Missing are the iconic paintings of flowers, bones and colorful landscapes that have made the American modernist from Wisconsin famous the world over. In their place are streaks of yellow and red, brilliant pastel swirls, blocks of contrasting color and stark charcoal lines slicing across nearly bare sheets of paper.
Cast aside any doubts, though. The museum hasn’t been taken over by another artist.
These are in fact O’Keeffes.
The museum is showcasing a special collection of more than 100 drawings, paintings and sculptures as part of Georgia O’Keeffe: Abstraction. Organized along with the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York and The Phillips Collection in Washington, the exhibition’s stop in Santa Fe is its only presentation in the western United States.
“A part of her work has been relatively unknown for so long, so it’s been exciting to bring this exhibition into being,” said museum curator Barbara Buhler Lynes. “It’s just such a tribute to her, and I think it reveals the consistency of her language of abstraction, from the beginning of her career to the end.”
On opening weekend, more than 4,000 people turned out to see a mix of pieces on loan from private collectors and museums around the country.
Included are the charcoal drawings that got O’Keeffe noticed nearly a century ago, paintings that have never been exhibited and all six works in her Jack-in-the-Pulpit series, which ranges from a small image of a flower to large-scale abstract shapes that echo the flower’s most delicate parts.
“She’s really searching for the essence of her subject,” said docent DeeAnn Dixon, explaining that the series offers a study in how O’Keeffe approached abstraction.
The exhibition is separated into various galleries, each focusing on a different stage in O’Keeffe’s progression as an artist.
First are her charcoal drawings, followed by more than a dozen of her watercolors, which Dixon explains were “really inventive and experimental” when they were done around 1917.
No matter the medium or the time period, visitors can look from one gallery into the next and see a repetition of the swirls, v-shapes and central lines that fascinated O’Keeffe in both her abstracts and more representational works.
“That’s the beauty of an exhibition. You bring all of these things together and then you see relationships that you hadn’t seen before,” Lynes said.
The exhibition provides a glimpse at the evolution of O’Keeffe’s distinct style, from the blending of charcoal in her early drawings to watercolor experiments and the feathering of oil paints.
The last gallery brings O’Keeffe’s career full circle with three watercolor abstractions that were completed in the late 1970s after macular degeneration had taken a toll on her vision.
Since O’Keeffe could no longer work independently, an assistant would mix the paint for her and she would choose which brush she wanted to use by feeling bristles. When it was time to paint, the assistant would position O’Keeffe’s hand over the primed paper.
A lifetime of habit made the pieces possible.
“You know how athletes have muscle memory? She had this hand-eye coordination kind of memory,” Dixon said. “Clearly, she remembered in her mind how to generate these same shapes.”
Aside from dispelling popular belief that O’Keeffe was merely a flower painter, Lynes said she hopes the exhibition spurs new interest in O’Keeffe and inspires a new generation of artists.
“That’s important to all of us. We have to pass things on from generation to generation,” she said.
Only two weeks into the show, it looks like Lynes’ work is paying off.
Keith Kelso of Hereford, Texas, walked into the last gallery with his young children leading the way. His daughter skipped ahead, pointing at a giant painting O’Keeffe had done in 1963, Above the Clouds III. Her whisper became louder as she got closer to the floating white circles and soft blue horizon.
“Look. Look. That’s awesome,” she exclaimed.
Her excitement is shared by the museum staff, too. Everyone from docents to security guards is ready to talk about this relatively unknown collection of work.
“I’m excited because I’m getting to see a body of work that I may never get to see again in my life,” said museum registrar Judith Chiba Smith.
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If You Go…
Georgia O’Keefe Museum: 217 Johnson St., Santa Fe; http://www.okeeffemuseum.org/ or 505-946-1000. Admission: $10. Georgia O’Keeffe: Abstraction runs May 28-Sept. 12. Museum summer hours through Sept. 11: Sunday-Wednesday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Thursday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Cincinnati Reds catcher Johnny Bench autographed this jersey. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1989, Bench led the Big Red Machine to World Series championships in 1975 and 1976. Image courtesy of Signature House, Bridgeport, W.Va., and LiveAuctioneers archive. TORRINGTON, Wyo. (AP) – Walking into the little shop at 2125 Main St. is a trip to another dimension where sports rank supreme.
A spot where one can debate the relative merits of quarterback Carson Palmer while taking a little off the top.
“I had all this at my house,” Rusty Winget said, owner and operator of Rusty’s All-American Barbershop in downtown Torrington. “When we bought this shop, it was my wife’s idea, she said I should take it all down there. I think she wanted to get it out of the house.”
Indeed, literally every wall, floor and ceiling tile are layered and plastered with baseball, basketball and football memorabilia. Baseballs signed by his favorite player, Pete Rose, vintage Wheaties boxes, baseball and football jerseys signed by past and present day sports heroes; all of it in a grand display of sports worship.
“These stadium seats came out of Riverfront Stadium,” Winget said, motioning to four numbered seats across from the barber chairs.
“I grew up in Cincinnati, and the Reds and Bengals are everything,” he said. “My mom would give us 5 bucks, we would catch the bus and drive downtown and get a ticket and we would sit in the top two rows of the stadium. I grew up in those seats.”
