February 20, 2014 - Auction Central News

Model of Greek temple to be offered at Sworders sale March 4

Lot 105: 19th century Italian grand tour cork model of the Temple of Poseidon at Paestum. Estimate: £400-£600. Sworders Fine Art and Auctioneers image.

ESSEX COUNTY, UK – A cork model of the Temple of Poseidon will be sold by Sworders Fine Art Auctioneers on Tuesday, March 4. The intricate model, measuring 63 cm (25 inches) long, dates back to the 19th century and is thought to have been made to enable architecture students to examine the building’s design without having to travel abroad.

LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.

Sworders’ director, John Black, said: “The model is of one of the most spectacular ancient Greek temples which can still be visited in Paestum, Italy. Models like this were often used in the 18th and 19th centuries by architects such as Sir John Soane to teach their pupils and clerks who were unable to go to Italy or Greece. The Model Room of the Soane’s Museum includes a collection of similar examples, which portray an alternative grand tour.” The Temple of Poseidon has a guide price of £400-£600.

The sale also includes a collection of tiles dating back to the 13th and 14th centuries. The tiles form part of the contents of Moor Place in Much Hadham, Hertfordshire. The Bishop of London lived in the palace at Much Hadham and the local parish church has a similar panel of tiles. One of the 20 lots is a set of four medieval examples, which feature an armorial design and are estimated at £200-£300. The entire collection of tiles is expected to make between £4,000- £6,000.

Other lots in the sale include parts of the Bernard Gulley collection of furniture and works of art. The lots feature a range of country and oak furniture, works of art and objects including a Norwegian burr birch tankard at a guide price of £4,000-£6,000.

The Spring Country House Sale is being held at Sworders’ auction room in Stansted Mountfitchet on Tuesday, March 4, beginning at 10 a.m. GMT, 5 a.m. US Eastern Time.

View the fully illustrated catalog and register to bid absentee or live via the Internet as the sale is taking place by logging on to www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

Lot 14: rare set of 13 encaustic tiles 14th-15th century. Estimate: £600-£1,000. Sworders Fine Art and Auctioneers image.

Lot 151: Norwegian burr birch tankard late 17th century or later. Estimate: £4,000-£6,000. Sworders Fine Art and Auctioneers image.

Lot 181: Victorian penny-farthing bicycle, circa 1880. Estimate: £3,000-£4,000. Sworders Fine Art and Auctioneers image.

Lot 338: Eliot Hodgkin (1905-1987) 'Two Dead Lleaves,' tempera on card, 15 x 29cm, exhibited: Royal Academy, 1971. Estimate: £3,000-£4,000. Sworders Fine Art and Auctioneers image. — Lot 338: Eliot Hodgkin (1905-1987) ‘Two Dead Lleaves,’ tempera on card, 15 x 29cm, exhibited: Royal Academy, 1971. Estimate: £3,000-£4,000. Sworders Fine Art and Auctioneers image.

Lot 446: pollarded elm long case clock, early 18th century, inscribed 'John Latham, London.' Estimate: £6,000-£8,000. Sworders Fine Art and Auctioneers image. — Lot 446: pollarded elm long case clock, early 18th century, inscribed ‘John Latham, London.’ Estimate: £6,000-£8,000. Sworders Fine Art and Auctioneers image.

New Chelsea Art Fair  brings top UK galleries to King’s Road

Lilford Gallery, Mark Karasick, 'Sabine'. Image courtesy of Chelsea Art Fair.

LONDON – After last year’s successful relaunch of the new Chelsea Art Fair under the directorship of Ben Cooper, it will be returning to the Chelsea Old Town Hall and open to the public from Thursday, April 10, to Sunday, April 13. Offering an equally wide selection of well-known artists and some new discoveries, 40 of the most respected modern and contemporary art galleries from around the country will bring their highlights – many shown on the London Fair scene for the first time.

Flat and three-dimensional works of art with prices up to £50,000, making this the perfect fair for keen collectors and first-time buyers alike. The chic boutique fair encourages visitors to take their time to look around and talk to dealers in a relaxing, contemporary atmosphere.

This year, the fair sees some of the best galleries from Cornwall and Devon exhibiting on the King’s Road, including Falmouth-based Beside the Wave, Lighthouse Gallery and Stoneman Gallery from Penzance and Totnes dealer White Space Art. They are bringing a wide range of art depicting the South West of England and artists from the region.

