CINCINNATI — Three Joseph Henry Sharp works — dominated by the ‘firelight’ oil on canvas Hunting Son: Young Medicine Man of Taos — light up the offerings at Caza Sikes at its Fine and Modern Art sale scheduled for September 25.

Sharp (1859-1953) was completely deafened as a youth as a result of an ear infection suffered from a near-drowning. His mother nurtured his artistic talent and sent him to school to study art, leading to the inevitable American artist-trip-to-Europe experiences where he would meet kindred spirits who would follow him to Taos, New Mexico. There, Sharp founded the Taos Society of Artists in 1908, of which he is considered the spiritual father.

Sharp’s focus on American Indian subject matter drives his collectibility today. Caza Sikes has two lesser paintings in the sale (Custer’s Battlefield and Gold’s Indian Relic Store, estimated at $30,000-$50,000 and $20,000-$40,000 respectively), but it is Hunting Son: Young Medicine Man of Taos , estimated at a whopping $150,000-$250,000, that commands attention. The painting was a private commission by a Sharp ‘superfan,’ one Herbert Dinkelaker (1890-1967), whose descendants have consigned the work to auction. It comes to market with a wealth of background information, including correspondence from the artist to Dinkelaker surrounding the creation of a ‘firelight’ work (a term used to describe the fire-like illustrated illumination of the subject matter). The lot also includes two color photographs of the actual Hunting Son as an elderly man, taken on a trip to Taos by Dinkelaker’s descendants who were researching the work.