Pointing out two more towards the back of the shop he said, “These two are from Mile High,” referring to the Broncos’ former stadium in Denver.
A Torrington basketball jersey signed by this year’s state championship team is one of the recent additions for a man who wasn’t always clipping away at customers’ hair. The 49-year-old began his life as a barber in Torrington in 1997 after years of working as a landscaper.
A 1982 Eastern Wyoming College graduate, he decided he needed an occupation that didn’t depend so heavily on the elements.
“I wanted a job where I could work anytime I wanted to, whether it rained or snowed, whether it was hot or cold,” he said.
So he decided to become a barber and attended barber’s college in Colorado Springs, coming home on the weekends to be with his family.
“I hated that down there,” he said. “You couldn’t make a left hand turn, so many people. My rent was more than my house payment up here. We didn’t have any money, and I’m trying to go to school. My goal was to make two dollars in tips in the morning that way I could go across the street and have a Wendy’s Single and a Frosty. But it was worth it. Everyone has to go through it.”
Though his shop is overflowing with sports artifacts, he said there’s plenty more at his home; a Johnny Bench jersey and lots of classic Big Red Machine memorabilia.
“Everything here has a story, but this is the best thing I got,” he said, pointing to a toilet seat bearing a Nebraska logo. “I’m not a big Nebraska guy, and everybody asks me where’s all your Nebraska stuff so I got the toilet seat here.”
Trash talk aside, the one-time city kid has grown to love small town life.
“Torrington is a great place; it’s really treated me well,” he said. “Coming from Cincinnati I didn’t think I’d like a small town as much as I do. I love to hunt and fish, if I’m not following my kids around attending their events.”
The Wingets have four children ranging in age from 14 to 24.
“Yeah, we’re a baseball family,” he said. “We get the camper out every summer and we just travel from game to game, and that’s what we do.” A game or two in Cincinnati, perhaps, might even be in order.
___
Information from: Torrington Telegram,
http://www.torringtontelegram.com
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
This love seat is made of brushed aluminum with a powder coating. The seat is velvet. It was made in the 1990s and sold for $889 at a Skinner auction in Boston this year.
The 20th century brought a new style of furniture. Earlier furniture designers made slight changes in the shape of a leg or the height of a chair-back as they went from Queen Anne to Chippendale to Sheraton to Empire to Victorian to Arts and Crafts. Suddenly chairs became expensive art objects that looked like round plastic bubbles hanging from the ceiling or a group of strangely shaped cushions that fit together like a jigsaw puzzle. Not everyone liked the new designs, so most furniture still resembled old-time favorites. But modern chairs made since the 1950s of Lucite or bent plywood or cardboard or unusual fabrics have been pictured in decorating magazines, movies and TV shows and are being copied for everyday use. Designers are searching for even more unusual “looks.” Many are odd and often uncomfortable. One designer, Christopher Royal, began his career as an actor. Then he made jewelry and later a group of miniature chairs meant to be displayed on a shelf. The unusual chairs attracted Tiffany & Co., which used them in window displays starting in 1995. In 1998 the chairs were made full-size by Rockledge Design Studios of Florida. Today you can buy 21st-century chairs and 20th-century chairs that are still in production. All attract collectors of modern design.
Q: I have a shallow divided box with 17 Coca-Cola stamping plates of various sizes. They appear to be brass attached to a solid wood back. I received them in the box and they look like they belong there. The stamps have pictures and writing in reverse. Can you tell me something about them?
A: You have a printer’s job case with the plates that were used to typeset ads in newspapers or magazines. Old printer’s boxes make interesting display cases for small collectibles and sell for $10 or more, depending on size. Your Coca-Cola printing plates would be of interest to a Coca-Cola collector, and are worth about $10-$20 each.
Q: I have a pump organ with collapsible legs that has a label that reads “Peloubet, Pelton & Co.” I’ve been told it is a melodeon and was probably made in the late 1800s. Can you tell me if this is correct?
A: Peloubet, Pelton & Co. was formed in 1873 by Louis Chabrier Peloubet and J.M. Pelton when they merged their two musical-instrument manufacturing firms. Peloubet had been making wind instruments since 1836 and small reed organs, called melodeons, since 1849. Pelton’s firm had been named Pelton Standard Organ Co. The partnership, based in New Jersey, dissolved in about 1882. Peloubet continued in business under other names.
Q: Somewhere I read that cracked china teacups could be saved by boiling them in milk. If this is possible, what grade of milk — whole, half, fat-free — should be used? How long is the boiling process? I’m considering donating a set of china to a charity and two of the cups are cracked.
A: We’ve seen several sources that recommend repairing china by boiling it in milk. Evidently the hint originally came from a 1940s book of home remedies. We’ve never tried it. It might help if the cracks aren’t too large. Test the method on one cup. Put the cup in a pan and cover it with milk. It doesn’t seem to matter whether it’s whole milk or not. Bring the milk to a boil and then immediately lower it to a simmer. Simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour. The protein in the milk may react with the kaolin in the china and “mend” the crack. Be careful. If you continue to “cook” the china at a high heat, the crack may widen. Let the milk cool completely before taking the cup out. If the china is valuable, you should have it professionally repaired.