For the first time Didier Ltd. will be selling iconic jewelry by leading 20th-century painters, sculptors, designers and architects, and as such bringing a new dimension to the fair, which will work well with some jewelry by other contemporary artists sold by some of the exhibiting galleries.

Several galleries will be exhibiting sculptural art as well, but the leaders in life-size sculptures are Muse, The Sculpture Gallery. Muse’s key sculptor Philip Jackson will be joined by several other established and emerging UK and European sculptors. While the Sheridan Russell Gallery focus on UK artists, among them Shaun Brosnan, Stephen Page and Mel Fraser, who will create a life-size sculpture especially for the Chelsea Art Fair.

Other top end galleries and contemporary art dealers exhibiting include Francis Iles Gallery, Camburn Fine Art, Carina Haslam Art, Woodbine Contemporary Arts, Wren Gallery and the Russell Gallery, who will bring works by artists collected by well-known art collectors, museums and celebrities around the world.

There will be some exciting talks on various aspects of modern and contemporary art to give visitors the opportunity to engage more with the art on view.  The Chelsea Art Fair will support the Hearing Dogs for Deaf People Charity again this year and a percentage of specific works of art will go directly to the charity.

Show hours are Thursday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 11 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.  Cost: £6 Up-to-date information and E-Tickets: can be found on www.chelseaartfair.org or on Twitter and Facebook.

ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE

Art World, Jamin, 'Promenade sur l'avenue, 2010. Image courtesy of Chelsea Art Fair. — Art World, Jamin, ‘Promenade sur l’avenue, 2010. Image courtesy of Chelsea Art Fair.

Washington institutions agree on plan to keep Corcoran in DC

The Corcoran Gallery and School of Art at 17th and New York Avenue NW in Washington. Image by AgnosticPreachersKid at en.wikipedia. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The oldest and largest private museum in Washington, the financially troubled Corcoran Gallery of Art, will be taken over by the government-backed National Gallery of Art under a proposal announced Wednesday.

In a joint statement, the two cultural institutions said they were in talks that envision the National Gallery of Art assuming initial responsibility for the Corcoran’s priceless collection of some 17,000 works of art.

The museum’s 19th century premises just steps from the White House – and in need of major renovations – would meanwhile go to George Washington University, which would also take over the Corcoran College of Art and Design.

The proposal aims to keep the Corcoran open to the public and its collection – featuring works by Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Edward Hopper and Willem de Kooning – in Washington.

Founded by banker William Corcoran in 1869, the museum has been grappling with deficits for years, prompting talk that it might relocate to a larger, less expensive venue.

The proposed collaboration would safeguard and increase access to the Corcoran’s collection as a resource for the public in Washington, maintain the historic Corcoran building as the renovated showplace for exhibitions of modern and contemporary art, and strengthen and elevate the Corcoran College and its programs. The announcement said the collaboration would also raise the stature of arts education in Washington and expand the benefits, services and interdisciplinary opportunities that both the National Gallery of Art and GW provide to students, museumgoers, and the Washington community.

The three institutions are now entering a discussion period to set the definitive terms of a collaboration, under which the Corcoran College of Art + Design would become a part of the George Washington University. GW would operate the college, maintain its distinct identity and assume ownership of, and responsibility for, the Corcoran building. The National Gallery of Art would organize and present exhibitions of modern and contemporary art within the building, under the name Corcoran Contemporary, National Gallery of Art. The National Gallery would also maintain a Corcoran Legacy Gallery within the building, displaying a selection of works from the collection that are closely identified with the 17th Street landmark. These and other works of the Corcoran collection would become the responsibility of the National Gallery of Art. Works accessioned by the National Gallery would bear the credit line “Corcoran Collection.” For works not accessioned by the National Gallery, the Corcoran, in consultation with the National Gallery, will develop a distribution policy and program.

The proposed arrangement among the three prominent Washington institutions comes as the culmination of a five-year effort by the Corcoran’s Board of Trustees to preserve the 17th Street building as both a museum space and a home for the college and to ensure the future of the Corcoran collection. Due to the challenges faced by the Corcoran, its board has sought to achieve these goals by exploring collaborations with other cultural and educational institutions.

“This coalition among our three institutions will open important new possibilities for Washington, D.C.,” said Peggy Loar, the Corcoran’s interim director and president. “The Corcoran’s great cultural, educational, and civic resources that are at the heart of this city will not only remain in Washington but will become stronger, more exciting and more widely accessible, in a way that stays centered on the Corcoran’s dedication to art and mission of encouraging American genius and opens the galleries free to all. We are deeply grateful for the bold imagination of the boards of all three institutions for working to make this outcome possible.”

