On November 7 and 8, the Santa Fe Art Auction will present the Signature Live Sale,its largest and most comprehensive sale of the year. For Gillian Blitch, president and CEO of the Santa Fe Art Auction, the sale offers an opportunity to show what the auction house offers and to also expand it into other areas.
Gerard Curtis Delano (1890-1972), Navajos, watercolor on paper, 14¼ x 17¼ in. Estimate: $10/15,000
“The goal of this auction in recent years is to show the best of everything we have to offer throughout the rest of the year. Of course, we’re best known for Native American arts, including the best pieces [of] pottery, textiles, jewelry and contemporary and Indian school paintings. But then we also have works on paper, classic and contemporary Western art, great photography and so much more,” Blitch says. “We’re also expanding into more international art because those are our clients.” She adds that because Santa Fe generally attracts people from all around the world, it makes sense that they may want artwork from other parts of the country, including Europe.
But the auction house is still very much devoted to Western and Native American art, which is reflected in the Signature Live Sale that will feature more than 350 lots across two days and three sessions.
Howard Post, Untitled, oil on canvas, 36 x 44 in. Estimate: $15/25,000
Early highlights from the sale include Gerard Curtis Delano’s watercolor Navajos, with estimates of $10,000 to $15,000. The work shows a trio of riders in a vast desert landscape.
Two contemporary artists in the sale are Tony Abeyta, represented here with Storm and Arroyo (est. $15/25,000), and Howard Post, whose untitled ranch scene is estimated at $15,000 to $25,000.
Other works that have come into the sale include pieces by Fritz Scholder, Ed Mell, Luis Jimenez, Emil Bisttram, photography by Ansel Adams, jewelry by Denise Wallace, woodcuts by Gustave Baumann, etchings by Gene Kloss and much more. Additional lots come from Albert Bierstadt, Bert Geer Phillips, Joseph Henry Sharp, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Dan Namingha, Edward S. Curtis and potter Maria Martinez.
Tony Abeyta (Navajo (Diné)), Storm and Arroyo, oil on board, 20 x 23 in. Estimate: $15/25,000
“The market seems very robust right now, so I’m excited to bring these materials to bidders,” says Blitch. “I’m especially eager to see our online sales, which grow stronger after each sale. I’m seeing registrations come in from France, Japan, Italy…all over the place. In the past, I’ve had people bidding on the same piece from four different countries. That used to never happen, and now it happens with some frequency.”
Acoma polychrome olla, ca. 1910, fired clay, natural pigments, 12 x 12 in. Estimate: $7/9,000
This year’s sale will also feature several prominent named collections, including the Steven and Karen Berkowitz Collection, the John P. Coolidge Collection (former director of the Fogg Museum of Art) and works from the Ralph T. Coe Center for the Arts. —
Santa Fe Art Auction’s Signature Live Sale
November 7-8, 2025
932 Railfan Road, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(505) 954-5858
www.santafeartauction.com
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