Q: Can you tell me if Black, Starr & Frost ever made silver-plated items? I am trying to identify a six-sided two-handled tray marked “7033.”
A: The mark “7033” is not much of a clue to the tray’s maker. But it wasn’t Black, Starr & Frost. Black, Starr & Frost has never manufactured silver or silver-plate. It has only been a retailer, and probably exclusively of sterling silver. The company name, not the maker’s name, was often put on items ordered by a store.
Q: I would like to know the value of some toll tickets for the first crossing of the Brooklyn Bridge.
A: The Brooklyn Bridge opened to foot and vehicle traffic on May 24, 1883. Tickets were sold on both sides of the bridge beginning just before midnight the day before. Walkers who crossed that day were charged a penny. The cost rose to 3 cents the next day. Vehicles were charged a nickel. If your tickets are dated May 23 or 24, 1883, for crossing the Brooklyn Bridge on opening day, they would be of interest to a New York historical society. Their value is hard to estimate. More than 150,000 walkers and 1,800 vehicles crossed the bridge on opening day.
Tip: Wood-boring beetle larvae sometimes find their way into furniture in a house. The adult beetles emerge in July or August and fly to other pieces of furniture. Watch for signs of pinhead-size holes or sawdust. Spray immediately and treat with appropriate bug-killing chemicals.
Terry Kovel answers as many questions as possible through the column. By sending a letter with a question, you give full permission for use in the column or any other Kovel forum. Names, addresses or e-mail addresses will not be published. We cannot guarantee the return of any photograph, but if a stamped envelope is included, we will try. The volume of mail makes personal answers or appraisals impossible. Write to Kovels, Auction Central News, King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019.
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CURRENT PRICES
Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States. Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.
1893 Falstaff Gourmet Club lobster dinner menu, embossed color lithograph of young chef holding red lobster, 16 courses, entertainment program on back, 7 x 4 1/2 inches, $25.
Seibert Fly Killer tin, round, image of large black fly on top, yellow ground, blue trim, white letters, copyright Nov. 4, 1913, 4 3/4 inches, $110.
Child’s costume of Navy officer’s “blues,” anchor badge on collar, winged anchor above chest stripes, eight anchor buttons, Peppy Play Costume, No. 57, 1940s, $115.
“I Love Lucy” Ricky Jr. changing table/bassinet, vinyl, metal frame, tie-down straps, lift lid reveals tub, diaper pouch, Trimble Products, 1953, 16 x 26 x 30 inches, $230.
Steuben tazza, ribbed bowl and base, ruby red, clear oval connector engraved with Burlington pattern daisy surrounded by leaves, marked, 7 x 8 inches, $860.
Teco wall pocket, organic leaf design, green matte glaze, signed, 7 1/2 x 15 inches, $900.
Scottish sampler, eyelet stitches below bands of geometric designs, letters, numbers and rampant lion, wool on linen, “MH 1737” stitched on bottom, 21 x 7 1/2 inches, $2,475.
Keep up with changes in the collectibles world. Send for a free sample issue of our 12-page, full-color newsletter, Kovels on Antiques and Collectibles, filled with prices, news, information and photos, plus major news about the world of collecting. To subscribe at a bargain $27 for 12 issues, write Kovels, Box 420347, Palm Coast, FL 32142; call 800-571-1555; or subscribe online at Kovelsonlinestore.com.
An 18th-century portrait of Mary Queen of Scots is painted on porcelain and presented in its original brass and jeweled frame with simulated pearls, turquoise and garnets. The 4-inch by 5 1/2-inch painting has a $400-$800 estimate. Image courtesy of Professional Appraisers and Liquidators LLC Antique Auctions.
CRYSTAL RIVER, Fla. – Professional Appraisers and Liquidators Antique Auctions will be the venue for the estate of Harry Renker, who was a retired commercial pilot and international purveyor of fine antiques. The auction is to take place on Saturday, June 26, beginning at 10 a.m. Eastern. Auctioneer Charles Fudge, a 40-year veteran auctioneer of antiques, fine art and collectibles, said this collection is one of the finest he’s seen.
LiveAuctioneers will facilitate Internet live bidding.
Renker’s career in aviation began in the U.S. Army Air Corps in the South Pacific, where he logged more than 200 combat missions and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and three Air Medals. After returning to the states, he served as personal pilot and liaison to Generals Truesdale and Candee at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Renker was hired by Delta Air Lines in 1946 and was one of the oldest living retired Delta pilots. In addition to flying commercial and military planes, he flew ultralights until he was 87 years old.
Aviation was not Renker’s only passion. He and his wife, Gayle, loved fine art and antiques, and traveled the world to add to their ever-growing personal collection. Renker and his wife began their journey in retail sales when they opened Valley Coin Shop in Aurora, Ill. They later opened Valley Coin and Antiques in Geneva, Ill., on the outskirts of Chicago.
They both studied and researched many types of antiques, but their primary areas of expertise were European antiques and antique jewelry. They also studied and collected antique weaponry and took an interest in American Indian artifacts.
