On July 1, Heritage Auctions will host its springtime American Art Signature Auction with approximately 150 lots of fine artwork hitting the market. The sale, which has everything from Golden Age illustrations to Hudson River School works, always has a strong offering of Western paintings and bronzes. This sale is no different with around one-third of the items hitting the block being from the category.
Edgar Payne (1883-1947), The Pack Train, Sierra Grande, oil on canvas, 31½ x 39½” Estimate: $100/150,000
“We are really raising the bar of the Western art for the American art sale, because we’re seeing more and more property come in,” says Alissa Ford, director of Western art at the auction house. “We are looking for the crème de la crème.”
The sale, as Ford explains, will kick off with the Western division and right out the gate heavy-hitting pieces will be available. The day’s third item will be Ed Mell’s Mesas, carrying a presale estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. Ford shares, “That’s a monumental mesa scene from 1980. We’re excited to have the Mell in the auction because his market has been very strong over the past few years, and it’s increasing more and more.”
Eanger Irving Couse (1866-1936), Tapatie, 1891, oil on canvas laid on board, 18¼ x 15” Estimate: $100/150,000
As the auction continues, collectors will find even more pieces by some of the most noteworthy names in Western art. One of the major highlights is Edgar Payne’s The Pack Train, Sierra Grande, which is estimated to sell between $100,000 and $150,000. “It’s one of his larger Sierra scenes that’s completely iconic of his work,” Ford says. “It has the riders going through the valley and the brushwork is everything you’d expect from Payne.”
Charlie Dye (1906-1972), The Liar’s Hour, oil on Masonite, 30 x 48” Estimate: $60/80,000
Birger Sandzén (1871-1954), Sunset, Logan, Utah, 1929, oil on board, 14 x 12” Estimate: $40/60,000
The sale will include four by Birger Sandzén that represent multiple states he painted in—Utah, Colorado and Kansas. Among them is the 1929 oil Sunset, Logan, Utah (est. $40/60,000). Other landscape scenes include two by Eric Sloane of the Hopi village Walpi, including the 1980 painting Sunrise at Walpi (est. $10/15,000). Charlie Dye’s The Liar’s Hour (est. $60/80,000) is another notable painting coming to market, as is John Clymer’s illustration The Lewis Crossing, with a presale estimate of $80,000 to $120,000.
Dan Ostermiller, Bear Pause, 1998, bronze with brown patina, 37” Estimate: $30/50,000
Paintings from several members of the Taos Society of Artists also will be standouts including two by Joseph Henry Sharp and a work by Fremont Ellis. A portrait by Eanger Irving Couse also arriving at auction will be sure to garner attention. “The Couse is absolutely stunning. [His granddaughter] Virginia Couse Leavitt is going to put it in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné. It was owned by Thomas Strong, who wrote Dictionary of Chinook Words [before it went to its current owner],” Ford explains. “It was done in 1891 and exhibited in 1892. It’s very different than what we normally see from Couse on the market. This one is much more moody and kind of tonalist and tranquil.” The piece, titled Tapatie, has a presale estimate of $20,000 to $30,000.
John Clymer (1907-1989), The Lewis Crossing, oil on board, 24 x 40” Estimate: $80/120,000
Two other standout categories in the sale are wildlife and bronzes. In the wildlife segment, the most noteworthy lot is of 42 etchings by Carl Rungius that will be available together at an estimate of $100,000 to $150,000. Four works by Ken Carlson, featuring elk, bison, moose and a bear, will have estimates of $30,000 to $50,000 each. Bridging the gap between the two categories is Dan Ostermiller’s life-size sculpture of two bears titled Bear Pause. From 1998, Ostermiller’s piece is expected to sell between $30,000 and $50,000. There also will be five pieces by Glenna Goodacre in the auction, including Jump for Joy (est. $12/18,000) and Naiads (Two of the Four works) at $50,000 to $70,000.
“This is one of our most well-rounded sales in general, but especially for Western art,” Ford says. “There is something for every category and division of Western art and they’re all high-quality works.”
American Art Signature Auction
July 1, 2020
Heritage Auctions, Design District Showroom,
1518 Slocum Street, Dallas, TX 75207
(800) 872-6467, www.ha.com
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