DENVER – Discriminating collectors who may have overlooked the Mile High City as a source of commanding artwork may have to rethink their strategy. On Feb. 21, Bruhns Auction Gallery will be hosting an antiques estate auction whose contents rival anything to be found in the finest Continental salesrooms. Exquisite items include a Jose M. Velasco landscape oil on canvas dated 1894 and a 17th century Flemish painting.
LiveAuctioneers.com will provide absentee and Internet live bidding for the 236-lot auction, which will begin at 11 a.m. Mountain time.
The Velasco in the sale is a large – 37 inches high by 53 inches wide – Mexico Valley landscape for which the artist is best known. Most of his works are in private collections in Mexico or at the Museo José María Velasco in Toluca, Mexico. This painting in its original gilt frame has been in a Mexican family’s collection for over 50 years, having purchased it from the Galeria La Granja in Mexico City.
The Flemish painting is signed and dated “D. Ryckaert 1643″ and is of the Baroque artist’s Cobbler’s Workship Series. The painting, 23 by 33 inches, was reviewed by Bernadette Van Haute, an author and authority on Flemish paintings, who identified the work as an authentic Rychaert. She also noted, “What is particularly interesting for me is the fact that it is dated 1643. This makes it the earliest version known to me of the depiction of the cobbler in his workshop – a theme of which Rychaert painted various versions.”
Also featured is a highly engraved Holland & Holland 12 gauge shotgun, finished at the London factory on Nov. 7, 1898. In near flawless condition, the firearm has an estimate of $15,000-$45,000.
The auction will also consist of art glass, American and French clocks, antique furniture, Persian carpets, antique slot machines, an Art Nouveau Loetz art glass lamp, an Art Deco Royal Dux statue, a Webb cameo glass vase, a Daum Nancy French cameo cut art glass vase, an artist-signed Limoges charger and much more.
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Detail view of circa-1898 Holland & Holland Badminton sidelock ejector 12-gauge shotgun. Engraved by R.J. Collins. Flawless condition. Estimate $15,000-$25,000. Bruhns Auction Gallery image
Jose Maria Velasco (Mexican, 1849-1912), oil on canvas landscape of a valley in Mexico, held in private Mexican family collection for more than 50 years, 37 x 53 inches, signed and dated lower left. Estimate $30,000-$100,000. Bruhns Auction Gallery image
D. Ryckaert (Flemish, active 17th century), ‘Dutch Cobblers Workshop,’ dated 1643, 23 x 33 inches. Estimate $30,000-$50,000. Bruhns Auction Gallery image
Loetz Art Nouveau art glass lamp on marble base, circa-1910, 30 inches tall. Estimate $8,000-$13,000. Bruhns Auction Gallery image
PASADENA, Calif. – John Moran Auctioneers will open the year with a Feb. 17 auction catalog packed with Continental furnishings, exquisite antique silver and mid-century modern decorative and fine arts. Featuring a large selection of pieces from an important La Jolla, California collection, the offerings are eclectic and comprise wonderful decorative pieces as well as a vast number of top picks for the discerning collector.
LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.
The auction will be held at the Pasadena Convention Center. A discovery session, immediately following the cataloged auction, also contains a number of gems, including small-scale California Impressionist paintings, Continental silver and porcelain.
Moran’s February auction catalog contains a number of exemplary works by important California and North American artists, including a collection of 30 photographs by celebrated photographers Ansel Adams, Yousuf Karsh, Imogen Cunningham and Helmut Newton. One such work is an iconic portrait of Ernest Hemingway by Canadian Yousuf Karsh (1908-2002). The photograph is estimated to bring $5,000 to $7,000. Study of a Man by Paul Outerbridge Jr. (1896-1958, New York) is also offered from the same private collection as the above, with an estimate of $6,000 to $8,000.
A festive, large-scale work by Richmond Kelsey (1905-1987), an Oxnard, California-based artist who was an art director for Walt Disney Studios (1838-1950) as well as an illustrator for a series of popular children’s Golden Books, taps into the artist’s additional background as a muralist. The three-panel oil on board composition, hinged together at the edges to form a freestanding folding screen, depicts an early California scene of a mariachi band and a group of joyful dancers (estimate: $4,000 to $6,000). Also on offer is a sweet, small-scale still life by Southern California-based artist George Spangenberg (1907-1964) titled The Copper Bowl; the work has been assigned a conservative estimate of $800 to $1,200.