Being a Delta pilot with discounted flights and cargo fees had its advantages. Renker would often go on antique shopping expeditions while on layovers in various cities. Perhaps the biggest benefit for a commercial pilot in the antiques business was the affordability of traveling to Europe and shipping their newly found treasures home. The Renkers often traveled to Europe to scout antique shops in the city and traverse off-the-beaten-path shops in England’s and Scotland’s countryside.
For many years, a big event at their antique store in Geneva, Ill., was the arrival of the Renker’s container of antiquities they’d purchased during their buying excursions throughout Europe. Clients would arrive at the shop in excited anticipation of the unveiling of the treasures they’d found.
It is with that same anticipation that Professional Appraisers and Liquidator’s Antique Auction Gallery will offer the Renker’s personal collection at auction. The collection will be available for preview on Friday, June 25 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturday from 8 a.m. until the auction begins.
The Renker estate auction, with select additions, will feature fine art, including antique oil paintings, ivory carvings, bronze and marble statues, Austrian cold painted bronzes and miniatures including Bergman, and paintings on ivory and porcelain including KPM. Other European items from the Renker’s personal collection include antique furniture ranging from the 17th century to Victorian and antique armor and weaponry. North America antiques include American Indian Pottery and clocks by makers such as Tiffany & Co. Some unusual items will be available, such as a Victorian gilded mother of pearl posy holder or tussie mussie, a Russian bronze snuff box, a signed Bergman pen holder in the form of an Owl on a Feather and other Austrian cold painted bronze items and miniatures to name a few.
For details phone the gallery at 352-795-2061 or 800-542-3877.
These table globes made and sold by W. Bardin, London, will be sold separately. The 19th-century celestial globe, approximately 9 inches in diameter, has a $2,000-$3,000 estimate. The similar 18th-century terrestrial globe is estimated at $2,500-$3,500. Image courtesy of Professional Appraisers and Liquidators LLC Antique Auctions.This marble-top mahogany washstand of an extravagant eight-piece 19th-century marquetry inlaid bedroom suite will be sold with a matching chair. Other pieces of the suite will be sold in succession. The washstand and chair are estimated at $1,000-$2,000. Image courtesy of Professional Appraisers and Liquidators LLC Antique Auctions.Spectacular and rare describe this regimental Prussian art glass stein of enameled glass in a sterling silver handle, frame and lid. Bearing the names of 12 soldiers, the stein is expected to make $800-$1,200. Image courtesy of Professional Appraisers and Liquidators LLC Antique Auctions.Signed ‘Wagner,’ this painting on a Hutschenreuther porcelain plaque is estimated at $1,000-$2,000. Image courtesy of Professional Appraisers and Liquidators LLC Antique Auctions.
Now that the ash cloud from the Icelandic volcano has abated, only to be replaced by London’s perennial summer weather of rain, rain and more rain, organisers of the many art and antiques fairs taking place in London in June and July will be rubbing their hands together in glee. At least flights are arriving, and poor weather generally brings people into a fair rather than keeping them out.
As I write this, it was still too early to tell whether the London International Fine Art Fair at Olympia had been deemed a success during its first year under the direction of U.S. fairs impresarios David and Lee Ann Lester. With antiques struggling to remain relevant and affordable in a world seemingly preoccupied with contemporary art, the Lesters may have hoped for better prefair press coverage than the acreage devoted to the rare Tarbosaurus skull
This Tarbosaurus skull, on the stand of Dorset-based fossil dealer Chris Moore at the London International Fine Art Fair at Olympia, where it was priced at £130,000 ($190,000), was still seeking a buyer at the end of the fair. Image courtesy Chris Moore.
being offered by Dorset-based fossil dealer Chris Moore. The skull, priced at around £130,000 ($190,000), remained unsold as the fair reached its conclusion, with Moore describing the atmosphere at the fair as “quiet.”
Asked whether the event had been a success, a UK-based spokesperson for the London International Fine Art Fair said there had been “a few issues,” citing “a fire in High Street Kensington and a local bus pile-up, which had not helped.” However, an unnamed U.S. rock star had evidently attended and bought some sculpture, and Mick Jagger was also spotted strolling the aisles, although whether he purchased anything remains unconfirmed.
Meanwhile, despite the failure of the Tarbosaurus skull to find a buyer, the major London salerooms continue to remind us of the enduring truism that objects of the greatest rarity and quality in the fine art world will always sell, recession notwithstanding. This is nowhere more evident than in the currently fashionable categories of Indian and Chinese contemporary art, which are attracting wealthy new collectors like moths to a flame.
Flushed with the success of Christie’s March sale of South Asian Modern and Contemporary Art in New York, Yamini Mehta, Christie’s South Asian department head, was bold enough a few weeks ago to forecast a similarly bullish response to their June sale in London, commenting, “The global art market is receptive to the best.”
Her analysis was wholly vindicated as Saurashtra, a 1983 painting by leading Indian modernist Syed Haider Raza (b.1922) beat an estimate of £1.3-£1.8 million ($1.9-$2.6 million) at Christie’s June sale in London to make £2,393,250 ($3,486,965), a new auction record for a modern Indian work of art and a record for the artist.
Arriving fresh to market from a private French collector who had acquired it direct from the artist, it was bought by a private Indian museum.
