“contemporary” About 206
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Auction PreviewAncient | Near-Eastern | Asian Art
The upcoming Ancient | Near-Eastern | Asian Art sale, presented by Artemis Gallery, highlights a painting by Masoud Yasami. An Iranian American artist, Yasami’s abstract multi-dimensional works deal with space, color, illusion, balance, and chaos. He uses a variety of mediums and materials to create his works. As the artist says, “For many years I have dealt with gravitational force as the drama in my work; for example creating the illusion of forcing a rod to bend or a sphere to fall out of its position of balance and harmony.” The available 1990 piece, Composition with an Open Door, shows cloudy skies, a flowing waterfall, a silhouette of a fern leaf, and a lily. The auction also offers over 200 lots of decorative arts. Standing out among them is an ancient Hawaiian grey basalt adz. The basalt was likely quarried from Mauna Kea, Hawaii, the largest primitive rock quarry on the islands. Adzes were essential tools used to shape everything from canoes to idols. The available hand-knapped rock would have been used for cutting, smoothing, and carving wood. A 19th-century Isfahan tile is also notable. This eight-pointed ceramic tile features a man on horseback. Several birds and a hare are depicted on the blue background. View the full catalog and register to bid online on Bidsquare.
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Auction Preview2020 MassArt Auction – Live Auction
Contemporary artist Robert Freeman has exhibited in numerous museums and galleries in the Boston area over the last 30 years. His paintings capture the Black middle class in various situations, from black tie events to Mardi Gras celebrations. Available in the live session of the upcoming 2020 MassArt Auction is one of Freeman’s paintings, titled Two Red Dresses. The 2018 work shows two women dancing in cocktail dresses. Their suited partners have matching corsages. A polyurethane wall sculpture from Bill Thompson is among the highlighted items. The piece is colored in a deep shade of magenta that varies in shade across the sculpture’s curves. Thompson’s work has been shown in Santa Fe, Munich, and Boston. An example of Jane Maxwell’s mixed media pieces will also come to auction. The available lot shows four female silhouettes standing with their hands on their hips; the figures are overlaid with the phrase “nevertheless, she persisted.” This sale, offered by the Massachusetts College of Art and Design Foundation to benefit students of the arts, will present 31 lots from contemporary artists. Many mediums are on offer, including painting, sculpture, photography, jewelry, and cast paper. Bidders interested in jewelry can find a multi-colored necklace from Rebecca Hannon made of thin, connected circles. Visit Bidsquare to explore the full catalog and register to bid.
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Auction PreviewFine Art + Design Selections
The Fine Art + Design Selections auction, presented by Hindman, offers contemporary and early 20th-century pieces from artists around the world. Representing the United States is Ida Kohlmeyer's Mythic Mirror. Kohlmeyer discovered Abstract Expressionism when a leader of the movement, Mark Rothko, came to her native New Orleans as a visiting artist. In this piece, Kohlmeyer applied mixed media shapes onto a wooden mirror. The work comes to auction from Chicago’s Hokin Kaufman Gallery. From France, bidders will find a pair of andirons by André Arbus. Andirons, also known as fire-dogs, are supports used to elevate logs in an open fireplace to allow air circulation. Rounding out the featured lots is a digital print of nude models by Italian performance artist Vanessa Beecroft. She is known for arranging her models in various stages of nudity to form a militaristic effect. Beecroft has collaborated with numerous other artists and performers, including Kanye West. View each of the mentioned lots and register to bid on the Hindman website.
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Auction PreviewPost-War to Present
Robert Indiana’s LOVE motif has become ingrained in American culture, recognizable in its simplicity and branding. However, the Pop artist struggled with the legacy he created: “Love bit me. It was a marvelous idea, but it was also a terrible mistake... it became too popular.” Two of Indiana’s LOVE paintings will be offered in the upcoming Post-War to Present auction, presented by Christie’s. Both were painted in 1967, following Indiana’s split with his on-again-off-again lover and his rising frustration with the Vietnam War. The Whitney Museum of American Art’s Barbara Haskell has explored Indiana’s conflict with his own work: “He saw it as a precarious image that came out of his disappointments in love—that tilted O suggests the instability of relationships.” One of the available paintings has the word written in red against a blue background, while the other is blue on a red background. This auction presents work from contemporary artists alongside the artists of the 1950s and 60s. A 2012 acrylic painting by KAWS reflects the evolution of social commentary since Pop Art. The shaped canvas resembles a figure jumping from the ground with his arms thrust behind him. A smaller, circular canvas is placed below. KAWS’ work has seen increased attention in recent years, moving from the streets to galleries and museums. Another street artist featured in the sale is Eddie Martinez, a New-York based artist represented in the auction with three paintings. Martinez attributes his rapid painting method to his background in graffiti, noting the value of making precise strokes quickly and efficiently. A selection of silkscreen prints from Andy Warhol will be offered, as well as a sculpture by Keith Haring, several pieces by Tom Wesselmann, and a lacquered wood screen by Roy Lichtenstein. Browse the full selection of post-war and contemporary art by visiting Christie’s website.
