Outlaw Bonnie Parker’s Snake Ring, Luke Skywalker’s Lightsaber, and More Fresh News

Left: Bonnie Parker posed against getaway car. Right: Warrant for Clyde Barrow on charge of murder, Dallas County Sheriff’s badge, jeweled three-headed snake ring crafted by Barrow for Parker. Image courtesy of RR Auction

 

News and updates from around the arts and auction community:

  • During their infamous crime spree, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow robbed a few jewelry stores, but the most intriguing piece of jewelry associated with the duo didn’t come from a retail establishment. A bejeweled three-headed snake ring that’s being auctioned on June 24 was crafted by Barrow while in prison as a gift for his sweetheart, Parker, who was waiting on the outside. [Read more from RR Auction]
  • Star Wars fans will need more than The Force to get their hands on Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber, Darth Vader’s helmet, or an R2-D2 droid coming up at auction later this month. A few million in the bank might help seal the deal. [Read more from Yahoo! News]
  • When songwriter Tony Geiss died in 2011 at age 86, he left behind no immediate relatives, so his valuable songwriting royalties, including Sesame Street tunes, were auctioned — a new method for selling such rights. Ten charities will split $580K, the amount paid for ownership of future royalty revenue from the songs. [Read more from Billboard]
  • A gold ingot from the 1850s shipwreck of the S.S. Central America has sold at auction for $188K. It weighs in at a hefty 107.76 ounces, but that’s nothing compared to the largest ingot found in the ship’s cargo, which tipped the scales at 933.94 ounces. [Read more from Heritage]

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LA’s Broad museum to host Jasper Johns exhibition in 2018

Jasper Johns, Flag, 1967, encaustic and collage on canvas (three panels), 33 1/2 x 56 1/4 in., Art © Jasper Johns/ Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY. The Eli and Edythe L. Broad Collection. Jasper Johns, Target, 1961. Encaustic and collage on canvas. 167.6 x 167.6 cm. The Art Institute of Chicago © Jasper Johns / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY. Photo: © 2017. The Art Institute of Chicago / Art Resource, NY / Scala, Florence

 

LOS ANGELES – Artist Jasper Johns (American, b. 1930-), who rose to prominence with his paintings of flags, targets and other familiar objects, will be the sole subject of a special exhibition at The Broad in early 2018. Johns’ 60-year career of work will be presented in the most comprehensive survey in the U.S. in two decades. Jasper Johns: ‘Something Resembling Truth’ is the first major survey of the artist’s work to be shown in Los Angeles, and will be on view at The Broad Feb. 10, 2018 through May 13, 2018.

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John Moran Auctioneers’ daylong event buoyed by Internet bidding

This mid-20th century diamond ring by Beverly Hills maker Ruser earned $42,000. John Moran Auctioneers image

 

MONROVIA, Calif. – Running from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and comprising 767 lots, Moran’s May 23 auction was an ambitious affair, featuring four distinct cataloged sessions, including fine jewelry, studio jewelry, studio decorative art and studio fine art. The four-session May sale was a decided success, bringing in $750,500 in hammer sales and achieving an 81 percent sell-through rate across all sessions. Absentee and Internet bidding was available through LiveAuctioneers.

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Newly attributed Bosch painting goes on view June 30 at Nelson-Atkins

Hieronymus Bosch, Netherlandish (ca. 1450–1516). The Temptation of St. Anthony, ca. 1500-1510. Oil on panel (oak), 15 3/16 x 9 7/8 inches (38.6 x 25.1 cm). The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri. Purchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust, 35-22

 

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the first time since its reattribution, Hieronymus Bosch’s The Temptation of St. Anthony will go on view at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City on June 30. It will be shown with Christ Crowned with Thorns, an early Netherlandish painting recently confirmed as an autograph work by Albrecht Bouts. Both panels came into the Nelson-Atkins collection as original compositions, but scholars subsequently thought they were by assistants or followers. Stylistic analysis as well as the use of scientific techniques demonstrated that the paintings were consistent with other known works by the artists. What Lies Beneath: Rediscovering Hieronymus Bosch and Albrecht Bouts is the first time the two paintings will be shown to the Kansas City public since the confirmation of their attributions.

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Tibetan, Japanese paintings stand out in Jasper52 online auction June 17

Rare 18th- or early 19th-century framed Tibetan thangka depicting Gyayin. Painting size in sight: 9 1.2 x 8in (24.2cm x 20.2cm); frame size: 15 1/4 x 13 1/4in (38 x 34cm). Estimate: $1,300-$1,500. Jasper52 image

 

NEW YORK – The mystique and beauty of Asian decorative arts are readily apparent in a Jasper52 online auction that will take place Saturday, June 17. The 65-lot catalog includes highly collectible Indian statues, expertly executed scroll paintings, ceramics, cloisonné and carvings. Absentee and Internet bidding is available through LiveAuctioneers.

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