Highlights from the category of fine silver include impressive pieces of European hollowware, including a George II sterling silver lidded urn repousse-decorated throughout with Bacchic themes. Created by London silversmith Paul de Lamerie in 1741, the urn is painstakingly decorated with putti, lions and scenes of winemaking, and features grapevine-form handles. Hailing from the aforementioned La Jolla estate, this piece is estimated to earn between $3,000 and $5,000. Also via La Jolla, an Austro-Hungarian .800 silver shell-form centerpiece bowl by turn of the century maker Bruder Frank is expected to sell for $12,000 to $18,000. The large shell-form vessel also carries a cherubic theme, and makes a grand impression with applied floral garlands and monogrammed plaques.
Sterling silver works by American makers are not to be overlooked. A stately sterling silver five-piece coffee and tea service by Towle, with each piece allover decorated with daffodils and topped with trumpet-form floral finials should earn a price tag between $3,000 and $5,000. A tall, tapering sterling silver table vase by Tiffany & Co. features stylized waves and kelp adorning its sides and base, reflecting influences of the 20th century’s emerging Art Nouveau proclivities, as well as the echoes of Victorian tastes (estimate: $2,000 to $3,000).
The array of Continental furnishings on offer also provides a number of intriguing buys. A pair of Italian carved chinoiserie vitrines in the Rococo style are delightfully polychrome and gilt painted over a hand-carved rocaille-accented bombe body raised on slender cabriole legs. Dating to the mid 19th century, the pair carries an auction estimate of $4,000 to $6,000, and is expected to perform well. A Regence-style marble topped and gilt bronze-mounted marquetry vitrine cabinet is also on offer, with an estimate of $5,000 to $7,000. Faced with a hand-painted Vernis Martin panel depicting Venus, the Graces and puttis at Vulcan’s forge and custom fitted with gilt-bronze mounts and paw sabots to the feet, the cabinet should appeal to buyers whose tastes run toward the classical. A large-scale French Provincial double-door armoire, dating to the second half of the 18th century makes an elegant statement in walnut. Bidders should expect to pay between $1,000 to $2,000.
One of the most unique things to ever appear in a Moran’s catalog, an 18th century or earlier Italian “mystery cabinet” features a partially obscured portrait of a woman to its face. When an interested party attempts to move the panel covering the portrait, the whole drops down, revealing a realistically modeled demon which lurches toward the viewer. Commissioned by a private party as a wicked jab toward the portrait’s sitter, the piece is now offered with an estimate of $6,000 to $8,000.
Decorative Arts highlights also offer a number of pieces for those with Continental tastes. A pair of Spanish Colonial-style three-light torchieres, each measuring 98 inches high, are expected to bring $2,000 to $3,000 for the pair. A well-modeled – and surprisingly unsigned – bronze figure of a seated classical beauty is offered with a conservative $1,000 to $1,500 estimate. Four late 18th century large-scale carved polychrome and gilt painted santos with beautifully carved, emotion-filled faces are offered as a group for $12,000 to $18,000. A small, single-consignor collection of mid-19th century Russian icons will also be on offer, with prices ranging in the low thousands.
Fans of mid-century modern design will surely find their interest piqued by a number of Moran’s offerings, including an Isamu Noguchi “Rudder’’ table and stools (models IN-20 and IN-22, respectively). Each in birch, the table and three stools are offered as separate lots. The set comes from the private collection of the original owners, who purchased the pieces directly from a Herman Miller showroom in Chicago. The stools are each assigned an $8,000 to $12,000 estimate, while the table is expected to earn $6,000 to $9,000. Another must-have for collectors of modern furniture, an Eames lounge chair 670 and ottoman 671 with walnut-veneered shells and black leather cushions are offered as one lot with an expected selling price of $1,500 to $2,000.
