OAKLAND, Calif. – Clars Auction Gallery’s July 17 sale of Fine Art, Decorative Art Furniture, Jewelry/Timepieces and Asian Art saw particular excitement when a rare painting by American tromp l’oeil artist William McCloskey (1859-1941) came up for bid. The oil on canvas titled Wrapped Lemons on a Tabletop (above) experienced highly competitive bidding and substantially outperformed it $70,000 to $100,000 estimate. Wrapped Lemons on a Tabletop (1888) achieved an impressive $216,000, making it the highest price for the artist in over five years and the seventh highest overall out of only 25 that have sold at auction.
Absentee and Internet bidding was available through LiveAuctioneers.com.
As Rick Unruh, vice president and director of Fine Art at Clars explained, “There are approximately 100 known works by McCloskey and perhaps even fewer exist of his most desired and collectible subject matter, still lifes of citrus fruit wrapped in tissue paper.” Unruh also explained, “Having this painting featured as the highlight of our July auction proved to be a very good decision when most of the major auction houses close down for the summer months until September. Dealers and collectors are most definitely looking for fine art gems such as the McCloskey painting during these months.”
Born in Philadelphia and trained at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, McCloskey oil still lifes epitomize a delicate execution and perfect realism that mesmerize the viewer. The painting, Wrapped Lemons on a Table Top, was one such example by the artist that caught the attention of some of the top and most well-respected galleries in New York that specialize in late 19th and early 20th century American fine art.
The telephone bidding on this lot was fast and furious. The outcome was more than exceptional for the seller in New Hampshire, who decided to forego waiting until the fall auction season.
Clars’ July 16-17 sale realized over $1 million with several other notable prices achieved. Also performing well in Fine Art was a bronze work by Canadian sculptor Sorel Etrog (1933-2014). Titled The Couple, (below) this 52-inch-high work sold for $27,830.
In the decorative arts category, the top seller was an American Gorham Martelé .958 hollowware suite that surpassed its high estimate selling for $12,100. Coming in second and also outperforming high estimate was the art glass group titled Seaform (below) by Dale Chihuly (American b. 1941), which achieved $11,495.
A stunning diamond and platinum ring highlighting an old European cut diamond weighing 1.93 carats was the top lot in the jewelry category and sold for solidly within estimate at $8,470.
Rounding out the auction was the Asian category that had its own surprises with several lots flying past high estimate. Two Chinese censers in particular had bidders fighting to the finish line. The first was a Guan-type tripod censer that was offered for $2,000-$4,000 but sold for $9,680. The next was a Ge-type censer (below) expected to achieve $1,500 but rose to $8,470.
For more information email info@clars.com.
Click here to view the fully illustrated catalog for this sale, complete with prices realized.