Mid-century design abounds in Kamelot auction Oct. 15

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Rare Maison Jansen dining table. Estimate: $8,000-$12,000. Kamelot Auction House image

Rare Maison Jansen dining table. Estimate: $8,000-$12,000. Kamelot Auction House image

 

PHILADELPHIA – Kamelot Auction House will present more than 500 lots of furniture, decorative arts, lighting, rugs, mirrors and other design elements on Saturday, Oct. 15, starting at 10 a.m. Eastern. Referred to as the Mid-Century Design Auction, this sale includes a very good assortment of Italian, French and Scandinavian pieces from a number of well-known designers and makers.

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Gordon Onslow Ford painting sells for $78,000 at Clars auction

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This rare and early painting by Gordon Onslow Ford titled, ‘Escape,’ was captured for $78,650. Clars Auction Gallery image

This rare and early painting by Gordon Onslow Ford titled, ‘Escape,’ was captured for $78,650. Clars Auction Gallery image

 

OAKLAND, Calif. – Clars Auction Gallery wrapped up their impressive 2015-2016 fiscal year Sept. 17-18 with an exciting $2.1 million sale that brought to the market property from several major investment level estates including the initial offering of property from venture capitalist Thomas J. Perkins, the private collection of Allan Stone and the estate of Allen Singer, who was the attorney for the painter Gordon Onslow Ford. The September 2016 was Clars’ second highest September sale in their history bringing to a close their $16 million fiscal year.

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Heritage Auctions’ silver and vertu sale Oct. 18 appears up to snuff

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Rare and important Christian Maas Swedish 20K gold and enameled snuffbox, by repute from the collection of a royal family, Stockholm, Sweden, circa 1786. Estimate: $70,000-$90,000. Heritage Auctions image

Rare and important Christian Maas Swedish 20K gold and enameled snuffbox, by repute from the collection of a royal family, Stockholm, Sweden, circa 1786. Estimate: $70,000-$90,000. Heritage Auctions image

 

DALLAS — A rare and important Christian Maas Swedish 20K gold and enameled snuffbox, from a private Texas collection of fine gold and enameled snuffboxes, leads a stellar collection expected to realize a combined $500,000 in Heritage Auctions’ biannual Fine Silver and Objects of Vertu auction. The auction’s nearly 600 lots span American, English, Continental, Russian and 20th Century Design Oct. 18.

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PBA Galleries to auction signed first edition of ‘Mockingbird’ Oct. 6

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Signed first edition of Harper Lee's 'To Kill a Mockingbird.' PBA Galleries image

Signed first edition of Harper Lee’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.’ PBA Galleries image

 

SAN FRANCISCO – On Oct. 6, PBA Galleries will offer a first printing of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. The 1961 Pulitzer Prize Award-winning book is inscribed and signed by the author and is in an unrestored dust jacket. The lot is accompanied by a letter from the author to the person who requested the signing of the book for his son. It is expected to sell for $20,000 to $30,000.

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Vermont Flies Its Freak Flag, MIT’s Rare Electronics Flea Market, and More Fresh News

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Kerry Abram picking basil in 1973 at Frog Run Farm in East Charleston, Vermont. Photo by Lucy Horton from the personal collection of Mary Mathias. Provided by Vermont Historical Society

Kerry Abram picking basil in 1973 at Frog Run Farm in East Charleston, Vermont. Photo by Lucy Horton from the personal collection of Mary Mathias. Provided by Vermont Historical Society

 

News and updates from around the arts and auction community:

  • The origins of Vermont’s offbeat culture and progressive politics can be traced back to the 1970s, when the Green Mountain State was home to “Freaks, Radicals & Hippies,” the name of the Vermont Historical Society’s new exhibition. [Read more from the Associated Press via the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram]
  • At MIT’s flea market, don’t expect to find kitchenwares or Junior’s old snow boots. The brainiacs from Boston’s renowned sci/tech university sell only rare, obscure electronics. [Read more from the Associated Press]
  • Cheers! Whisky pulled from a 120-year-old shipwreck is headed to auction. But would you dare drink it? [Read more from the UK’s Express newspaper]
  • An 1899 painting that had been missing for years has been found on a wall of an Indiana home and will be auctioned next month. The portrait of a young girl standing in a garden could make as much as $500,000, the auctioneer said. [Read more from the Elkhart Truth]

For more news and updates, follow LiveAuctioneers on Twitter and Facebook.

