Édouard Cortès was a Post-Impressionist artist recognized for his Parisian paintings. He was often called Le Poète Parisien de la Peinture (the Parisian Poet of Painting) for his affinity towards the city. Cortès frequently painted landscapes of Paris in various seasons and light conditions. Leland Little features Cortès’ Place Saint-Michel, Paris oil painting in the upcoming Important Spring Auction. The sale also showcases works by equine painter George Ford Morris, who created horse portraits for nearly seventy years.
Jewelry items such as platinum and diamond rings, gemstone brooches, bracelets, and earrings are also highlighted. Writer-turned-jewelry designer Elizabeth Locke was sent to Bangkok in the 1980s to cover a shopping story about custom jewelry. Mesmerized by the overall process, Locke enrolled herself at the Gemological Institute of America. Her travel and writing experience influenced the design of her Greek, Etruscan, and Roman-inspired jewelry pieces. Offered in this auction is a yellow gold hand-hammered necklace with cabochon ruby accents by Elizabeth Locke. Collectors can also explore Peter & William Bateman’s silverware, several pieces of furniture, a selection of Chanel handbags, and Chinese decorative arts. View the entire catalog and register to bid online by visiting Invaluable
Bonhams’ upcoming auction, set to feature the Medical & Scientific Library of Dr. W. Bruce Fye, will offer over 300 medical books and manuscripts from the medical historian’s collection. Highlighted in the sale is a first edition copy of Edward Jenner’s Inquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variolae Vaccinae. Known as the “Father of Immunology,” Jenner was the first to experimentally test the folk belief that cowpox conferred immunity to smallpox, its deadly relative. His work would influence the development of the smallpox vaccine.
On October 16, 1846, at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Dr. John Collins Warren performed the first public operation on a patient under ether anesthesia. Dr. Henry Jacob Bigelow witnessed the event and on November 9, he described the operation to the Boston Society for Medical Improvement. The following week, it was printed in The Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, the first medical journal to cover this groundbreaking achievement. An original issue of this publication is among the featured lots of the upcoming auction. Also available is a copy of Icones Anatomicae by Andreas Vesalius. His publication De Humani Corporis Fabrica transformed the science of anatomy and physiology by applying the critical methods used by humanists. To view these lots and register to bid, visit Bonhams.
The Photographs Monthly Online Auction, offered by Heritage Auctions, features photographs from Ansel Adams, among other noteworthy photographers. Work by Adams reproduced less frequently are available here, including Dogwood, Yosemite and Oaktree, Yosemite. Both his work and his advocacy promoted the idea of “pure” photography, favoring the use of the full tonal range of a photo as well as an exacting focus.
Also in the sale are several works by Ruth Bernhard. She is especially known for her photographs of nude women in complicated poses. Representative works of hers are up for bidding, such as the prints of Wet Silk, Spanish Dancer, and In the Circle.
Beyond the landscape and figural, there are also several portraits of well-known figures from popular culture. Examples include Amy Winehouse, Pool Hall, by Diane Patrice, Marilyn Monroe, Interviewing with CBS by Irving Haberman, and Bruce Springsteen by Richard E. Aaron. There are also photos outlining historic events, such as Moscow, USSR, by Elliott Erwitt, which depicts then-vice-president Richard Nixon prodding Communist Party chairman Nikita Khrushchev on the lapel. This photo was reproduced and used by Nixon during his bid for president.
Other photographers represented include Tomio Selke, Jim Marshall, Frank Worth, John Schabel, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Craig Sometko, and more. View any of these lots and register to bid on Heritage Auctions.
The Prints & Multiples auction, offered by Heritage Auctions, is anchored by several well-known artists, including pieces by Melvin John Ramos. Ramos was an American figurative painter who specialized in female nudes, often emerging from or resting on unusual objects such as a candy bar wrapper, a Titleist golf ball, or a banana split. Among his pieces featured in this event is “Caramello Caramio”.
Another artist with several works up for bid is Shepard Fairey. Fairey is an American contemporary street artist, graphic designer, activist, and illustrator. Though already a well-established artist at the time, he became more broadly known to the public as the designer of the Barack Obama “Hope” poster for the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign. His work is best represented in this auction with “Crowd 2” and “Film Strip”.
The third artist with quite a number of works represented is surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. Dalí worked extensively in etchings and lithographs, as can be seen by the work in this sale, and his prints are often considered to be equal in quality to his paintings. Other well-known artists with works under the gavel include Pablo Picasso, Frank Stella, Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, Banksy, and more. View any of these lots and register to bid on Heritage Auctions.
In the 1950s, Joan Mitchell emerged as a leading Abstract Expressionist at a time when few women artists were recognized. The upcoming Contemporary Curated auction, presented by Sotheby’s, will feature several works by Joan Mitchell. Explaining her expressive art experience in her works, she said, “Abstract is not a style. I simply want to make a surface work. This is just a use of space and form: it’s an ambivalence of forms and space.” Rather than creating a recognizable image, her intent was to convey emotions through her palette. Featured in this auction is an untitled piece in shades of blue, green, and cream.
