PHILADELPHIA – Material Culture is ushering in the summer with a classic Estates Auction, featuring both a morning and an afternoon session, on Saturday, June 30. LiveAuctioneers.com will provide Internet live bidding.

The aim is to serve the community with an auction in which everyone can participate, with many unique and interesting items accessibly valued. Starting bids are low, in the hopes that auction-goers both knowledgeable and new can experience the thrill of bidding at a sale, and walk away with bargains.

The morning session, which begins at 10 a.m. EDT, showcases property from local and regional estates. A group of mid-century furnishings is led by a rare turquoise Eames rocking chair, with a Herman Miller label, expected to sell for $600-$900. Similar lots include a mid-century upholstered and wood couch, valued at $300-$500, a pair of vintage Eames-style side chairs, valued at $200-$300, and a Knoll diamond chair with its original upholstery, also valued at $200-$300. Other furnishings include an 18th century German or Dutch commode chest, worth $800-$1,200, and a fine selection of early 20th century oak furniture in the style of the Arts and Crafts movement, including an antique oak table valued at $400-$600, six antique oak dining room chairs also valued at $400-$600, an antique oak cabinet at $300-$500 and an antique oak buffet at $400-$600.

Artworks also feature prominently in the morning sale, led by those of African-American artist and Philadelphia native Andrew Turner (1944-2001), whose Portrait of a Woman is expected to fetch $400-$600, and a paper drawing of two girls on a bicycle for $200-$400. Three etchings by German artist Lesser Ury (1861-1931), two of trees and one of a Holland house, are valued together at $400-$600. Another German artist, Klaus Meyer (1918-2002), is represented at auction by a watercolor worth $100-$200. Two works by German-Israeli artists, Hermann Struck (1876-1944) and Jacob Steinhardt (1887-1968) are both expected to sell for $100-$200. American artist LeRoy Neiman, who died on June 21, known for his bright, expressionistic depictions of athletes, sporting events and musicians, will be shown in two works, a Bear Bryant serigraph, valued at $200-$400, and a lithograph of a scene at a bar, valued at $100-200. Both are signed.

Other items of interest include a land grant signed by President John Quincy Adams, dated 1825, for 73 acres of land in the Zanesville District of Ohio. It is expected to fetch $400-$800. The morning session also features a large number of antique and decorative oriental carpets, priced everywhere from $100-$200 to $1,000-$2,000 in estimated value. Antique and vintage textiles, clothing and accessories, antique Chinese and Asian ceramics and decorative arts, and a collection of folk and ethnographic art from a Delaware estate round out the morning’s offerings.

The afternoon session consists of items from the New Jersey antiques importer Michaelian and Kohlberg, who have placed astonishingly low starting bids on all of their lots in the interest of moving these items into the hands of the public. Many19th century natural and polychrome Anglo-Indian teak cabinets, valued at up $900, have starting bids as low as $70. Anglo-Indian tables and sideboards, worth up to $500, start bidding at $90. A fantastic assortment of 19th-early 20th century Chinese furnishings includes screens starting bidding as low as $50, cabinets starting between $40 and $175, chests starting at $50, square tables from $40, stands from $20, and pairs of chairs starting at $100—all for items of furniture that are worth up to $900. Modern painted Chinese furniture is also well-represented, including matching sets of chairs, tables and cabinets sold as single lots, with starting bids as low as $80. Dealers, designers or everyday art enthusiasts will be able to acquire stunning, handcrafted pieces with spectacular savings from the normal retail price.

Material Culture welcomes all interested collectors, buyers, and art enthusiasts to take advantage of the auction preview in its facilities in person. The Summer Estates auction preview will be open daily from Saturday, June 23 to Friday, June 29. Previews are daily10 a.m.-6 p.m. Interested parties not able to visit the exhibition gallery in person can also find full catalogs of this auction online at liveauctioneers.com.

On the day of the auction, Material Culture will also be hosting a barbecue, and the opening of the exhibition “5 Vermont Artists: Sculpture and Assemblages,” that will run through July 30. The reception for this exhibition will take place from noon to 5 p.m. with two of the artists present.

Material Culture is located at 4700 Wissahickon Ave. in Philladelphia. Phone 215-849-8030 or visit the website www.materialculture.com for details.

View the fully illustrated catalog and register to bid absentee or live via the Internet as the sale is taking place by logging on to www.LiveAuctioneers.com.

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ADDITIONAL LOTS OF NOTE

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