MOUNT KISCO, N.Y. – Eye-catching and unusual items – from a fine majolica collection to a Francis Sultana fur chair – will highlight Benefit Shop Foundation’s Red Carpet auction on Wednesday, May 8, at 10 a.m. Eastern time. Absentee and Internet live bidding is available through LiveAuctioneers.
“Eclectic auctions are our specialty and we always aim to have a range of fine items across the board from fine art and mid-century furniture to jewelry and antiques but we also manage to pull off a few surprises in each auction,” said Pam Stone, owner and founder of The Benefit Shop Foundation. “The Sultana chair, known as the “Green Yak” by its former owner, is a knockout piece and we are quite pleased too with the majolica wares that came out of a single estate in Bedford, New York.”
Donated by a supportive community member, the colorful majolica wares are all intricately designed and sublime examples of the genre. Highlights include a signed 15-inch-tall trophy-form vase ($400-$800) decorated with Medusa head medallions in relief, and a 19-inch-tall dragon vessel ($400-$800) with a bearded man in relief under a ribbed spout, with three horse figurals and putti.
Another statement piece of majolica that will vie for bidders’ attention is an early and signed Joseph Holdcroft majolica Daisy pitcher ($200-$400). The 10½-inch pitcher has rich cocoa-toned glaze with colorful vines and dogwoods.
Auctions also have a touch of the unexpected and a highlight here is the aforementioned Anita Kidassia armchair by Francis Sultana in a dark blue-green tone ($3,000-$6,000), measuring 33 by 36 by 38 inches. A go-to interior designer, Sultana hung up his shingle in 2009 to create interiors for many of his major art collector clients, creating statement pieces such as this chair.
Traditional and mid-century furniture will also be well represented in the auction, including an antique oval extendable dining table ($1,500-$3,500) with intricate base design and extension two leaves, measuring about 131 inches long with leaves, a John Widdicomb display curio cabinet ($1,500-$3,500) with four doors, Russian Empire style with beveled glass doors and a lighted interior, 87 by 84 by 16 inches; and a set of eight Russell Woodard Sculptura MCM Patio pieces ($1,000-$1,300), including four iron armchairs, an octagonal dining table and three smaller side tables, all purchased by the consignor in the 1950s.
Rounding out the auction are antique floor-size ceramic seated Buddha statue ($300-$600), possibly Hindu, glazed with vibrant saffron yellow and moss green hues, 30½ inches tall; a striking Art Nouveau sterling silver water pitcher, standing 19 inches tall and weighing 51 troy ounces, made in the 1880s by New York company Black Starr & Frost; and a signed Fernando Lanhas (1923-20212) oil on canvas ($500-$1,000) of a vivid yellow and black abstract geometric expressionist composition, 18¾ by 15 inches. Lanhas was a Portuguese painter and architect, who was influenced by music, astronomy and the international abstract movement.
For more information contact the Benefit Shop Foundation at 914-864-0707.
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