SAVANNAH, GA.- A growing interest in items that are unique or finely crafted has the auction market off to a robust start in 2022.
Everard Auctions & Appraisals’ February 23-24 Winter Southern Estates Auction is ready to meet the demand with more than 650 lots of fine and decorative art from select sources in Georgia, South Carolina, Florida and beyond. Absentee bidding is now in progress, with Internet live bidding slated to begin at 10 a.m. ET on both days of the auction series.
The auction features a wide range of modern and contemporary art, including an important bronze by William Kentridge (NY, South Africa, b. 1955-) titled Sculpture for Return (Commendatore Naso). It is initial-signed WK and numbered 11/12 on the side of the base. When rotated, the sculpture changes to form a nose, hence the “Commander Nose” referenced in the title. “For Kentridge, the process of recording history is constructed from reconfigured fragments to arrive at a provisional understanding of the past—this act of recording, dismembering and reordering crosses over into an essential activity of the studio,” says a commentary from the Marian Goodman Gallery, which notes his interest in “fragmentation and reconnection, the fragility of coherence.” The sculpture comes from a Sea Island, Georgia, estate and is estimated at $30,000-$50,000.
Philip Taaffe’s (b. 1955-) Anthology III, a 28-by-40-inch oil on paper mounted to canvas, is dated 1991-1992 and has an estimate of $10,000-$15,000. “Philip Taaffe is one of the most exciting contemporary artists of his peer group. He is widely known for his large-scale abstracts, and his work is held in a number of public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Whitney,” said Amanda Everard, president of Everard Auctions.
Marc Chagall (Belorussian/French, 1887-1985) is one of the 20th century’s most influential modernist artists. His mystical and deeply personal work remains highly desirable. Everard’s auction features four Chagall etchings, each entered with an estimate of $800-$1,500.
Abstract expressionist William Lumpkins’ (NM, 1909-2000) Village on the Ridge, is a 1971 watercolor measuring 18 by 24 inches. “His work is in a number of public collections, not only in his native New Mexico but also at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston and the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego,” said Everard. It has a pre-sale estimate of $2,000-$3,000.
Inspired by classical myths, Bryson Burroughs (NY, 1869-1934), created dreamlike paintings and was also the Chief Curator of Paintings the Metropolitan Museum of Art. His striking oil-on-canvas, The Horse Tamer, dates to 1933 and is entered with an estimate of $2,000-$4,000. A circa-1945 oil-on-canvas stretched on board, Beach with Birds, Little Compton, is by Molly Luce (Rhode Island, 1896–1986) and reflects her own experience living in a small coastal town. Luce has been called “the American Breughel.” During her lifetime, her works were collected by The Whitney and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She was married to Bryson Burroughs’ son, Alan Burroughs, an art expert and pioneer in the use of X-rays to study paintings. Both the Burroughs and Luce artworks remained within the family and were consigned to auction by a direct descendant of the artists.
Prominent Canadian artists are also represented in the sale. A signed oil-on-board painting by Albert Jacques Franck (Ontario, 1899-1973) depicts one of the snowy street scenes the artist is known for and has an estimate of $1,000 to $1,500. Red House Near Jarvis Street by John Kasyn (Ontario/Manitoba, 1926-2008) is an excellent example of the paintings of row houses the artist favored as subjects. Estimate: $2,000-$3,000. Two marine-theme oil paintings by William De Garthe (1907-1983 have estimates of $300-$500 each.
Going farther back into history, the auction features two exciting lots deaccessioned by the Telfair Museums in Savannah. An oil-on-panel, inscribed “Pourbus pinxit,” may have been the work of Flemish painter Frans Pourbus the Younger (1569-1622). Pourbus comes from a distinguished family of Netherlandish painters. The painting has a shield at the upper left, and depicts a bishop wearing a hat and fur-trimmed jacket, as well as four rings – one of them a signet ring. Measuring 32¼ inches high by 25¼ wide, the painting has a conservative estimate of $2,500-$3,500.
An 18th-century George III marble mantel, in the manner of designer Robert Adam (British/Scottish, 1728-1792) features a reverse-breakfronted egg-and-dart carved cornice and classical figures. Originally purchased from Stair & Company in New York and then gifted to Telfair in 1977, this statement piece is 5 feet 10 inches tall and comes to auction with a $4,000-$6,000 estimate.
One of the most iconic images of the 20th century captures a weary Albert Einstein contemplating the future of mankind. A silver gelatin print of the photograph, taken by Philippe Halsman in 1947, is signed by the photographer and was possibly printed as early as 1947 but no later than 1963. It carries a $3,000-$5,000 estimate.
Extraordinary images are also found in a collection of LIFE photographs. “Our consignor’s father was a publishing executive who left his family with his personal collection of LIFE photographs taken of notable people by notable photographers. He had them in his possession since his time with LIFE magazine,” Everard explained. The collection includes Arthur Rickerby’s photos of John and Jacqueline Kennedy greeting well-wishers at Love Field on Nov. 22, 1963, just hours before the president’s assassination. Estimate $1,200-$1,800
Delving further back into the history of photography, several 1845 calotype images are the work of Scottish artists David Octavius Hill (1802-1870) and Robert Adamson (1821-1848), who are considered pioneers of the medium. Their image The Artist and the Gravedigger has an estimate of $400-$600, as does their The Misses Grierson. Copies of these important images can be seen at the J. Paul Getty Museum, the National Gallery of Scotland, and the Chicago Art Institute.
Many finely wrought and beautifully executed American portrait miniatures, dating from the 18th to early 20th century, come from the estate of an esteemed private collector who spent 50 years amassing his treasures. A watercolor-on-ivory portrait by Edward Greene Malbone (1777-1807), considered the greatest American miniaturist, is estimated at $2,000-$3,000. Works by other masters of the genre, including John Wood Dodge (1807-1893), John Henry Brown (1818-1891), and Sarah Goodridge (1788-1853) are found in the collection.
Scenes of Savannah, past and present, can be discovered in the work of several local artists. Christopher Murphy Jr.’s tempera-on-paper depicting Savannah’s Johnson Square carries an auction estimate of $2,000-$3,000. A watercolor by his equally esteemed father, Christopher Murphy (1869-1939), depicts a lively scene of bygone days in a Savannah square and has an estimate of $600-$800. There are two works by Lila Marguerite Cabaniss (1874-1969), who is known for her landscapes, portraits and still lifes of Georgia subjects. Her watercolor of the famous Forsyth Fountain has an estimate of $2,000-$3,000.
Decorative art highlights include a Lalique Chêne crystal chandelier and wall sconces, designed by Marc Lalique in 1955 and carrying auction estimates of $6,000-$8,000 and $1,500-$2,000, respectively. There is also Waterford crystal, furniture, majolica, rugs, a collection of glass paperweights, and a 19th-century American copper running-horse weathervane, $800-$1,200.