“The George Washington University will work with the Corcoran to create a world-class arts education program in close affiliation with the National Gallery of Art,” said Steven Knapp, president of George Washington University. “Such a program, situated in this iconic Washington landmark, will offer unparalleled opportunities for students and scholars, and provide a powerful new focus for the arts in the heart of the nation’s capital.”

The terms stipulate that the Corcoran would continue as a nonprofit organization, committed to its original mission: “Dedicated to Art and Encouraging American Genius,” continuing its 145-year history of pursuing and supporting new art and new ideas. The Corcoran would support the National Gallery of Art’s and GW’s stewardship of the Corcoran name and legacy, consult with and provide advice to the National Gallery and GW on programs and interconnected activities, and promote the important role of contemporary art and artists in provoking new thinking and realizing exciting new cultural initiatives.

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

‘Mockingbird’ author Harper Lee settles museum lawsuit

President George W. Bush awards the Presidential Medal of Freedom to author Harper Lee during a ceremony Nov. 5, 2007. White House photo by Eric Draper. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) – To Kill a Mockingbird author Harper Lee has settled the federal lawsuit she filed against a museum in her south Alabama hometown over its sale of souvenirs featuring her name and the title of her book, court documents snow.

An attorney for the Alabama native filed a motion Tuesday in federal court in Mobile saying Lee had reached an agreement with the Monroe County Heritage Museum in Monroeville.

The settlement notice came days after a judge refused to dismiss the lawsuit, filed last fall, that said the museum uses Lee’s name and the title of her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel without compensating her.

The document did not provide details on the settlement, and a lawyer for the museum, Matthew Goforth, declined to comment Wednesday. He cited the terms of settlement negotiations.

An attorney for Lee did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Lee, 87, has had a stroke and lives in Monroeville after years of splitting time between the town of 28,000 and New York.

Lee’s lone published novel, released in 1960, tells the story of small-town lawyer Atticus Finch, his two children and the struggle against racial prejudice and injustice in the Jim Crow South. Considered a modern classic, the book was turned into a movie of the same name starring Gregory Peck.

The set for the movie’s climactic courtroom scene recreated the Monroe County Courthouse, where the museum is located. The museum includes a gift shop that has sold book-related souvenirs including clothing.

The lawsuit said the museum took advantage of Lee’s trademarks to sell souvenirs and wrongly used the title of the book as a website address without any compensation. The museum took in more than $500,000 in 2012, the lawsuit said. Goforth previously said the museum earned $28,566 from merchandise sales that year.

Lee filed the lawsuit after seeking a federal trademark for the title of her book when it is used on clothing. The museum opposed the application, saying souvenir sales were vital to its continued operation.

Now, the museum has changed its website name to http://www.monroecountymuseum.org . Items aren’t offered for sale online. The site says the gift shop “offers dozens of custom items available ONLY in Monroeville.”

The website says the shop has “a great selection of books and memorabilia about Harper Lee” and Truman Capote, a childhood friend of Lee who also lived in Monroeville and went on to write In Cold Blood.

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ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Banksy street painting sells at Miami auction for $575,000

Banksy, 'Kissing Coppers,' Brighton, ca. 2005, spray paint and stencil on emulsion base with aluminum. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com archive and Fine Art Auctions Miami

Banksy, 'Kissing Coppers,' Brighton, ca. 2005, spray paint and stencil on emulsion base with aluminum. Fine Art Auctions Miami Image. — Banksy, ‘Kissing Coppers,’ Brighton, ca. 2005, spray paint and stencil on emulsion base with aluminum. Fine Art Auctions Miami Image.

MIAMI (AP) – One of three works by the elusive British street artist Banksy has sold at a Miami auction for $575,000.

An anonymous buyer purchased Kissing Coppers, spray-painted in 2005 on the Prince Albert Pub in Brighton, England, at the Fine Art Auctions Miami on Tuesday night. The piece was expected to sell anywhere from $500,000 to $700,000.

Internet live bidding was facilitated by LiveAuctioneers.com.

The two other works, Bandaged Heart and Crazy Horse Car Door, went unsold because they didn’t receive their minimum bids, said Ashley Jimenez, a spokeswoman for Fine Art Auctions Miami. She said interested buyers can still contact the auction house within 30 days.

New York City art dealer Stephan Keszler, the owner of all three Banksy works that went to auction, said he was happy with the selling price for Kissing Coppers and encouraged by the offers the others received.

