The organizers of the Jackson Hole Art Auction have watched as internet bidding has increased in sales year after year. They then watched those numbers go up almost exponentially during the pandemic as collectors grew even more comfortable with bidding from afar. 
Porfirio Salinas (1910-1973), Hill Country Bluebonnets, 1941, oil on canvas, 36 x 44” Estimate: $50/75,000
The ease and comfort of internet bidding has resulted in the inaugural Wyoming Art Auction on February 20 in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. “After toying with this idea for a good amount of time, it was obvious this was a great time to host an online-only sale,” says Madison Webb, the auction director at the Jackson Hole Art Auction, which is presenting the sale. “And when we looked at our calendar, February was wide open, so it seemed perfect for a Wyoming sale.”
Bob Kuhn (1920-2007), Watch the Buck Runways, 1968, acrylic and conte crayon on paperboard, 16½ x 25½” Estimate: $10/15,000
Bruce Cheever, Grand Descent, oil on board, 31 x 47” Estimate: $12/18,000
The sale will be held entirely online through Invaluable, LiveAuctioneers and the Jackson Hole Art Auction’s web and app bidding platform, though visitors to Jackson Hole will be able to preview the auction lots starting a month before the sale. Webb adds that the February sale effectively adds another art season to Jackson Hole, which is a big destination for skiers and other winter visitors.
The 175-lot sale will feature wildlife, landscapes, sporting art and works showing cowboys and Native American subjects. Highlights include Porfirio Salinas’ Texas painting Hill Country Bluebonnets (est. $50/75,000) and Bob Kuhn’s 1968 wildlife painting Watch the Buck Runways (est. $10/15,000). 
Tom Browning, Fading Light, oil on canvas, 24 x 44” Estimate: $15/25,000
Bill Nebeker, The Legend Lives, bronze, ed. 12 of 20, 36 x 18 x 15” Estimate: $6/9,000Two paintings that should interest Jackson Hole collectors are Conrad Schwiering’s Snake River Overlook (est. $10/15,000) and Bruce Cheever’s Grand Descent (est. $12/18,000), both of which show the majesty of the region from perspectives that have been popular throughout the history of Western art.
In addition to a bronze by Bill Nebeker, The Legend Lives (est. $6/9,000), and Tom Browning’s cowboy scene Fading Light (est. $15/25,000), there will be a Stanley Meltzoff painting, Eider Duck Shoot (est. $12/18,000), from 1968. Meltzoff, whose work is rare at auction and usually fought over by bidders, is widely collected by marine and sporting enthusiasts who treasure his unique above-and below-water scenes.
Other artists represented in the sale include Clyde Aspevig, Matt Smith, Curt Walters, Luke Frazier, James Morgan, David Maass, Brent Cotton, Ralph Oberg, Tucker Smith, Bruce Greene, Tyler Crow, Grant Redden, Wayne Baize and many others. —
Wyoming Art Sale
February 20, 2021
Online sale
(866) 549-9278,
www.wyomingartauction.com
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