NEW YORK — At the height of the Art Deco era, Boris Lovet-Lorski (Lithuanian and American, 1894-1973) was one of the most celebrated sculptors working in New York City. The metropolis had already become a locus for art thanks to the 1913 Armory Show, and in the mid-1920s, it was a Mecca for Art Deco enthusiasts.

Born in Lithuania, Lovet-Lorski studied architecture and sculpture in Russia at the Imperial Academy of Art and worked as an architect until arriving in the United States in 1920. The ‘20s were a heady time in New York. Following World War I, the city was booming economically and artistically. Art Deco skyscrapers such as the Chrysler building and the Empire State building sprang up during this era, forever changing the appearance of the skyline.

Thriving in the culturally diverse atmosphere of New York, Lovet-Lorski soon became well known for his lyrical and well-balanced sculptures that were inspired by forms from antiquity and a variety of cultural styles, but had a modern bent.

“Lovet-Lorski is best known for his sculptural works that depict human figures and animals in a distinctive Art Deco style characterized by voluminous forms, sensuous lines, and stylized details,” said Director of Arts and Design at Heritage Auctions, Samantha Robinson.“The artist’s work in stone and bronze continues to command strong prices at auction. Collectors are particularly drawn to his depictions of mythological figures and horses.”

Among his sculptures paying homage to Greek and Roman mythology is Diana, a bronze featuring the Roman goddess known for hunting. This work, dating to 1927-29 and depicting the goddess with two highly stylized dogs at her heels, attained the highest price for the artist on the LiveAuctioneers platform. It sold for $47,500 plus the buyer’s premium in June 2021 at Freeman’s Hindman.

Several of his sculptures were inspired by Greek myths, including Polymnia, a carved marble sculpture standing 25 ½in tall, which achieved $34,000 plus the buyer’s premium in April 2022 at Heritage Auctions. The title translates to ‘one of many hymns.’ “Polymnia is a spectacular example of Lovet-Lorski’s work in carved marble, depicting the Greek muse of sacred poetry, hymn, and dance in half-length format,” Robinson said. “While her lack of arms reinforces the suggestion of antiquity, the style in which she is executed was quite modern in the 1920s. Her facial features, hair, and body are highly stylized, reduced down to their simplest elements. She is at once powerful and elegant.”

In keeping with the Art Deco aesthetic, Lovet-Lorski’s work has a streamlined, fluid look that ripples with sensuality, as seen in a highly polished bronze of Venus holding her arms above her head, winglike. It went out at $4,600 plus the buyer’s premium in July 2022 at New Orleans Auction Galleries.

“His work is very much indicative of the Art Deco period, and as such appeals to modern tastes,” said Michele M. Carolla, a fine art specialist in British and American paintings and works on paper and sculpture at New Orleans Auction Galleries. “His initial training as an architect is reflected in his sculpture, with the emphasis on the linear, the elongated forms or limbs, the sharp, angular contours, and the reduction of elements to their most basic, highly polished surfaces,” she said.

Adding a touch of whimsy to his oeuvre is a sculpture in pewter dubbed Poodle. Boasting well-defined features, it made $3,000 plus the buyer’s premium in September 2018 at Toomey & Co. Auctioneers.

His white marble sculpture busts are also desirable, though they typically do not see the prices that his highly reflective dark bronze sculptures bring. A carved marble Lovet-Lorski bust was a good buy at $3,500 plus the buyer’s premium in September 2023 at Material Culture. Small in stature and measuring just 11in tall, including the wood stand, this bust can easily be displayed.

Perhaps due to the limited number of his sculptures, which range from bronze to marble examples, demand has long been strong, Carolla said. “The auction market for Boris Lovet-Lorski’s sculpture at the moment is robust and has remained fairly consistent over the last few years.”

Those who seek his sculptures tend to be advanced collectors of Art Deco material located both in the United States and Europe, Robinson said. “While Lovet-Lorski also worked in other media, such as painting, drawing, and lithography, his sculptural works dominate the upper ranks of his auction record. Sculptures dated to the late 1920s and early 1930s, the height of Art Deco, are the most highly sought after.” New collectors looking for accessible entry points to his art would do well to focus on his two-dimensional works, Robinson added.

Noting that Lovet-Lorski’s works do not come up at auction that often, especially his sculptures, Carolla advised beginning collectors “to concentrate on his drawings. They are stylistically and thematically similar to his sculptures — some may even be preliminary sketches for his sculptures — but they generally sell for under $500.”

Lithographs typically are accessible to new collectors and can be sourced individually or in group lots. A lot offering 10 Lovet-Lorski lithographs sold for $7,000 plus the buyer’s premium in July 2021 at Shapiro Auctions. The lithographs on loose pages were originally printed in a bound portfolio by the artist in 1929 when in Paris.

Due to problems with arthritis, which developed in the 1930s and became worse as time passed, Lovet-Lorski was forced to change his medium from sculpture to painting. He reportedly could not lift his hands over his head, which prevented him from creating heavy sculptures.

Lovet-Lorski endeavored to make his two-dimensional works just as compelling as his sculptures. Ceremonial, a circa-1960 oil on canvas measuring 42 by 50in, went out at $4,400 plus the buyer’s premium in June 2021 at Swann Auction Galleries. “His late-career abstract paintings, like the current work, echo the mythological and fantasy subject matter of his Art Deco works while channeling the artist’s ‘innermost self,’ his memories, and his interest in natural beauty,” according to the auctioneer’s catalog description of this painting.

Another distinctive abstract work from this era is a 1961 tile mosaic that sold for $3,200 plus the buyer’s premium in June 2022 at Rago Arts and Auction Center.

From his sleek and elegant Deco-era sculptures that accentuate form and line to later explorations of vibrant color in his abstract paintings, Boris Lovet-Lorski retained a highly distinctive style throughout his career. Referencing classical and ethnographic themes helped provide continuity throughout his body of work, and in turn makes it appealing to contemporary collectors.