Paris Auction of 19th and 20th century paintings and sculptures reports solid results
July 10, 2007
( Paris) - The recent auction of 19th and 20th century paintings and sculptures held by the Cabinet d’Expertise Dan Coissard with Aguttes Auction House on Monday June 25 featured some exquisite works from French and American private collections and reached a total of $8.6 million. LiveAuctioneers.com provided live online bidding for the important sale.
Coming from the private collection of Mme de Cardenas, a beautiful group of furniture and decorative objects by Diego and Alberton Giacomettiappeared to be amongst the stars of the sale, achieving a total of nearly $2 million, including a console with horses and a tree that sold for $286,544, a low cabled tablethat snatched $134,844, a pair of leaf-shaped lamps that was purchased for $205,637 and a rare pair of surrealist lamps that reached an auction record, selling for $876,490.
From the same collection, a series of collages and watercolors by new realism member Mimmo Rotella (1918-2006), including "The Red Shoe" and "Composition" (dated 1957) sold respectively for $55,623 and $26,968.
The prestigious Hébrard collection, heirs of the namesake of the reputed late 19th century and early 20th century Parisian foundry, offered an exquisite and extremely rare first cast bronze, "Spanish Dancer," which changed its owner for $626,954.
Russian paintings and the Russian School of Paris continue to be highly sought after. The interpretation of "The Despair of Salomé" by the great Russian sculptor
Naoum Aronson(1872-1943) realized $58,993. Other important sales included the drawing "The Brigand Brothers," an illustration for a Pouchkine tale by Mikael Vroubel(1856-1910), bought for $134,820 and a beautiful oil on canvas by Pavel Chmaroff(1874-1950) that doubled its high estimate and sold for $70,782. A luminous "View of Venice" by Georges Lapchine attained $64,042 and an ensemble of works by Alexandre Altmann(1885-1950), "Woman Seated in a Landscape" and "Snowy Landscape" reached respective prices of $50,565 and $42,138.
A great moment was witnessed for the œuvre of André Lanskoy when a large collection of figurative and abstract works was dispersed for a total of $809,918, including his "Abstract Composition," a momentous oil on canvas dated around 1955 and measuring 118 by 59 inches that soared to $185,378.
During the Orientalist paintings part of the sale, important works that were auctioned off included "The Washerwomen" by Alexis Delahogue (1867-1950), selling for $67,410 and "The Caravan in the Desert" by Charles-Théodore Frere (1815-1888) that also went for $67,410.
The 19th century Belle Époque section featured a beautiful oil on canvas "View of Venice" by Antoine Bouvard(1840-1920), that realized $50,558 and furthermore proved that the artist remains coveted and admired in the market today.
Some very strong performances were witnessed during the foreign school part of the sale, with two beautiful oil on silk still lifes by Vietnamese painter Le Pho (1907-2001) selling for $28,649 and $33,706. Portuguese painting proved to be quite desired, with three pastels by José Souza Pinto all more than doubling their high estimates, each attaining between $10,000 and $12,000, while a beautiful oil on canvas of a Portuguese Village by Francis Smith (1881-1961) soared to $75,832.
The contemporary art section of the sale featured a monumental "ONE Red Blue" by Robert Indiana(born in 1928), similar to the well-known sculpture in New York City on Park Avenue, attaining a winning bid of $641,990. Furthermore, an edition of another one of his other iconic sculptures, "LOVE," measuring 36 inches in height, was sold for $523,740.
The final part of the 368-lot sale presented a collection of abstract art from the 1950s, including works by Georges Mathieu (born in 1921), particularly his oil on canvas "Ymer" from 1965 that attained $104,485, while an oil on canvas from 1958 entitled "Gemini"by Jean Michel Atlan (1913-1960) went for $115,247. Finally, two watercolors by Alexander Calder (1898-1976), "Composition with Butterfly" and "Composition," both signed and dedicated to friends Tonny and Robert Cochet saw the hammer fall at $66,917 and $43,327, respectively. This was followed by a gouache by Jean Dubuffet(1901-1985) titled "Locus Transitis, EG 58," that sold for $101,124.
The Cabinet d’Expertise Dan Coissard and Aguttes Auction House are currently preparing another auction that will include important 19th and 20th century French, European and Russian paintings taking place on October 31. Watch for the full catalog, available online at www.LiveAuctioneers.com , which will also host absentee and live online bidding for the sale.