It is not only Indian modern and contemporary art that has been quickening the pulse of collectors in recent years. Michael Goedhuis, a leading London and New York dealer specialising in Asian contemporary art, tells me that among the most exciting categories slated for significant growth in the near future is contemporary Chinese ink painting.
“Contemporary ink painting, or the New Ink Painting, as it is called in China, is particularly rich in its pictorial range,” said Goedhuis, who has spent the past 15 years nurturing an awareness among Western collectors of the aesthetic attractions and investment potential of contemporary Chinese art. “The New Ink Painting and calligraphy, executed with a brush and ink on paper, is now the area of Chinese contemporary art that provides collectors with not only the best value in financial terms, but a foothold in what is certainly one of the most exciting intellectual developments in modern China.”
Goedhuis is hoping his prognostications will be vindicated when he stages an exhibition of Chinese contemporary ink paintings at Carlton Hobbs Gallery in London from June 15 to July 16. The exhibition will include 20 new works by Wei Ligang, one of China’s most distinguished and avant-garde artists specializing in contemporary Chinese ink painting and one of the original artists featured in the pioneering 2002 exhibition at the British Museum in London
Wei Ligang (b. 1964), ‘Ye Fang Chui Xiao Ke, Chun Deng Mai Jiu Lou’ (On the way to the clarinetist in the night, I passed by a well-lit wine shop), 2010. Ink and acrylic on paper (a pair). On display at Michael Goedhuis’s exhibition of Chinese contemporary ink paintings at Carlton Hobbs Gallery in London from June 15 to July 16. Image courtesy Michael Goedhuis.
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Wei Ligang (b.1964) ‘Lotus – Grain,’ 2010. Ink and acrylic on paper. On display at Michael Goedhuis’s exhibition of Chinese contemporary ink paintings at Carlton Hobbs Gallery in London. Image courtesy Michael Goedhuis.
The inexorable rise of Indian and Chinese contemporary art can have the effect of deflecting media attention away from more traditional art market categories. However, there is already a consensus that auction supply across most categories has recovered significantly in recent months, which is good for the market in general. It now remains to be seen whether areas such as Victorian pictures and Old Masters will show similar levels of improved demand to those enjoyed by Chinese, India and Russian art. An early test will be Christie’s forthcoming sale of Victorian paintings June 16.
Among the highlights here will be Under the Roof of Blue Ionian Weather
by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema (1836-1912), which carries an estimate of £1-£1.5 million ($1.4-$2.1 million), Chloe, (1893), by Sir Edward John Poynter (1836-1919), estimated at £600,000-£800,000 ($880,000-$1.1 million), both of which are offered at auction for the first time in 25 years, and The Sea Maiden by Herbert James Draper (1854-1920), which is expected to make around £800,000-£1,200,000 ($1.1-$1.7 million).
The Draper was consigned by the Royal Institution of Cornwall in Truro, making it another example of museum deaccessioning, at one time the most controversial topic in museums, but increasingly deemed justifiable on funding grounds. The Royal Institution is facing a funding shortfall, but following a comprehensive consultation process it was decided to consign the picture to auction. Proceeds of the sale will be used to establish an endowment fund to safeguard the museum’s long-term future.
One of the most hotly debated topics in art criticism in recent decades has been the perceived decline of drawing as an academic discipline. However, despite drawing declining in popularity among contemporary artists, some art schools have continued to teach the subject. This month sees the publication of an important new book on drawing by Deanna Petherbridge, former professor of drawing at the Royal College of Art. The Primacy of Drawing: Histories and Theories of Practice is published by Yale University Press and is likely to reignite interest in the topic among artists and critics.
The publication of Petherbridge’s book coincides with one or two London exhibitions on a related theme. While the British Museum’s superb exhibition of Italian Renaissance drawings — Masterpieces from the Uffizi Gallery — continues until July 25, another date for collectors is Master Drawings London (from July 3-9), a collaborative event that brings together London’s most select dealers in this category. This year marks the occasion’s 10th anniversary, a feather in the cap of founder Crispian Riley-Smith who launched the initiative in 2001. The fact that it eventually spawned a sister event in New York is testimony to the success of the venture, which embraces examples of the art both ancient and modern. Thus collectors can see and buy works by master practitioners from Guercino (1591-1666), such as his Man in Profile Holding a Book,
This work in pen and brown ink by Giovanni Francesco Barberini, called Guercino (1591-1666), entitled ‘Man in Profile Holding a Book,’ is on display with Thomas Williams Fine Art at Master Drawings London from July 3-9. Image courtesy Thomas Williams Fine Art.
on display with Thomas Williams Fine Art, to contemporary British artist Sean Scully (born 1945) one of whose abstract compositions will be for sale with Stephen Ongpin Fine Art.
This watercolor on paper, ‘Untitled’ (11.17.90), by contemporary British artist Sean Scully (born 1945), will be for sale with Stephen Ongpin Fine Art during Master Drawings London week from July 3-9. Image courtesy Stephen Ongpin Fine Art.
