RESULTS: Swann Auction Galleries: The Printed and Manuscript African Americana Sale 2441

The Printed and Manuscript African Americana Sale 2441 was held on March 30, 2017 at Swann Auction Galleries. This was the 22nd annual Printed and Manuscript African Americana Sale, and it was the first time that the sale exceeded $1M in the department's history. Sale 2441 included 530 lots, still demonstrating that there is a continual on-going strong and growing market of available African American historical items; a market that is driven by private collectors, as well as institutions. Of the 530 lots that were offered for sale, 421 of them sold; this was a 79% sell-through rate by lot. The Sale's total was $1,248,121 with Buyer's Premium.

Photograph: Swann Auction Galleries

The success of this sale was, in a large part, due to interest surrounding a carte-de-visite album from the 1860s that contained a previously unknown photograph of Harriet Tubman. The album (Lot 75) had a pre-sale high estimate of $30,000; however, it sold  for $161,000 with Buyer's Premium. Specialist Wyatt Houston Day discovered the photograph of Tubman in an extraordinary album presented to Quaker school teacher Emily Howland in the 1860s by her friend and mentor, Carrie Nichols, both of whom taught at Camp Todd, The Freedmen's School in Arlington, Virginia. The album contained 48 photographs, including 44 cartes-de-visite of noted abolitionists, politicians and friends of Howland. The list of images in the album is truly impressive, and there are two photographs of Harriet Tubman; one, featured in this post, showing a considerably younger Harriet Tubman than normally seen in known images of her.

Sale 2441 also featured "the strongest selection of Civil Rights material we've offered," according to Wyatt Day. Lot 256, an archive of documents relating to the formation of the Montgomery Improvement Association, included checks endorsed by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The Association's archive is rich in detail with hundreds of pieces, shedding light on this seminal community movement, which heralded the beginning of the modern civil rights struggle. Lot 256 had a pre-sale estimate of $20,000 - $30,000, and it sold for $18,750 with Buyer's Premium.

Lot 260, Draft of Letter from Birmingham Jail. Photo: Swann Auction Galleries

Half of the top selling lots were institutional purchases, including a rare working draft (Lot 260) of Dr. Martin Luther King's famous Letter from Birmingham Jail, 1963; and a West African cast

Lot 5, Kuduo. Photograph: Swann Auction Galleries

bronze Kuduo ritual burial jar (Lot 5), circa eighteenth to nineteenth century. The draft of the Letter from Birmingham Jail, offering a defense of King's methods of peaceful and passive resistance had a pre-sale estimate of $10,000 - $15,000; it sold for $40,000 with Buyer's Premium. The Kuduo in Lot 5 has images of slave shackles applied to the sides. The images of slave shackles suggest the person to whom this belonged was a slave dealer. The pre-sale estimate was $10,000 - $15,000, and it sold for $10,625 with Buyer's Premium.

Other highlights from Sale 2441 featured in this post 

Lot 83, Photograph: Swann Auction Galleries

focus on books. Lot 83, a signed and inscribed copy of the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Written by Himself (1845) set an auction record. It had a pre-sale estimate of $3,000 - $4,000, and sold for $37,500 with Buyer's Premium. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass... was purchased by a dealer.

Lot 150, Photograph: Swann Auction Galleries

Lot 150: Benjamin Banneker's Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia Almanack for the year of our Lord 1795 was purchased by a collector. This lot had a pre-sale estimate of $30,000 - $40,000, and it set an auction record, selling for $55,000 with Buyer's Premium. 

Lot 382: Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were

Lot 382, Photograph: Swann Auction Galleries

Watching God (1937) inscribed to Mollie Lewis had a pre-sale estimate of $600 - $900. It sold for $7,800, breaking a record for an inscribed first edition copy of Their Eyes Were Watching God.

Look for the next sale of Printed and Manuscript African Americana at Swann Galleries in Spring 2018. For more information, or to cosign works to future auctions, contact David Rivera with consignment inquiries. The Printed and Manuscript African Americana Department at Swann Galleries, the only one of its kind, has been holding sales since 1996.