Those wishing to extend their modern décor beyond furniture and onto their walls can also be sure to find some exciting prospects at Moran’s February sale. Roy Lichtenstein’s bold, primary-colored abstract screenprint, Best Buddies (numbered 51 of an edition of 100), should hammer for between $12,000 to $18,000. Carrying an estimate of $10,000 to $15,000, Henri Matisse’s pochoir print titled La Naguese Dans L’Aquarium is the 12th print from his Jazz suite, and hails from the same private collection as the above.
Interested parties can call Moran’s offices at: 626-793-1833 or send an email to: info@johnmoran.com.
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This moody 1957 portrait of Ernest Hemingway by Canadian photographer Yousuf Karsh (1908-2002) is offered with a $5,000 to $7,000 estimate. John Moran Auctioneers
Titled ‘The Copper Bowl,’ this oil on canvas by George Spangenberg (1907-1964 San Diego, Calif.) is estimated to earn $800 to $1,200. John Moran Auctioneers
Informally dubbed the ‘mystery cabinet,’ this devious 18th century Italian automaton cabinet has been estimated to bring $6,000 to $8,000. John Moran Auctioneers
Pictured are the single-owner Noguchi ‘Rudder’ table and stools to be offered as individual lots in Moran’s Feb. 17 Decorative Arts Auction. John Moran Auctioneers
This dynamic abstract composition by Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997 Southampton, N.Y.), titled ‘Best Buddies,’ carries an estimate of $12,000 to $18,000 John Moran Auctioneers
MASON CITY, Iowa (AP) – When people visit the Bil Baird Puppet Collection at the Charles H. MacNider Art Museum these days, they often say, “These are brand-new puppets!” said curator Mara Linskey-Deegan.
But they aren’t “new” new. They are puppets that have been in storage a long time and are now being displayed, thanks to a better archival system.
Last year the museum completed a project to improve the preservation of the puppets that Baird, a Mason City native, and his wife, Cora, donated to the MacNider during the mid-1980s.
The Globe Gazette reports puppets Baird created were used in films, including The Sound of Music, as well as TV shows and commercials.
The MacNider Museum began preparing for the preservation project in 2011. The physical labor started in 2012.
Each of the 550 pieces, including props, in the Baird collection was photographed and had a condition report done on it.
Then each piece was rehoused in a new storage box with acid-free tissues and foam supports so they could be stored according to museum standards, said Linskey-Deegan.
Two paid interns, Sarah Carlson and Dimitria Klein, did much of the work.
The project was paid for through a series of grants from the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, the Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa and the Farrer Endowment Foundation.
Only 15 percent to 20 percent of the Baird collection can be displayed at one time.
The puppets not on display are stored in pullout cabinets beneath the display cases, just as they were before. However, the new storage boxes with the acid-free paper do a better job of keeping them from deteriorating.
Linskey-Deegan said the puppets now can be rotated more often. The MacNider also has created several new puppet displays.
Included in the puppets that the public has not seen before are two dogs and a cat used in commercials for Hartz pet products in the 1970s and 1980s.
Having a photo database of all the puppets is a big help in arranging displays because the museum staff no longer has to get boxes out of storage and open them to recall exactly what each puppet looks like, Linskey-Deegan said.
A few puppets have their photos posted to the museum’s website. Linskey-Deegan said more will be posted in the future as part of an ongoing project to create virtual exhibits of various museum collections. A few other virtual exhibits are already online.
Some of the puppets in the Baird collection are from the 1920s, while some newer ones are from the early 1980s. The bulk of the collection is from the 1940s through the 1970s.
Considering the age of the puppets, they are in stable condition and still able to be displayed, according to Linskey-Deegan.
Many of the bodies of the marionettes are made of wood so “they have a lot of stability to them,” she said.
However, a few did have parts missing, such as hands and feet. Linskey-Deegan said this is because Baird, who had a puppet theater in New York, would often change the puppets for whatever show was coming up next.
For example, he would take off a hand so he could replace it with another if he needed a puppet to be pointing at something.
“He wasn’t thinking they would be in a museum for years to come,” Linskey-Deegan said.
PARIS (AFP) – French archaeologists protesting the privatization of their profession gave visitors free entry to the renowned Louvre museum in Paris Thursday.