Kissing Coppers, a black-and-white stencil of two uniformed English “bobbies” (police officers) in a passionate clinch, reportedly was lifted and transferred to a canvas before the pub sold it to Keszler.

Bandaged Heart, which was spray-painted on the side of a Brooklyn warehouse, was removed by a team of specialists shortly after it was completed during Banksy’s self-proclaimed New York City residency in the fall, Keszler said.

Bandaged Heart, an image of a heart-shaped balloon covered in Band-Aids, had a pre-sale estimate of $400,000 to $600,000. Soon after it went up, the work was immediately “tagged” by another graffiti artist. It’s believed Banksy then added the words “is a jealous little” afterward.

Crazy Horse Car Door, also created during Banksy’s New York residency, was estimated to bring $200,000 to $300,000. It is a rear door of a Manhattan car spray-painted with a scene depicting a struggling, Herculean figure surrounded by running horses.

In the last three years, Keszler said, he has sold 11 original works by the street artist, including Banksy Slave Labor (Bunting Boy), which sold for $1.1 million in London to a U.S. collector.

Banksy, who refuses to reveal his full identity, began his career spray-painting buildings in Bristol, England.

Asked if he worries about selling art by someone whose identity remains a mystery, Keszler joked: “He knows who we are.”

___

Associated Press writer David Fischer contributed to this story from Miami.

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Hudson River School painter’s historic home awarded grant

Olana Mansion, Hudson, N.Y. Image by Ralf Müller. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

HUDSON, N.Y. (AP) – A New York historic site has received a $30,000 grant to support its educational programs about the Hudson River School painter Frederic Edwin Church.

The Poughkeepsie Journal says the Olana Partnership received the three-year grant from the Hudson River Bank and Trust.

The grant will support Olana’s programs and activities in the Wagon House Education Center and at the Olana State Historic Site.

Olana is located in Hudson, N.Y, about 36 miles south of Albany.

Church lived in the house in the late 1800s. He was a major figure in the Hudson River School of landscape painting.

Information from: Poughkeepsie Journal, http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com

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ADDITIONAL IMAGES OF NOTE

Clouds over Olana' by Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900), oil on canvas, 1872. — Clouds over Olana’ by Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900), oil on canvas, 1872.

Ai Weiwei says US artist wrong to smash vase in protest

Ai Weiwei, 'Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn,' 1995, triptych: black and white photograph. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers.com Archive and Phillips de Pury & Co.

BEIJING (AP) – Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei, who helped make his name smashing a valuable vase in the name of art, said Wednesday that he was miffed about another artist destroying one of his vases in Florida.

Maximo Caminero was charged with criminal mischief after destroying a vase valued at $1 million that was part of Ai’s exhibit at the Perez Art Museum Miami. The Florida artist said he smashed the vase Sunday to protest the institution’s lack of displays of local artists.

Ai said Wednesday that he did not agree with Caminero’s tactic.

“Damaging other people’s property or disturbing a public program doesn’t really support his cause,” Ai said in an interview in Beijing.

The urn, dating back about 2,000 years to China’s Han Dynasty, was one of 16 on display that Ai had dipped in bright industrial paint, making them look like much more recently produced pots. The installation aims to “trigger questions about authenticity and the value and meaning of original artwork,” according to the museum’s website.

On a wall behind the vases are a series of large photographs of Ai dropping a Han Dynasty ceramic urn that smashed on the floor at his feet, one of his best-known works.

Against this backdrop, Caminero picked up one of the vases from the floor and, when told to put it down, smashed it on the floor, according to a police affidavit citing a security guard. Caminero told officers he broke the vase to protest the museum’s lack of local works, according to the affidavit.

The Miami New Times quoted Caminero as saying it was a spontaneous protest after seeing the photos of Ai breaking the ancient Chinese vase. “I saw it as a provocation by Weiwei to join him in an act of performance protest,” he said.

Ai said the artist’s apparent inspiration was “misleading.”

“You cannot stand in front of a classical painting and kill somebody and say that you are inspired by” the artist, Ai said, adding that “this doesn’t make any sense.”

Caminero apologized Tuesday to The Miami Herald, saying he had no right to destroy someone else’s art. He canceled a planned news conference and did not respond to telephone messages left by The Associated Press. A note on his studio door said his lawyer advised against commenting.

Ai said he thought the value of $1 million mentioned on the Florida police affidavit was “exaggerated.” He said that he wasn’t involved with the insurance details, but that he thought the figure was “a very ridiculous number.”

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ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

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