Shannon’s Fall Online Fine Art Auction, November 19th, Features 242 Lots of Paintings, Drawings, Prints and Sculptures

Shannon’s Fine Art Auctioneers will host their last auction of the year on Thursday, November 19th at 2pm Eastern time. The 242-lot online sale includes American and European art from the 19th and early 20th centuries, modern and contemporary art, fine prints, sculpture and drawings. Bidding is available by absentee and online through Invaluable.com.

The expected top lot of the sale is a rare drawing by Dutch artist Rudolf Bonnet, of two women carrying water jugs on their heads. Waterdraagsters was painted while the artist was living and working in Bali. Bonnet devoted his life to artistic and philanthropic efforts to promote Balinese art. His genre scenes of Balinese people capture the spirit of life in Bali and are widely collected by enthusiasts of Indonesian art.

Another rare gem is an Eliseo Meifren painting of his garden in Majorca. The painting was originally shipped to the United States for the Pan-Pacific International Exhibition in 1915, where the artist was awarded a Medal of Honor. It was sold at The Anderson Galleries in New York City before the Spanish Commissioner returned home in 1919 and has since descended into a private collection. This fresh-to-the-market painting beautifully depicts the artist’s colorful garden in a Spanish Impressionist style.

American paintings will be led by a large Antonio Jacobsen marine rendering of the U.S.M. Pennsylvania. Measuring 32 inches by 60 inches, the painting is an impressive composition. Other highlights in American art include paintings by New Englander Eric Sloane; Hudson River School paintings by Arthur Parton and Samuel L. Gerry; 19th century genre paintings by Hamilton Hamilton and Francis Coates Jones; Western art by Frank McCarthy and Carl Pugliese; and American Impressionism by Richard Hayley Lever, Emile Gruppe, Clarence Kerr Chatterton, Charles Warren Eaton and others.

An original work on paper by Robert Rauschenberg (Untitled, 1983), leads the contemporary offerings with a $10,000-$15,000 estimate. This solvent transfer with acrylic and graphite work presents a unique opportunity for new and seasoned collectors to own an original Rauschenberg at an approachable price. A modern abstract on paper by George L.K. Morris is another such opportunity for a collector to buy an original, quality work by a highly sought-after artist, estimated at just $7,000-$9,000.

Shannon’s managing partner Sandra Germain commented, “2020 brought about many changes for all of us. At Shannon’s, our online sales have become even more important. We are happy to be able to offer fresh-to-the-market, high-quality fine artworks at all price points. Clients in our online sales range from younger people furnishing new living spaces to long-time clients expanding or changing their collections. Our international client base is expanding every day. This will be our fifth and final sale of the year and we are excited about the range of offerings. We are thankful to our clients and staff during this challenging year, and we are looking forward to a successful and healthy 2021.”

The digital catalog and a link to bid live on Invaluable is available on the Shannon’s website, shannons.com. Absentee bids may be arranged by request directly through shannons.com or by contacting the gallery at 203.877.1711 or by email at info@shannons.com.

Previews are going on now by appointment weekdays from 11am to 5pm through November 18th. Please visit shannons.com to schedule an in-person preview appointment or contact the gallery for a digital preview.

To learn more about Shannon’s Fine Art Auctioneers and the Thursday, November 19th auction, please visit www.shannons.com and follow them on social media. Updates are posted frequently.

About Shannon’s Fine Art Auctioneers:
Consignments for auctions at Shannon’s are accepted year-round. To consign a single piece of artwork, an estate or a collection, call (203) 877-1711; or, send an e-mail to info@shannons.com. For more information, please visit www.shannons.com.

Abstract Expressionist Paintings Lead Shannon’s Fall Fine Art Auction, Which Totaled Over $3.3 Million; 82% of Lots Sold

Milford, CT, USA, September 26, 2020 — Shannon’s seamlessly transitioned to their “new normal” hosting an exciting online auction September 17th with lively bidder participation despite the absence of live attendees. In the saleroom, 20 phone bidders sat at socially-distanced six-foot tables and managed to generate the excitement, buzz and results of an in-person auction. Active online participation and aggressive absentee bidding helped drive strong results. Overall, the sale achieved over $3.3 million in total sales with 82 percent of all lots sold.