Drawing was also a central strand of the work of the great Italian painter Caravaggio (1571-1610) who remains one of the most exotic and intriguing figures in the history of art and whose work continues to divide connoisseurs. Leading London Old Master paintings dealers Whitford Fine Art are currently staging an important exhibition entitled Caravaggio’s Friends and Foes, which offers yet another chance to explore the painter’s extraordinary influence both on his contemporaries and on later generations of painters. The exhibition continues at Whitford’s 23 Dering St. premises until July 23
‘Saint Sebastian,’ a recently discovered masterpiece by Louis Finson (1580-1617), on display at the Whitford Fine Art exhibition ‘Caravaggio’s Friends and Foes’ at their 23 Dering St. gallery until July 23. Image courtesy Whitford Fine Art.‘Caravaggio’s Friends and Foes’, an intriguing exhibition on view at Whitford Fine Art until July 23, includes this Self Portrait of 1606 by Giovanni Baglione, Caravaggio’s first biographer, which has been loaned by a Spanish private collector. Image courtesy Whitford Fine Art.Whitford Fine Art’s exhibition ‘Caravaggio’s Friends and Foes’ will include this oil on canvas entitled ‘Three Boy Martyrs’ by Giacomo Galli, called Lo Spadarino (1597-1649). Loaned by Attingham Park. Image courtesy The National Trust and Whitford Fine Art.
Finally, it was announced this week that Lord Howe, who, since 1999 has been Chairman of LAPADA (The Association of Art & Antiques Dealers), has been appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health in the newly elected Coalition Government. Prior to this, Lord Howe had served for several years as the Opposition Front Bench spokesman for Health and Social Services in the House of Lords.
Lord Howe, chairman of the Association of Art & Antiques Dealers, who will leave his post this summer to become Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health in the newly nelected Coalition Government.
LAPADA Chief Executive Sarah Percy-Davis commented, “Lord Howe has been a great source of support to the Association. Bringing with him invaluable experience and knowledge of both business and politics. He has helped us face the challenges of a rapidly changing international market place, as well as ensuring that the views of the trade are noted in both Westminster and Brussels. We shall miss his wise counsel and friendship.”
Lord Howe’s successor as Chairman of LAPADA will be announced later in the summer.
Lucien H. Jonas (French, 1880-1947) created this poster for the Allied war bond effort during World War I. It measures 30 1/4 inches by 21 1/2 inches and has a $1,500-$2,500 estimate. Image courtesy of Cowan’s Auctions Inc. CINCINNATI – Cowan’s inaugural World at War Auction will take place Tuesday, June 22, at Cowan’s salesroom. The auction is the first of its kind to feature international war regalia from the 20th century. The World at War sale offers items from 20th-century conflicts including World Wars I and II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. LiveAuctioneers will provide Internet live bidding.
Cowan’s Firearms and Military Department director Jack Lewis said, “We decided to do this auction because we felt it was a chance to carve a niche for modern war items that are gaining popularity.”
World War II items lead the inaugural sale. Highlights include a World War II German Navy ship tallies that are estimated to sell for $3,000-$5,000. This rare lot includes 32 ship tallies, including a tally from the German torpedo boat Wolf.
Historic items of the Third Reich will also be offered. A World War II Nazi German Waffen SS enlisted man’s tunic is expected to bring $2,500-$3,500. This item is among many that were consigned by the Portsmouth Museum of Military History in Virginia. Also consigned by the Portsmouth Museum, a World War II German army panzer wrap piped for cavalry is estimated to sell at $4,000-$6,000 and includes half a mannequin for support and display.
The auction will offer a World War II Japanese winter uniform on a full mannequin. Estimated to sell at $600-$800, this affordable item includes a tunic, pants, overcoat, leggings, boots, a canteen, a rabbit fur hat and a pair of three-finger mittens.
“Any of the Japanese uniforms are very interesting, because you rarely see them for sale.” said Lewis.
A Korean War U.S. Army dress blue uniform with visor cap is estimated to sell for $600-$800. This complete uniform is in excellent condition with CW3 warrant officer shoulder boards and three-fourths a mannequin.A Vietnam issued bowie exhibition knife is expected to bring $500-$600. This relic has a 37-inch blade with both ends terminating into bulbous finials.
Also featured is a Vietnam War era USMC Lt. John Kadlecik archive. Estimated at $1,500-$2,000, the lot includes a Mameluke dress sword, a Korean War era captain’s uniform, a U.S. Marine Corp field officer’s dress white uniform, and a hand-painted cloth banner of flag raising on Iwo Jima.
Regarding the Southeast Asian conflicts, Lewis said, “I think that the Korean War and Vietnam War objects are going to become very collectible.”
A World War I rare U.S. M8 helmet is estimated to sell for $1,500-$2,500. Ford Motor Co. produced 1,300 of these helmets in November 1918. The item up for bid is complete with chinstrap and liner.
War art and propaganda are also up for bid. A war bond poster by Lucien H. Jonas is estimated at $1,500-$2,500. Jonas was a French artist who set aside a career in painting to create propaganda posters for the Allies during World War I. This work of charcoal and colored pencil depicts the three main Allied forces – America, France and Great Britain – the Statue of Liberty and the American flag.
“This is a very interesting sale that has items that are very affordable for a collector who is working with a modest budget,” said Lewis.