Around 100 protesters blocked the ticketing area for around four hours in the afternoon, said union member Fabrice Marty.
Visitors, who normally pay 12 euros ($13) to see the Louvre’s collection of masterpieces, were therefore allowed to enter the museum for free, he said.
A sign posted on a ticket counter window read: “Free entrance offered by the archaeologists.”
The protesters denounced “the threats to the protection of archaeological heritage sites.”
“For more than 10 years, the privatization and commercialization of this sector has led to a catastrophic situation,” said a group of unions in a statement.
They focused on a sector called “preventive archaeology,” which helps protect ancient sites, and which was opened up to competition from private companies in 2003.
A spokesman for the culture ministry said it was “astonished” the protesters had allowed the Louvre to “suffer the consequences” of their demonstration and was in talks with the unions over the issue.
The Louvre, one of the most popular attractions in the French capital, is also the most visited museum in the world, receiving 9.3 million visitors in 2014.
LOS ANGELES (AP) – The Broad, the new contemporary art museum in downtown Los Angeles that will be free to visitors, is set to open Sept. 20.
Museum officials on Thursday announced the opening date for the block-long, three-story building next door to the Walt Disney Concert Hall.
The $140 million institution will showcase the priceless collection of billionaire philanthropist Eli Broad, who has been instrumental in transforming a once-rundown neighborhood just south of City Hall. Among the artists whose work will be displayed are Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, Ed Ruscha, Cindy Sherman and Roy Lichtenstein.
Broad says the museum, with its free admission, is his gift to the people of Los Angeles.
The Broad will open for a one-day sneak preview on Feb. 15. Tickets for that event will cost $10.
Copyright 2015 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
ST. LOUIS (AP) – Hall of Famer Stan Musial’s Stan the Man Inc. is closing shop in St. Louis this week.
The building where the former St. Louis Cardinals player signed memorabilia until a month before he died is closing its doors due to a decreasing inventory. Dick Zitzmann, vice president of the company, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that Musial still meant a lot to St. Louis, and that the current cache of signed items would last four to six months.
According to Zitzmann, there were 6,000 to 7,000 balls in the inventory when Musial died in January 2013 at the age of 92. Today there are none left.
The paper reports that Musial would show up at Stan the Man every single morning and autograph pictures, balls and jerseys from 10:30 to 11:30.
BRATTLEBORO, Vt. (AP) – A man who sometimes held his coat together with safety pins and had a long-time habit of foraging for firewood also had a knack for picking stocks – a talent that became public after his death when he bequeathed $6 million to his local library and hospital.
The investments made by Ronald Read, a former gas station employee and janitor who died in June at age 92, “grew substantially” over the years, said his attorney Laurie Rowell.
Read, who was known for his flannel shirt and baseball cap, gave no hint of the size of his fortune.
“He was unbelievably frugal,” Rowell said Wednesday. When Read visited her office, “sometimes he parked so far away so he wouldn’t have to pay the meter.”
The bequest of $4.8 million to the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and $1.2 million to the town’s Brooks Memorial Library were the largest each institution has ever received. Read also made a number of smaller bequests.
“It’s pretty incredible. This is not something that happens on a regular basis,” said the hospital’s development director, Gina Pattison.
Besides cash, Read had an antique Edison phonograph with dozens of recording cylinders that he left to the Dummerston Historical Society, Rowell said.
“It’s really a beautiful machine,” said the society’s president, Muriel Taylor.
Read was born in the small town of Dummerston in 1921. He was the first in his family to graduate from high school, walking and hitchhiking about 4 miles each way from his home to school in Brattleboro. After military service during World War II, he returned to Brattleboro and worked at a service station for 25 years and then 17 years as a janitor at the local J.C. Penney store.
In 1960, he married a woman he met at the service station. She died in 1970.
Stepson Phillip Brown, of Somersworth, New Hampshire, told the Brattleboro Reformer he visited Read every few months, more often as Read’s health declined. The only indication Brown had of Read’s investments was his regular reading of the Wall Street Journal.
“I was tremendously surprised,” Brown said of Read’s hidden wealth. “He was a hard worker, but I don’t think anybody had an idea that he was a multimillionaire.”
Copyright 2015 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
