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Hale Woodruff, ‘Carnival,’ sold for $665,000, a record for an abstract work by Woodruff

Woodruff, Catlett set records at Swann African American art sale

Sheila Gibson Stoodley
Sheila Gibson Stoodley
Hale Woodruff, ‘Carnival,’ sold for $665,000, a record for an abstract work by Woodruff
Hale Woodruff, ‘Carnival,’ sold for $665,000, a record for an abstract work by Woodruff

NEW YORK — “We are beyond thrilled with the results of the October 7 auction, which was a historic sale for Swann Galleries: our first auction to hammer over $4 million. Great excitement about our sale offerings resulted in auction record prices for eleven artists, including Belkis Ayon, Elizabeth Catlett and Howardena Pindell, and significant prices for many others, including Edward Bannister, Richmond Barthé and Hale Woodruff,” noted Nigel Freeman, director of African American Art at Swann Galleries. The sale totaled more than $5 million, including buyer’s premium.

Leading the auction was Hale Woodruff’s Carnival, a 1958 oil on canvas that sold for $665,000, the highest price achieved for an abstract work by the artist. Additional abstract works of note included Norman Lewis’s Past Time, a 1950-1951 oil on canvas that sold for $233,000, and a 1970s work on paper by Lewis in hues of deep blue and black, which realized $161,000.

Elizabeth Catlett, ‘Head,’ sold for $485,000, a record for the artist
Elizabeth Catlett, ‘Head,’ sold for $485,000, a record for the artist

Sculpture also proved to be popular among collectors with a rare limestone work by Elizabeth Catlett — Head, 1943 — establishing a new record for the artist at $485,000 (the previous record was established by Swann in 2019 at $389,000). Simone Leigh was on offer with Untitled (Vessel), a circa-2004 glazed terra cotta stoneware that sold for $149,000, and also a 2011–12 glazed terra cotta cowrie shell  that achieved $106,250. Richmond Barthe’s scarce female figure Black Majesty, bronze with a brown patina, 1969, also found success, selling for the sum of $106,250.

The sale offered 24 lots to benefit the Brandywine Workshop in Philadelphia, 20 of which found buyers, totaling $196,000. Most notable of the works on offer were collographs by Belkis Ayoón — Temores Infundados, created in 1997, earned a record for the artist at $75,000. KKK Boutique II, a 1996 etching by Camille Billops, also brought a record for the artist at $9,375.

Rounding out the top lots were assemblage artist Howardena Pindell and Noah Purifoy, with Pindell’s Untitled #57 from 1974–75, an excellent example of her punched paper works, earning a record for the artist at $137,000. Figurative works by Hughie Lee-Smith, Ernie Barnes and Bob Thompson, as well as exceptional works in photography by Lorna Simpson and Lyle Ashton Harris proved to be successful among collectors.

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