In excellent condition this WWII Nazi German army panzer wrap piped for cavalry includes trousers. The uniform has a $4,000-$6,000 estimate. Image courtesy of Cowan’s Auctions Inc. Few Japanese winter army uniforms survived World War II. This set in good condition is estimated at $600-$800. Image courtesy of Cowan’s Auctions Inc.
This tall case clock by Simon Willard will be offered, as will a banjo clock by Aaron Willard. YORK, Pa. – More than 100 antique clocks and related items will be sold at auction Friday, June 18, by Gordon S. Converse & Co. at the York Expo Center. The event, beginning at 4 p.m. Eastern, will coincide with the annual convention of the National Association of Watch & Clock Collectors, also to be held at the Expo Center. Online bidding will be facilitated by LiveAuctioneers.
“Variety is the key that will make this auction a success,” said Gordon Converse. “Our last sale was a surprise success because we had a great collection come in at the last minute. But this time we’ve been gathering dozens of quality consignments from numerous sources, over a period of many months. Serious clock collectors need to mark their calendars.”
Rare examples by such renowned clockmakers as Simon and Aaron Willard, George Hoff, Griffith Owen, Walter Durfee, James Marwick, Thomas Green, Gubelin and Twaites & Reed will be offered. Also sold will be horological books and clockmakers’ tools.
Advanced collectors will vie for a Simon Willard tall case clock, but also featured will be a 42-inch presentation gilt wood and reverse-painted glass banjo clock by Simon’s brother, Aaron. Two reeded front panels house a pair of fine reverse-painted glass tablets, one showing “The Boston State House.” The restored dial is signed “A. Willard.”
An early Pennsylvania American tall case clock, predating the American Revolution and attributed to George Hoff, should also get paddles airborne. The steel-framed, 30-hour chain-wind clockworks support an engraved brass dial with pewter cast spandrels. Another Pennsylvania tall case clock, crafted by Griffith Owen, is also expected to attract keen interest.
Also offered will be a rare and fine set of twin clocks telling the world time and perpetual calendar by the Swiss firm Gubelin. The set, with its fine enameling and bold presentation, was one of only three made in the 1950s and this is the only set in the Western hemisphere.
An assortment of English table, or bracket, clocks will also cross the block on June 18. Of particular interest is a Queen Anne-style “basket-top” clock by James Marwick of London. The example has an interesting provenance, in that it was purchased in the 1920s and sat in the office of industrialist Roy D. Chapin, who was secretary of commerce under President Herbert Hoover.
Other examples of English table clocks are signed Thomas Green, Barraud and Twaites & Reed. There will also be a chime hall clock with a solid oak case from the Edwardian era by Walter Durfee, and numerous decorative high-quality French-made mantel clocks, Chelsea ship’s clocks – made in Boston and loved by collectors – and 30 to 40 19th-century American clocks.
Two clocks are certainly worth noting. One is a Swiss singing mechanical feathered bird within a 19-inch by 10-inch square cage, on a gilt wood base. In the base is the label “Chevob & Co.,” the late Baker & Troll Co. of Geneva. The other is a beautiful late Georgian ebonized paneled arch-topped table clock with brass, cast brass and applied white enamel chapter rings.
Previews will be held on Thursday, June 17, from noon to 6 p.m. Eastern and on Friday, the day of sale, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For details e-mail Gordon@ConverseClocks.com or phone 610-722-9004. For more information, log on to www.AuctionsatConverse.com or www.ConverseClocks.com
Rare and fine set of twin world time and perpetual calendar clocks by the Swiss maker Gubelin. Chelsea ship’s clocks – a favorite among collectors – will cross the block at the June 18 auction. An assortment of English table (or bracket) clocks will come under the gavel Friday, June 18. Group of decorative 19th-century French and European clocks, certain to get paddles wagging.
Galileo Galilei is depicted in a portrait in crayon by Leoni. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. FLORENCE, Italy (AP) – Two of Galileo’s fingers, removed from his corpse by admirers in the 18th century, have gone on display in a Florence museum now named after the astronomer.
The Museum of the History of Science had shut down for two years for renovations. It reopened Tuesday, calling itself The Galileo Museum.
Last year, the museum director announced that the thumb and middle finger from Galileo’s right hand had turned up at an auction and were recognized as being the fingers of the scientist who died in 1642. The digits are now displayed in slender, glass cases.
Also on display is his tooth. A third finger was already in the museum.
In 1737, admirers of Galileo Galilei removed the three fingers, plus the tooth and a vertebra, from his body as it was being moved from a storage place to a monumental tomb – opposite that of Michelangelo, in Santa Croce Basilica in Florence.
The vertebra is kept at the University of Padua, where Galileo taught for many years.
The tooth and the thumb and middle finger were held in a container that was passed from generation to generation in the same family, but in the early 20th century all traces of the relics disappeared. The container turned up at auction late last year, and detailed historical documents and the family’s own records helped experts to identify them as the scientist’s, according to museum officials.
Topping the container that the relics had long been kept in was a wooden bust of Galileo.
Visitors can also view what the museum says are the only surviving instruments designed and built by Galileo, including the lens of the telescope he used to discover Jupiter’s moons and two telescopes.
