American Paintings Drive Strong Results in Shannon's $2.6 Million Spring Fine Art Auction, April 27

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American paintings drove strong results in Shannon’s Spring Fine Art Auction held April 27th. The 139-lot sale was nearly 90 percent sold and grossed $2.6 million. Most of the lots offered came from private collections. The top lot was a colorful Boston beach scene by Maurice Prendergast. The dynamic composition sold for $162,500, topping the high estimate.

Other classic examples of American art achieved stellar results. These included a John Fulton Folinsbee work titled Canal Lane that soared past the high estimate to finish at $81,250; and a classic snowy Guy C. Wiggins view of 5th Ave at 42nd Street that brought $62,500.

Gorgeous 19th century American paintings also performed above their estimated ranges. A Vase of Red Roses by Martin Johnson Heade sold for $125,000; a rare painting by New Haven native Elizabeth Gilbert Jerome achieved $57,500 after fierce bidding, ultimately selling to a museum collection and setting a new world auction record for the artist; an exceptional A.T. Bricher seascape of the Rocky Coast at Grand Manan sold for $52,500; and a painting by Jasper F. Cropsey titled A Bend in the River from 1892 brought $40,640.

Modern and Contemporary Art offerings were led by Andy Warhol’s silkscreen of an Orangutan from the Endangered Species series. The trial proof in unique colors sold for $150,000, exceeding the high estimate. A painting by female Abstract Expressionist Peter (Henrietta) Miller, titled Head, circa 1930, sold for $100,000, setting a new record for the artist; a John Atherton painting, titled Pine Tree, doubled its high estimate, selling for $52,500; and a 48-inch sculpture by Puerto Rican artist Angel Botello of a young girl, titled Coquette, sold for $47,500.

Other highlights in the Modern and Contemporary category include four works on paper by Hans Hofmann alum Lynne Mapp Drexler, whose market has surged in just this past year. The most colorful example from the group of four 16 inch by 13 inch watercolors sold for $43,180. A gestural 1959 painting by another Hofmann alum, Michael Goldberg, gaveled for $40,640.

Proving their success in all categories, Shannon’s sold a rare French Impressionist painting by Pierre-Auguste Renoir titled Arbres Devant La Maison for $106,250. Another European art highlight was an illustration by Hans Baluscheck that made $31,250, doubling its high estimate.

After the auction, owner Sandra Germain commented, “It was an upbeat auction with plenty of live action on the phone and online. Although we had good online activity before the sale, it was exciting to watch bidders participate in real time. There were several new participants given the diversity of the offerings, and we are excited to work with a growing list of auction buyers.”

There were several other notable sales during Thursday’s auction. A Hayley Lever work titled Sunshine in the Hills from the artist’s period in and near St. Ives sold for $106,250; while new world-record auction prices were set for Russell Chatham at $68,750 and for Pop Art artist Leo Jensen at $18,750.

North Carolina artist Elliott Daingerfield was one of the first American artists to paint the Grand Canyon, and there are only a handful of such scenes by the artist. The example offered at Shannon’s had been in a private collection for decades and sold for $50,000.

The full results of the sale can be viewed at shannons.com. All of the reported prices include the buyer’s premium. Shannon’s accepts consignments year-round. They will host an online auction in June, followed by a fall auction and catalog in October. To inquire about a possible consignment, or to sign up for their mailing list, visit www.shannons.com.