‘Alive and Well’

Scottsdale Art Auction achieves $13 million in sales with several artist records and a 98 percent sell-through rate.

By the end of two days of sales featuring more than 400 lots, the Scottsdale Art Auction started taking stock of its weekend. Their first press release after the sale said it all: “Western art is alive and well.”

The two-session sale, held on April 9 and 10 in Scottsdale, Arizona, achieved more than $13.3 million in sales, set several important world records and then, the icing on the whole cake, saw an astonishing 98 percent sell-through rate. William Gollings (1878-1932), Cheyenne Winter Camp, oil on canvas, 24 x 18” Estimate: $300/500,000 SOLD: $643,500

“We just feel mighty blessed,” says Brad Richardson, one of three partners for the auction. “We’re still struggling to find the right words to even describe the sale. It’s all still sinking in. I knew we did well when we were preparing some materials for the works that were left. Normally there are dozens of unsold lots left, but this year we had only seven pieces. It’s been a wild year, but the market is healthier than ever.”Charles Schreyvogel (1861-1912), A Close Call, oil on canvas, 25¼ x 34” Estimate: $750/1,250,000 SOLD: $819,000

Carl Rungius (1869-1959), Grizzly Bear, oil on canvas, 30 x 40” Estimate: $200/300,000 SOLD: $468,000

The top lot in the sale was a rare Charles Schreyvogel action piece titled A Close Call (est. $750/1,250,000) that sold for $819,000. Not far behind it was the catalog cover, William Gollings’ Cheyenne Winter Camp, which sold for $643,500, well over its $500,000 high estimate. The work broke an artist world record for Gollings, whose previous record was held by the same piece when it sold in 2007 for $414,000. Rounding out the top three lots was Albert Bierstadt’s Starr King Mountain, which was inches away from its $500,000 high estimate when it sold for $497,250.Logan Maxwell Hagege, Gathering, oil on canvas, 40 x 60” Estimate: $85/135,000 SOLD: $152,100

Wildlife artist Carl Rungius performed strongly with Old Men of the Ram River (est. $175/225,000) that sold for $292,500 and Grizzly Bear (est. $200/300,000) that sold for $468,000, which puts it as the seventh-best Rungius work to come to auction. Charles M. Russell’s The Battle of Belly River sold over its $350,000 high estimate after it closed at $409,500, and John Clymer’s Wild Horses performed strongly at $380,250, well over its $250,000 high estimate. Other top-selling lots included pieces by Edgar Payne, Howard Terpning, William Herbert “Buck” Dunton, Oscar E. Berninghaus and a pair of George Catlin watercolors.Mark Maggiori, The Sarapes, oil on canvas, 29 x 36” Estimate: $28/38,000 SOLD: $93,600

Contemporary painters also sold well during the two sessions: Kyle Polzin’s One Warrior’s Medicine (est. $30/40,000) sold for $87,750; Billy Schenck’s Blood on the Horizon (est. $15/25,000) sold for $64,350; Mark Maggiori’s The Serapes (est. $28/38,000) sold for $93,600; and Logan Maxwell Hagege’s Gathering (est. $85/135,000) sold for $152,100. One of the sleeper hits of the sale was Clark Kelley Price’s Last of the Water, which sold for $81,900, more than 10 times over its high estimate. The work doubled Price’s previous auction record set in 2014. —

Top 10 Lots: Scottsdale Art Auction, April 9-10, 2021 (including buyer’s premium)
Artist Title Low/High Estimate SOLD
Charles Schreyvogel A Close Call $750/1,250,000 $819,000
William Gollings Cheyenne Winter Camp $300/500,000 $643,500
Albert Bierstadt Starr King Mountain $300/500,000 $497,250
Carl Rungius Grizzly Bear $200/300,000 $468,000
Charles M. Russell The Battle at Belly River $250/350,000 $409,500
John Clymer Wild Horses $150/250,000 $380,250
Howard Terpning Hunting $275/325,000 $321,750
Edgar Payne Burning the Hogan $200/300,000 $292,500
Carl Rungius Old Men of the Ram River $175/225,000 $292,500
William H.“Buck” Dunton Three Montana Cowboys $175/225,000 $257,400