The Vatican condemned Galileo for contradicting church teaching, which held at the time that the Earth, not the Sun, was the center of the universe. Two decades ago, Pope John Paul II rehabilitated the astronomer, saying the church had erred.
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Online: www.museogalileo.it
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
JERUSALEM (AP) – Archaeologists have unearthed a cache of 35-century-old artifacts once used in pagan rituals, Israeli officials said Monday.
The items were found during an excavation ordered by the Israel Antiquities Authority along the route of a new gas line in the country’s north. Excavating a rock hollow, archeologists found more than 100 intact artifacts, including a vessel for burning incense and the sculpted face of a woman that was part of a cup used in a pagan religious ceremony.
“This is my 42nd excavation in 15 years and the first time I’ve found more than shards,” said Edwin van den Brink, the archaeologist who directed the excavation. He said he expected to find artifacts, but not the amount or quality they uncovered.
Some of the small vessels were used to carry precious liquids from Cyprus and Mycenae, Greece, 3,500 years ago. These vessels were replicated by people in those areas, illustrating a link between the regions, van den Brink said.
Van den Brink said they might have been used in a nearby temple. They were deposited in the hole either to be preserved from a fire that swept through the region at the end of the Late Bronze Age, or they were buried because they were no longer in use.
Yossi Garfinkel, a professor of archaeology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem who was not involved in the dig, said holy articles could not be thrown out and were buried instead.
“It is quite possible that these artifacts were used in the cultic area and in the temple and they accumulated, and when they ran out of space or they became old, a pit was made to bury them,” Garfinkel said.
The Antiquities Authority plans to exhibit the artifacts in the coming year.
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
He’s no Goliath, but this Roman carved marble head of David is 12 1/2 inches high. Dating as early as the fourth century, the sculpture has a $2,000-$3,000 estimate. Image courtesy of William Jenack Estate Appraisers and Auctioneers.
CHESTER, N.Y. – A Roman carved marble head of David dating as early as the fourth century will lead William Jenack Estate Appraisers and Auctioneers’ first early summer sale on Sunday, June 13, commencing at 11 a.m. Eastern. LiveAuctioneers will provide Internet live bidding.
The sale will also have a small collection of antiquities including Roman and Egyptian glass and art. A sampling of cold painted Vienna bronzes includes a Franz Bergman Arab, an erotic figure and a macabre cobra with a small child in its mouth. Some first edition Royal Worcester porcelain figures include “November,” molded by F.G. Doughty. Royal Copenhagen is also included in the collection.
In addition, the sale will highlight a large collection of silver spanning the 19th and 20th centuries. Some of the more interesting lots in the sale are a Tiffany Sterling cocktail shaker in the form of a milk can, two pairs of Tiffany and Co. sterling candlesticks after E. Coker, London 1765, Tiffany sterling tumblers, a Durgin sterling trumpet vase, a Cartier sterling Windsor tray, and a pair of Tiffany sterling salvers.
There will also be several lots of fine gold jewelry.
For the porcelain and pottery collector there will be many lots of interest including a Royal Dux Isis centerpiece, a Rookwood bearded iris vase, a pair of rare New Hall Girl in the Window saucers, a pair of Lille French scenic chargers, two Quimper vases and a set of 12 Limoges Ahrenfeldt show plates, hand painted and artist signed.
Notable artwork will be offered including an oil on canvas attributed to Jean Baptiste Camille Corot, Paysage avec Figures. Labels on the work indicate it was purchased in London in 1920 and lent for exhibition to Boston Museum of Fine Arts in 1946. Also available are an Addison T. Miller watercolor and gouache, Katwijk Oun Zee, signed and titled verso; an American School oil on canvas, of a View of the Hudson River Narrows at Cornwall, N.Y.; a Thomas Corwin Lindsay oil on canvas, Watering Cattle; two oil on cut canvas by Willem Van Nieuwenhoven and many others.
Rounding out the sale will be a collection of rugs, carpets, furniture and decorative objects.
Preview will be held at the William Jenack auction facility, 62 Kings Highway Bypass in Chester, NY, 10918 on Thursday, June 10, from 2-5:45 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, June 11-12 from noon-5 p.m.; and the day of the sale, 9-10:45 am.
For details e-mail kevin@jenack.com or phone (845) 469-9095.
This oil on canvas painting is attributed to Jean Baptiste Camille Corot (French 1796-1875). Image courtesy of William Jenack Estate Appraisers and Auctioneers. Addison T. Miller’s watercolor and gouache is titled, ‘Katwijk Oun Zee.’ It carries an $1,800-$2,500 estimate. Image courtesy of William Jenack Estate Appraisers and Auctioneers. This American School oil on canvas of a ‘View of the Hudson River Narrows from Cornwall, N.Y.’ measures 22 inches by 26 inches. It has a $1,000-$1,500 estimate. Image courtesy of William Jenack Estate Appraisers and Auctioneers. Tiffany & Co. sterling silver candlesticks after E. Coker, London, are estimated at $1,000-$2,000 per pair. Image courtesy of William Jenack Estate Appraisers and Auctioneers.