Leading the auction was the highly-anticipated sale of Abstract Expressionist art from the Jeanne and Carroll Berry Collection. The results did not disappoint and listeners could feel the competition as auctioneer Peter Coccoluto fielded bids from the phones. Leading the group was Adolph Gottlieb’s Untitled #30 from 1970 that sold for $162,500, exceeding its presale estimate. Two lots later, Jackson Pollock’s Untitled from 1952-1956 sold for $112,500. Overall, 11 of the 22 lots hammered down above their pre-sale high estimates, a testament to the quality of the works offered.

Other notable sales from the Berry Collection include Mark Rothko’s Untitled from 1968 that sold for $78,000 and a pair of Hedda Sterne drawings that set a new record at $13,750. Sterne is the only female painter in the Irascibles and competition for her work was aggressive. Harry Weldon Kees, whose work has never before been offered at auction, sold for $8,750. And, the cover lot, a work on paper by Richard Pousette-Dart, sold for $37,500.

An Abstract Expressionist painting by Michael (Corinne) West from a separate collection sold for $52,500. West, a female artist, chose a masculine name to remove the bias of gender in the interpretation and sales of her work.

There was success in all categories at Shannon’s and there were no dull moments during the nearly four-hour auction. Sandra Germain, managing partner, commented “We are thrilled with the results of the sale. The long-anticipated offering of the Berry Collection finally came to fruition as well as many other works we have been holding since April. We had strong results across the board and have many happy consignors.”

A George Bellows painting from his time in Woodstock sold for $106,250 after enthusiastic bidding from five phone bidders. Charles Burchfield’s Steel Mill Homes sold for $75,000 to the Muskegon Museum of Art in Muskegon, Michigan. Charles Ethan Porter’s Peonies led the 19th century American Art category, selling to a California institution for $55,000.

Notable sales in European art include Montague Dawson’s yachting scene, The Needles, that sold for $93,750; and a Hugues Merle, Young Woman in Blue, that sold for $50,000. Modern European art did well with a Kurt Schwitter’s collage from his Merz series selling for $50,000; a Jean Dufy of Les Champs-Elysees that sold for $57,500; and a Marie Laurencin, Jeune Femme, that tripled the low estimate selling for $45,000 with international bidder participation. A painting by contemporary British artist Patrick Hughes found a new home on the West Coast for $45,000.

American Impressionism was led by Charles Courtney Curran’s Wind on the Cliff, a sweeping view from a cliff with two young women, probably the artist’s daughter and a family friend, that sold for $100,000. Other highlights in this category include Woman in a Silk Robe by Frederick Carl Frieseke, which sold for $57,500; and Guy Carlton Wiggins’ Winter at the Library that also sold for $57,500.

A regionalist work by Thomas Hart Benton of the Louisiana rice fields, Threshing Rice, sold for $87,500. Winter Stream by Southwestern artist Victor Higgins quadrupled the low estimate selling for $40,000 to a buyer in New Mexico. There were three paintings by New England artist Eric Sloane, led by Last Hay of the Season, a large 24 inch by 36 inch painting that sold for $47,500.

Prints were led by Picasso’s Le Repas Frugal, one of the artist’s first print compositions, that sold for $100,000. A Robert Rauschenberg silkscreen with iconic figures from the 1960s, Signs, sold for $27,500, while a group of prints commissioned for the Jimmy Carter inauguration fund sold for $30,000 to a museum collection.

To learn more about Shannon’s Fine Art Auctioneers, please visit www.shannons.com.

About Shannon’S Fine Art Auctioneers:
Shannon’s Fine Art Auctioneers is always accepting quality consignments for future auctions. Shannon’s produces an extensive color catalog. To join Shannon’s mailing list, you can sign up on the website or email the gallery at info@shannons.com. The next auction will be an Online Fine Art Auction on November 19, 2020. To consign a single piece of artwork, an estate or a collection, you may call them at (203) 877-1711; or, email at info@shannons.com. To learn more about Shannon’s Fine Art Auctioneers, please visit www.shannons.com.