DALLAS, TX.- On May 16, Heritage Auctions continued to prove its strength in the American Art category with back-to-back, tightly curated events that together netted $12.18 million: The American Art auction, anchored by significant works by Norman Rockwell, Maurice Sendak and Ernie Barnes, saw just over 40 lots go before nearly 500 bidders to land at $5.105 million. Just following it, Heritage’s second session of Property from the BSA Settlement Trust, led by works by Rockwell, Dean Cornwell and Joseph Csatari, saw just over 180 lots hit the block in front of 663 bidders to bring $7.08 million. Both had spectacular sell-through rates, at 97.6% and 99.9% respectively.


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Friday at Heritage saw new auction records for Charles Wysocki, Auldwin Schomberg, Peter Fillerup, James Lewicki, Bill Morrison and Jeff Segler, and set a new world record for a work by the great Maurice Sendak, for his original and first drawing for 1963’s Where the Wild Things Are which sold for nearly twice Sendak’s previous record and hit $625,000 on Friday. The two sessions also saw the solid sales of 13 important Norman Rockwell paintings, including his elegant 1932 Saturday Evening Post cover art Marionettes, which sold for $906,250; his 1972 painting for a Brown & Bigelow calendar painting Can’t Wait, which sold for $1.310 million; and his 1958 Brown & Bigelow artwork Mighty Proud, which sold for $1.125 million. A spectacular 1935 Saturday Evening Post cover by Rockwell’s peer Joseph Christian Leyendecker titled Diving In sold for $325,000.

“The energy was undeniable from the moment the first lot opened,” says Aviva Lehmann, Heritage's Senior Vice President of American Art. “What we saw on Friday was genuine enthusiasm from bidders who were deeply engaged, well-informed and ready to compete. The strong results across both auctions reflect not just the strength of this category for Heritage but also a real passion for the stories these works tell. It was a thrilling day for American Art.”

Works by painting master and former professional athlete Ernie Barnes had a great day at auction with the sale of seven of his prime paintings and drawings, including a handful from the sports-themed collection of John Mecom Jr., the one-time owner of the NFL’s New Orleans Saints. Barnes’ Sandlot Saints (1983), with its depiction of an informal and joyous football game that's broken out in an abandoned city lot, sold for $450,000; his Opening Ceremonies (1984), with its triumphant panorama of communal elation at the start of the Olympic Summer Games, sold for $237,500; and his Anchor Leg (1983), which captures the climactic moment of a group of relay-race sprinters’ last explosive burst across the line, sold for $225,000.

Aside from the new Sendak record, the artist records set on May16 were impressive and numerous: Peter Fillerup’s 1984 bronze figure Trail to Manhood brought a new auction record for the artist at $175,000; Charles Wysocki’s charming oil-on-canvas New England Skating Party hammered at $112,500; and Auldwin Thomas Schomberg’s bronze baseball figure Right Field Bleachers sold for $2,187.

A 1960 Saturday Evening Post cover by James Lewicki set a new record for the artist at $3,250; a mural-like, acrylic-on-canvas work by Bill Morrison titled A Century of Values 1910-2010 sold for $23,750; and a 1984 Boy Scout fieldbook cover by Jeff W. Segler took that artist’s auction record to $6,875.

“American Art has always been the beating heart of our nation’s story, and it’s an extraordinary privilege to bring together such a dynamic, narrative-rich collection for our May 16 auctions,” says Lehmann “Friday was a tribute to the artists who have captured our collective dreams, struggles and triumphs with honesty and beauty. We were honored to present a selection that feels both timeless and urgently alive.”


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