copenhagen Porcelain Figurine, Geisha:

The Fiddler – HN2171 – Royal Doulton Figurine:

Swarovski Crystal Figurine, The Rhinoceros:

Limited edition sculpture of a rhinoceros with black and tawny-brown crystal eyes. Artist signed black base.
Swarovski and edition number acid backstamp. This item has its original blue case: 12.5in x 16.5in 10.75in. Includes case original keys. Certificate of Authenticity included. This item has a base included: 13.5in x 6in x 0.75in.

Artist: Anton Hirzinger
Issued: 2008
Dimensions: 12″L x 5.75″W x 5.75″H
Edition Number: 5941 of 10000 Manufacturer: Swarovski
Country of Origin: Austria
Condition
Age related wear.