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Auction PreviewUrban Art: And Then Online Auction
The upcoming Urban Art online sale offered by Heritage Auctions will examine the meeting point between street art and Superflat art. Takashi Murakami, the Japanese contemporary artist who launched the latter movement, will be particularly highlighted in this event. Several lithographs from his And Then series will be available, as well as various collaborative pieces with other artists and brands. A set of three Murakami skateboards made with Supreme are featured. The screen-printed boards reflect the Pop Art influences in Superflat art, as well as the subtle criticisms of modern-day consumerism and mass media. Murakami’s Plush Flowerball sculpture and various vinyl depictions of his signature Mr. DOB character will also be presented. Paired with Murakami in this sale is KAWS, an American graffiti artist and designer. Several pieces from his Companion series will be on offer, including a black Mickey Mouse figure with a skull-and-crossbones head. KAWS’ collaborative works are also coming to auction, including several Companions made with BE@RBRICKS. Screenprints from Ben Allen and the Andy Warhol Foundation can also be found in this auction. Visit Heritage Auctions’ website to view the complete catalog and place a bid.
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Auction PreviewDoyle+Design
The Doyle+Design auction offered by Doyle will showcase contemporary and modern design, furniture, and works from makers of the 20th and 21st centuries. Standing out in the furniture and design offerings are pieces from Tiffany Studios, Jacques Adnet, Max Ingrand for Fontana, Jean-Michel Frank, and more. The leading lot of the auction is a dragonfly lamp by Tiffany Studios from around 1910. The dragonfly motif on the patinated bronze and leaded glass lamp was inspired by Japanese culture and decorative arts. Jean-Michel Frank is known in minimalist design spaces for his elegant furniture and luxury materials. A pair of parchment-covered low wood tables by the designer are presented in this sale. Additional lots include a black walnut and Pandanus cloth cabinet by George Nakashima and a 1901 acid-etched cameo glass vase by Imperial Glass Works. The vase has a Baluster form and depicts two cranes standing in shallow water amid reeds. Also available is a wide selection of modern furniture, as well as pai ntings and Russian works of art. Explore the full listings and register to bid online on Invaluable.
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Auction PreviewAsian Works Of Art
The upcoming Contemporary Asian Art Monthly Online auction, by Heritage Auctions has 41 fine art lots. The Decorative Arts session primarily features works Chinese artists and a few Korean and Japanese artists as well. From acrylics on canvas to oil on linen and from digital pigment print to ink and ink wash on paper, the mediums are a wide-ranging mix. One of the works showcased includes Beijing-based artist Zhang Dali’s art in dye coupler. The Chinese artist discovered graffiti art when he went to Italy, and was the only graffiti artist in Beijing throughout the early 1990s. Yue Minjun’s “Smile-ism” series (2016) is also featured in this auction. The artist is famous for depicting himself in different settings. He has also reproduced this oil painting image in sculpture, watercolour and prints. To view the complete catalog and register to bid online, visit Heritage Auctions.
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Auction PreviewFine Modern Art
Full of hatch marks, strong lines, and scribbles, the paintings of the French-German Modernist Hans Hartung were a source of controversy during the mid-20th century. Hartung would eventually be imprisoned by the Gestapo in part because of his defiant style, which he consistently defended: “The first and most important thing is to remain free, free in each line you undertake, in your ideas and in your political action, in your moral conduct.” One of his later works, created in 1960, will be available in the upcoming Fine Modern Art auction presented by Doyle. This sale will also include fine art from modern and contemporary artists such as Man Ray, Grisha Bruskin, and Saul Steinberg. A lithograph from Man Ray is featured here, titled Les Amoreux (A L’Heure de L’Observatoire). This 1970 print shows a pair of Surrealist lips hovering above a darkened landscape. Various sculptures will also be on offer in this sale, including a white marble and abstract piece from Carla Lavatelli. Browse the full catalog and register to bid on Invaluable.
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Auction PreviewFine Art Fall Selections
The upcoming Fine Art Fall Selections auction offered by Hindman shows the evolution of modern art across the last two centuries. This sale of fine art and sculpture ranges from chaotic collages to symmetrical, minimalistic prints. One featured lot is Play Again, a mixed media painting from the Clayton brothers. Christian and Rob Clayton collaborate on their colorful and frenzied pieces, each adding to a painting separately without discussing or planning the effort. Play Again shows a boy holding a rat in his hands, surrounded by colors, shapes, and abstract forms. In sharp contrast to the Clayton brothers’ work are two pieces from Davide Balliano, an Italian painter and sculptor exploring the austerity and decay of Modernism. The two Balliano works available in this auction show interlocking black-and-white lines that are reminiscent of a vinyl record. Hugo Robus’ Sleeping Woman sculpture also reflects on the progression of modern art toward abstraction and absurdity. View each of these lots and register for online bidding on Bidsquare.
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Auction PreviewThe Robert J. Morrison Collection
The Robert J. Morrison Collection offered by Freeman’s Auction presents contemporary prints from numerous 20th century artists, including Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol. Among 211 lots, Roy Lichtenstein’s Sweet Dreams, Baby! sets the highest estimate at $100,000. Lichtenstein’s works are composed of Ben-Day dots, following the method used by newspapers and comic strips to display gradients and texture. Andy Warhol’s Mao will also be available. Produced in 1972, the screen print is on Beckett High White paper. Warhol is known as one of the most successful commercial artists since the 1950s. He won frequent awards for his style, using his own blotted line technique and rubber stamps to create his prints. View each of these lots and register to bid online on Invaluable.