Picasso left lasting mark on Madoura art pottery

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Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) had a restless artistic temperament and continually sought out new forms to which his inspiration could be applied. A chance meeting on the French Riviera after World War II revealed the possibilities of clay as a receptive surface for Picasso’s art. His decorative ceramic designs were executed in numerous limited editions, increasingly in demand for collections of 20th century art, where they hold their own alongside multimillion-dollar paintings.

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Tribal masks embody African art auction Oct. 2

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Pende mask, carved wood, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 15 x 8 1/2 inches. Estimate: $200-$300. Jasper52 image

Pende mask, carved wood, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 15 x 8 1/2 inches. Estimate: $200-$300. Jasper52 image

 

NEW YORK – The many faces of tribal Africa are mirrored in a Jasper52 auction to be held Sunday, Oct. 2. The African art auction is composed of more than 40 tribal masks and complemented by related items.

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Gold bracelets given by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis bring $162,500

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Gold cuff bracelets by Van Cleef & Arpels, gifted by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis to her step-sister. Price realized: Heritage Auctions image

These gold bracelets by Van Cleef & Arpels, gifted by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis to her step-sister, sold for $162,500. Heritage Auctions image

 

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. – A pair of gold cuff bracelets by Van Cleef & Arpels, given by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis to Nina Straight, her step-sister and maid of honor when she married John F. Kennedy in 1953, sold for $162,500 at a public auction Monday. Kennedy Onassis surprised Straight with the bracelets when she served as Straight’s maid of honor 21 years later.

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5 Priciest Star Trek Items, Appraisal Yields Shocking Art Discovery, and More Fresh News

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1968 publicity photo of Commander Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) as they appeared in The Original Series. Public domain image

1968-dated publicity photo of Commander Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) as they appeared in The Original Series. Public domain image

 

News and updates from around the arts and auction community:

  • You’ve watched auction prices rise year after year for Star Trek toys and collectibles, but it’s the screen-used costumes and props that command the really big bucks. Here’s a list of the top 5 auction prices paid for Star Trek memorabilia. [Read more from Robb Report]
  • During a taping of BBC’s Antiques Roadshow, a woman was shocked to learn that a Victorian portrait she brought in for appraisal is worth more than $450,000. Who was the painter? [Read more from The Herald Scotland]
  • The widow of a Vietnam vet has received a treasured memento, thanks to a woman who spotted some old military dog tags in an antique shop and felt they should be returned to the serviceman’s family. [Read more from NJ.com]
  • English punk rock/mod revival band The Jam is auctioning everything in their current Liverpool exhibition ‘About the Young Idea’ to benefit charity. Every record pressing and original acetate the band ever recorded, plus tour jackets and stage clothing are included. [Read more from Uncut Magazine]

For more news and updates, follow LiveAuctioneers on Twitter and Facebook.

Persian rugs highlight Jasper52 textile art auction Oct. 2

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Rare antique Isfahan rug, 11 x 16 1/2 feet. Estimate: $6,500-$11,500. Jasper52 image

Rare antique Isfahan rug, 11 x 16 1/2 feet. Estimate: $6,500-$11,500. Jasper52 image

 

NEW YORK – A Jasper52 auction is offering a fine collection of colorful textile art, specifically Persian and Chinese rugs and several French tapestries, which will be sold Sunday, Oct. 2.

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