Wayne Thiebaud’s oil on canvas piece is another highlight of the auction. Best known for his still lifes of edible treats and everyday objects, he uses an illustrative style and thick impasto in his artworks. Also of interest is a painting by American Abstract Expressionist Helen Frankenthaler. Explore the full listings and register to bid online by visiting Sotheby’s.
Known best as a writer, illustrator, and painter, Frederic Remington was also a prominent American sculptor. Remington earned esteem for capturing the late 19th-century American West with images of cowboys, American Indians, and the U.S. Cavalry. He worked on many portrayals of Native Americans—a subject inspired by his personal experience in wartime Cuba as a war correspondent. An example of Remington’s sculpture will be available in the upcoming California and Western Art Auction, presented by Bonhams.
Depicting the coastal scenes of California, the auction also presents a watercolor painting by Elmer Wachtel. A noted painter of Southern California Impressionism, Wachtel is recognized for his early 20th-century landscapes. Often painted in earthy tones—with highlights of blue and green—the artist explored the play of sunlight on hillsides and trees in his paintings. Sharing the genre of Impressionism is an oil painting from Joseph Raphael. In Tulip Field, Raphael captured a broad field of flowers with reds, pinks, and purple-hued shadows. The painting displays interspersed green dabs of color to show stalks and leaves. View all of these lots and register to bid at Bonhams.
Morton Subastas will present the upcoming Special Auction of French Furniture event in March. Many of the available lots were designed and created in France. Highlighted is a 20th-century French buffet. This Enrique II-style buffet features walnut carvings with three drawers and six swing doors. The six doors and the buffet itself are decorated with flowers, animals, architecture, and scrolls.
Also showcased is a French, Breton-style sideboard. This oak sideboard is decorated with a country scene and has upper and lower shelves, two drawers, and two swing doors. A Louis XV-style wardrobe can also be found. A set of four chairs and a matching armchair, a double bed, and an umbrella stand round out this auction’s offerings. To view the entire collection and register to bid, visit Bidsquare.
The upcoming March Estate Fine Art & Antiques auction, offered by Bruneau & Co. Auctioneers, is anchored by works of fine art, decorative art, and furniture. One of the featured lots in the sale is an Impressionist oil painting by Norwegian artist Fritz Thaulow, titled Woman by a River. As the title suggests, the painting depicts a young woman near a river with a house in the background. Thaulow studied with the French Realists and applied that teaching to his paintings of Norway.
Also up for bid is a Macchia vase by Dale Chihuly. Best known for his organic glass forms, Chihuly’s work has been displayed around the world. A color screenprint by German-born American artist Josef Albers will be offered as well. Albers worked in Europe and the United States to create geometric color-block pieces. Many of his paintings contributed to the 20th-century Modernist movement.
Beyond fine art, several furnishings are under the gavel, including a bright orange Vladimir Kagan serpentine sofa and ottoman. Two Peter Hvidt Danish high back lounge chairs and a Herman Miller faux fur swivel office chair will be presented. View any of these lots and register to bid on Bidsquare.
Morton Subastas will offer the upcoming Morton Weekly auction, set to feature a selection of paintings, drawings, sculptures, and more. Serio Hernández’s Turquoise Eye sculpture is particularly highlighted. This bronze piece resembles a standing figure holding an eye. Hernández got his start in the 1960s working for the Los Angeles-based Chicano literary magazine Con Safos. Later, he worked in the Los Angeles County Probation Department, where he used his artistic ability to counsel at-risk teenagers and young adults.
Rufino Tamayo’s Cruz de Hierro, The Gymnast will also be highlighted. A copy of this lithograph was produced for the 1988 Seoul Olympics and shows a male gymnast suspended between rings. Included in the auction is a signed engraving from Francisco Toledo titled Story of the Rabbit and the Coyote, a porcelain ballerina, a 20th-century green resin elephant, and a wood-based sewing machine. View the entire collection and register to bid at Bidsquare.
The 1970s quartz crisis—caused by cheap quartz watches produced by some Asian companies— particularly affected the Swiss watchmaking industry. At that time, Audemars Piguet challenged the market. The brand put its trust in Gerald Genta, an independent designer, to create a new style. Genta designed a steel sports watch with a futuristic design, called the Royal Oak. After a year of research and development, the Royal Oak officially debuted at Basel in 1972. At the time, it was the world’s most expensive steel watch. Four Audemars Piguet Royal Oaks are available in the upcoming Watches Online auction, presented by Sotheby’s.
F.P. Journe’s Chronomètre à Résonance watch is another highlight of the auction. Inspired by the work of 18th-century watchmaker Antide Janvier, the brand created a resonance pocketwatch in 1983 and the available resonance wristwatch 17 years later. Chronomètre à Résonance was among the first wristwatches to use the resonance mechanism. Also of interest is a Rolex GMT-Master, which was launched in 1954 for Pan Am Airlines. Explore the full listings and register to bid online on Sotheby’s.
