Swann Galleries Auction of Contemporary Art to Feature Warhol, Johns, Thiebaud
New York—Swann Galleries’ autumn auction of Contemporary Art will be held on Thursday, November 14, and features examples of Abstract Expressionism, Minimalism, Color Theory, Pop Art, collages and mobiles.
An outstanding selection of works by Andy Warhol includes a unique color screenprint on canvas, GA-43 Robot, from his 1983 “Toy Paintings” series commissioned by his European dealer for a Zurich gallery show at which the artwork was hung at children’s eye level (estimate: $70,000 to $100,000).
Among the Warhol works on paper is the extremely scarce Flowers—Leo Castelli Gallery Exhibition Poster, 1964 ($20,000 to $30,000); an alternate color screenprint of Flowers, published by Factory Additions, 1970 ($15,000 to $20,000); another Castelli printing, this one an announcement for Warhol’s 1963-81 Print Retrospective depicting his iconic Marilyn, color screenprint, 1981 ($10,000 to $15,000) and the ever-popular After the Party, color screenprint on Arches, 1979 ($10,000 to $15,000).
Other Pop Art prints include Jasper Johns’s Fool’s House, color lithograph, 1972 ($10,000 to $15,000); Roy Lichtenstein’s Still Life with Pitcher and Flowers, color lithograph and screenprint, 1974 ($10,000 to $15,000); Jim Dine’s Tulips, soft-ground etching and drypoint with hand coloring in watercolor, 1978 ($4,000 to $6,000); Wayne Thiebaud’s Hill Street, color woodcut, 1987 ($12,000 to $18,000); Robert Indiana’s The American Dream portfolio, with 30 color screenprints, 1997 ($5,000 to $8,000); as well as Richard Hamilton’s Richard Sign, enamel on steel plate, 1975 ($6,000 to $9,000).
Among prints by Francis Bacon is a superb impression of the scarce Figure at a Washbasin, color aquatint and etching on Arches, 1977-78 ($20,000 to $30,000).
A run of works by David Hockney includes an artist’s proof of Celia Observing, etching and aquatint, 1976 ($7,000 to $10,000).
Among abstract expressionist highlights are Willem de Kooning’s Love to Wakoko, lithograph, 1970-71 ($8,000 to $12,000); Richard Diebenkorn’s Clubs, Blue Ground, color aquatint with etching and drypoint, 1982 ($8,000 to $12,000); Robert Motherwell’s Three Forms, color aquatint and lift-ground etching, 1988 ($5,000 to $8,000); and a collection of collages, sketchbooks and ephemera related to New York artist Judith Rothschild ($3,000 to $5,000).
Another unique highlight is an oil on canvas by Sol Lewitt, Figures in a Landscape, 1960, which reflects his interest in the photographs of Eadweard Muybridge, and is quite distinct from his mature, geometric style ($30,000 to $50,000).
Color theory and minimalism are explored in the Josef Albers portfolio Interaction of Color, with 80 color screenprints, 1963 ($3,000 to $5,000); Frank Stella’s Polar Coordinates III, color offset lithograph and screenprint with hand coloring in gouache, 1980 ($6,000 to $9,000) and Ellsworth Kelly’s Dark Blue, color lithograph, 2001 ($5,000 to $8,000).
Important examples of collage include Romare Bearden’s Village of Yo, collage of various paper with ink on board, 1977 ($80,000 to $120,000); and an untitled photographic collage of a female subject by Robert Mapplethorpe, with acrylic and spray paint, from 1971, which was a gift to a classmate at Pratt Institute ($8,000 to $12,000).
Three-dimensional highlights are a plaster Nana with acrylic and gouache by French sculptor, painter and filmmaker Niki de Sainte Phalle, 1968 ($10,000 to $15,000); Pierre Arman’s Violin, cast bronze on marble base ($3,000 to $5,000); Louise Nevelson’s Brandeis Multiple, bronze, 1968 ($2,000 to $3,000); Robert Graham’s MOCA Torso, cast bronze, 1992-95 ($3,000 to $5,000) and Jeff Koons’s Puppy, glazed white ceramic vase, 1998 ($5,000 to $8,000).
The auction, will begin at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, November 14. The works will be on public exhibition Saturday, November 9, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.; Monday, November 11 through Wednesday, November 13, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Thursday, November 14, from 10 a.m. to noon.
An illustrated catalogue is available for $35 from Swann Galleries, 104 East 25th Street, New York, NY 10010, and may be viewed online at www.swanngalleries.com.
For further information, and to make advance arrangements to bid by telephone during the auction, please contact Todd Weyman at (212) 254-4710, ext. 32, or via email at tweyman@swanngalleries.com.
Live online bidding is also available via Artfact.com.
First image: Andy Warhol, GA-43 Robot, unique color screenprint on canvas, 1983 (estimate: $70,000 to $100,000).
Second image: Wayne Thiebaud, Hill Street, color woodcut, 1987 (estimate: $12,000 to $18,000).
