Kaminski Auctions to sell art collection of former customer Oct. 27  

art collection

Jonas Lie (1880-1940), ‘View of Gloucester, Rocky Neck’, oil on canvas. Kaminski Auctions image

BEVERLY, Mass. – Kaminski Auctions presents the fine art collection of William H. Trayes Jr. (1928-2018) in a special auction on Saturday, Oct. 27, at 10 a.m. Eastern time to be held at the North Shore Art Association, Gloucester, Massachusetts. Absentee and Internet live bidding is available through LiveAuctioneers.

Bill and his wife of 63 years, Roswitha, were passionate collectors of the art of Rockport, Gloucester and Cape Ann. His knowledge of art and art history was vast, and the couple traveled to auction houses and art galleries throughout the Northeast in pursuit of their beloved Cape Ann artists. They were frequent visitors to the Kaminski Auction gallery and were often seated in the front rows bidding on another acquisition for their collection.

Trayes was an active member of the Rockport Art Association, the Cape Ann Museum, North Shore Art Association and Montserrat College of Art. He and his wife founded what is now, the Waldorf School at Moraine Farm in Beverly, Massachusetts.

art collection

Fern Coppedge (1883-1951), ‘White Sails, Summer,’ oil on canvas. Kaminski Auctions image

The William H. Trayes Collection includes outstanding artwork by Marsden Hartley, Winslow Homer, Emile A. Gruppe, Aldro Hibbard, George Sutter, Henry Martin Gasser, Frederick Judd Waugh, John Sloan, Lillian Westcott Hale, and sculpture by Paul Manship, Anna Hyatt Huntington and Donald De Lue.

Two beautiful scenes of the fishing industry of Gloucester by Milton Avery (1885-1965), are gouache paintings titled Gloucester Wharves and Gloucester, Drying Racks. Gloucester Wharves was purchased in 1977 at the Julia Schneider Gallery in Great Neck, New York, and featured in an exhibition titled Cape Ann Past and Present in 1987 at the Judi Rotenburg Gallery, Boston. Gloucester Drying Racks bears a label from the Bernard Danenberg Galleries New York City, both are estimated at $15,000-$25,000.

art collection

Milton Avery (1885-1965), ‘Gloucester, Drying Racks’, gouache, 17½ x 11 inches, framed 27 x 19 inches, Estimate: $15,000-$25,000. Kaminski Auctions image

Norwegian-American artist Jonas Lie (1880-1940) is represented in the collection with the painting View of Gloucester, Rocky Neck oil on canvas. It was originally purchased from the Grand Central Galleries in New York City and exhibited at the North Shore Arts Association in 1998.

A Marsden Hartley (1877-1943) featured in the sale is a charcoal on paper titled Forest Scene measuring 12½ inches by 15½ inches. Presented in a custom silver leaf frame with linen mat it is estimated to bring $10,000-$15,000.

Other notable paintings in the collection include waterscapes and Gloucester and Rockport scenes by Fern Coppedge (1883-1951), Dennis Bunker Miller (American, 1861-1890), Ernest Fiene (1894-1965), Theresa Ferber Bernstein (1890-2002), Frederick Judd Waugh (American, 1861-1940), George Sotter (American, 1879-1953), William M. Chase (1849-1916) and an outstanding oil on canvas, titled Silvery Morning, Gloucester from the quintessential Cape Ann painter Emile A. Gruppe.

art collection

Dennis Miller Bunker (American, 1861-1890), ‘Fish Houses’, oil on canvas, mounted on wood board, 9 x 12 inches, original double frame 22½ x 20½ inches. Estimate: $4,000-$10,000. Kaminski Auctions image

An exceptional entry in the sale is a circa 1870, Winslow Homer (1836-1910), charcoal and gouache on paper, titled Boy with Cap. Provenance of the work includes the William Vareika Fine Arts gallery, Newport, Rhode Island; Barridoff Galleries, Portland, Maine. The bill of sale states “This drawing is included in the Lloyd Goodrich and Edith Havens Goodrich/Whitney Museum of American Art Record of Works by Winslow Homer.” A copy of a letter of authentication from Abigail Booth Gerdts accompanies this lot.

Winter and Vermont scenes by Aldro Hibbard (1886-1972), West River, Vermont, Henry Gasser (1909-1981), Winter Steps and, Meadow Stream, Vermont by Emile Gruppe as well as a floral painting titled Zinnias by Ukrainian artist David Burliuk (1882-1967) are among the exciting art on offer.

art collection

Aldro Hibbard (1886-1972), ‘West River Vermont,’ oil on canvas, 32 x 40 inches, in original frame 40 x 47 inches. Estimate: $5,000-$8,000. Kaminski Auctions image

Bronzes by Paul Howard Manship (1885-1966), include several zodiac signs including Taurus, Aquarius, Libra and Scorpio all inscribed “Paul Manship” and several animal bronzes including Owl, with a greenish-black patina, inscribed “P.M.,” standing 3 inches high by 7 inches wide. According to information provided by John Manship, the artist’s son, this work is a detail from Evening a figural group from The Moods of Time series, which was executed in 1938 for the New York World’s Fair in 1939-40. The piece was purchased in 1986 at Sotheby’s, New York.

There are also an excellent bronze by Donald de Lue (1897-1988) titled Phaeton and an oil on board painting by Hugh Breckenridge (1870-1937) titled Abstraction #55 among the top lots of the sale.