Western art returns to the auction block in Reno, Nevada, on July 23 during the Coeur d’Alene Art Auction. The hugely successful auction, which has achieved more than $300 million in sales over the last 15 years, will once again offer artwork from many genres within Western art—from sporting and wildlife art to cowboys and cattle to bronzes big and small. Harvey Dunn (1884-1952), The Homesteaders, 1942, oil on canvas, 40 x 60” Estimate: $150/250,000

“What’s really exciting for us is that the market is as strong now as it’s been in 10 years. We watch a lot of sales, including the recent spring sales, and we’re seeing growth everywhere, not just at our own sale,” says Mike Overby, one of the partners of the Coeur d’Alene Art Auction. “It’s remarkable because the Western market seems largely insulated from macro events happening in the world, whether it’s the larger market or even what’s happening with Russia. Western art occupies an interesting place within the art world. And it’s doing very well.”Philip R. Goodwin (1881-1935), Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, oil on canvas, 30 x 39” Estimate: $150/250,000

Overby adds that he’s not only seeing strength in the market, but also growth, particularly as bidders become more comfortable with bidding online and as huge numbers of people are spending more time at home. “One of the benefits of working from home during the pandemic was that people started looking at what was on their walls,” he says. “Some people moved out West, maybe to Montana or Wyoming, and they wanted to get artwork for their homes. Many of them are younger collectors who are seeing an opportunity to buy great artwork.”Charles M. Russell (1864-1926), Mexican Vaqueros Roping a Steer, 1925, watercolor on paper, 18 x 28” Estimate: $400/600,000

Highlights in the sale include four stellar Edgar Payne paintings: Desert Sky (est. $150/250,000), Fourth Lake, Big Pine Canyon (est. $100/150,000), Canyon de Chelly (est. $150/250,000) and Land of the Navajo (est. $300/500,000), an impressive work of five figures on horseback under puffy clouds against a blue sky. “We really have an embarrassment of riches with four Payne paintings, each one better than the one before it,” Overby says. “All of them come from private collections, but several were part of major exhibitions. When people see these things in person, they’re going to be blown away.”Frank Schoonover (1877-1972), Pickerel, 1917, oil on canvas, 34 x 24” Estimate: $100/150,000

Charles M. Russell (1864-1926), To Noses That Read, a Smell That Spells Man, bronze, 4¾” Estimate: $50/75,000

Another artist prominently highlighted in the sale is Charles M. Russell, who not only has four works available, but is represented by three mediums: oil, watercolor and bronze. The Russell that is already generating some buzz is the 1925 watercolor Mexican Vaqueros Roping a Steer (est. $400/600,000), a lightly painted action scene that captures an intense moment between a rider and his target. The Russell oil is Shooting the Buffalo (est. $400/600,000), an 1892 work with a close encounter, and the bronze is To Noses that Read, a Smell That Spells Man (est. $50/75,000). “Russell modeled the small figure of a wolf shying away from a bottle in 1920. Like the artist’s first depiction of a wolf in bronze, The Last Laugh, it is in ashtray form and represents the wolf’s controversial relationship with man,” says Rick Stewart for the auction house. “Russell’s title, To Noses That Read, a Smell That Spells Man, appears on the surface of the base—one of the few instances where he inscribed a title directly on one of his bronze subjects. In a skillfully rendered moment, the wary animal recoils from the scent of an object that represents the wolf’s bitter enemy, man.”Edgar Payne (1883-1947), Land of the Navajo, oil on canvas, 40 x 50” Estimate: $300/500,000Other historic works include Harvey Dunn’s magnificent 1942 pioneer scene The Homesteaders (est. $150/250,000), Gerard Curtis Delano’s canoe painting Misty Morning (est. $300/500,000) and two exceptional pieces by Henry Farny, one being A Sioux Camp, a 7-by-10-inch work estimated at $150,000 to $250,000. “We’re watching the Dunn very closely. It could do really well. It comes from a collection in South Dakota and it came directly from the artist—it’s the most major Dunn to come to auction in a very long time,” Overby says. “[Dunn] did a prairie series, but donated almost all of the paintings to a museum in South Dakota. These are rarely in private hands, so this is a great opportunity. It’s a transcendent piece.”Peter Hurd (1904-1984), A Ranch on the Plains, 1951, tempera on board, 25 x 48” Estimate: $80/120,000

William Herbert “Buck” Dunton (1878-1936), Crest of the Ridge, Grizzly, oil on board, 8 x 10” Estimate: $200/300,000

Works from the Taos Society of Artists include marvelous examples by Eanger Irving Couse, Victor Higgins, E. Martin Hennings, Bert Geer Phillips and two gems by William Herbert “Buck” Dunton that originally hung next to each other. Crest of the Ridge, Grizzly shows what might be the “before” picture with a bear on a snowy mountainside, while The Hunter’s Return could easily show the “after” with the hunter returning to camp with a bundle draped over a pack horse. Both works are 8 by 10 inches and both are being offered with estimates of $200,000 to $300,000 each. Another work representing Taos is Blackfeet Sun Dance (est. $200/300,000) by Joseph Henry Sharp. Joseph Henry Sharp (1859-1953), Blackfeet Sun Dance, 1903, oil on canvas, 12 x 18” Estimate: $200/300,000

Overby says that three pieces developing major interest are Peter Hurd’s 1951 tempera work A Ranch on the Plains (est. $80/120,000), Frank Schoonover’s fishing image Pickerel (est. $100/150,000) and Philip R. Goodwin’s canoe scene Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea (est. $150/250,000). “We set a new record last year for Peter Hurd, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this one doesn’t get a run for its money. It comes from a family in New Mexico that purchased it from the artist. It’s quintessential Hurd, and it will come with some fireworks,” Overby says. “We expect lots of interest in the Goodwin as well. We showed it to Larry Len Peterson, who wrote the book on Goodwin, and he said he’s never seen a better painting. It blew him away.”Gerard Curtis Delano (1890-1972), Misty Morning, oil on canvas, 30 x 40” Estimate: $300/500,000

Kenneth Riley (1919-2015), Mandan Buffalo Dance, 1977, acrylic on board, 30 x 30” Estimate: $60/90,000

Other artists represented in the sale, some with more affordable entry points, are Howard Terpning, Kenneth Riley, Ogden M. Pleissner, Carl Rungius, Birger Sandzén, Frank McCarthy, William R. Leigh, Bob Kuhn and more. The sale always has a number of works by living painters, and this year is no exception with pieces by Z.S. Liang, Martin Grelle, Robert Griffing, Logan Maxwell Hagege, Luke Frazier, Bonnie Marris, Brett Cotton, Steve Seltzer, Dan Mieduch and many others. —

Coeur d’Alene Art Auction
July 23, 2022
Grand Sierra Resort & Casino, 2500 E. Second Street, Reno, NV 89595
(208) 772-9009, www.cdaartauction.com

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