Weschler's Fall Auction to Feature African American Artists

Weschler's has been an auction tradition in the Nation's Capital for over 120 years. As Washington D.C.'s only auction house, Weschler's has been in the unique position to auction, over the years, property from many prominent local estates. They hold at least 6 Capital Collections estate auctions each season which feature European and American furniture and decorations; paintings, prints, drawings and sculpture; jewelry, coins and watches; 20th century decorative arts; Asian works of art; and rugs, carpets and tapestries. 

Weschler's fall auction which will be held on September 19th will begin its 2014-2015 season, and among the offerings in their upcoming  Capital Collections Estate Auction, Sale 1417 will be an important selection of 20^thcentury African American works of art cultivated from prominent Washington, D.C. collections. The following artists are represented from those collections: Elizabeth Catlett, Lois Mailou Jones, Alma Woodsey Thomas, Sam Gilliam, Romare Bearden, and Joseph Holston. 

This post features highlights of Sale 1417. Two notable sculptures by artist and activist, Elizabeth Catlett, come to auction from the esteemed collection of her personal friend and civil rights pioneer, the Reverend Douglas Moore and his wife, Dr. Doris Hughes-Moore. 
 

Elizabeth Catlett, Bust of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Bronze with a green patina, 1990, 18½"x14"x12". Property of  Reverend Douglas Moore and Dr. Doris Hughes-Moore Collection. Image: Weschler's Auctioneers and Appraisers

Lot 393  Elizabeth Catlett   Bust of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 
This bust is bronze with a green patina on a black marble plinth base; it has an estimate of $50,000 - $70,000. The catalogue notes that a second version  of this sculpture can be found at the King Arts Complex in Columbus, Ohio. 

Elizabeth Catlett, Female Torso, Marble on wood base, height: 14". Property of Reverend Douglas Moore and Dr. Doris Hughes-Moore Collection. Image: Weschler's Auctioneers and Appraisers

Lot 394  A second sculpture from the Moore Collection is a Female Torso by Elizabeth Catlett. This marble sculpture on a wood base has an auction estimate of $30,000 - $40,000. Female Torso serves as the cover image of the Capital Collections Estate Auction catalogue.

Alma Woodsey Thomas, Untitled, Watercolor on paper, sight size: 30"x 22". Property of George R. Rhodes, Jr., Revocable Trust. Image: Weschler's Auctioneers and Appraisers

Lot 397 This watercolor, Untitled, by Alma Woodsey Thomas is from the George R. Rhodes, Jr., Revocable Trust. Dated from 1960, the watercolor on paper has an estimate of $10,000 - $15,000. There is a catalogue note that a second painting depicting a study for a double portrait can be found on verso.
 

Sam Gilliam, Misty, Acrylic on canvas, 53"x 66". Property of George R. Rhodes, Jr., Revocable Trust. Image: Weschler's Auctioneers and Appraisers

Lot 400  Another piece of art from the Rhodes Trust is lot 400 entitled Misty by Sam Gilliam. This acrylic on canvas is dated 1969 and has an auction estimate of $20,000 - $30,000.

For a full range of available art by African American artists, see lots 393 - 402.

As a convenience to clients who cannot attend the auction, Weschler's offers telephone bids or will execute absentee bids without charge. In addition, buyers may bid live on Invaluable. Please visit Invaluable to register for the auction and bid live along with those in the auction house and on the telephone. Read more about buying at Weschler's. For additional information on bidding, contact: 202/ 628-1281.   

Swann Galleries: Printed and Manuscript African Americana, Sale 2342

Swann Auction Galleries will feature its 19th Annual Printed and Manuscript African Americana Sale on March 27, 2014. Sale 2342, consisting of 596 lots, will offer a rich assortment of historical material related to the African American experience. This extraordinary sale catalogued, as it is each year by Wyatt Houston Day, features items dating  back to the 18th century through the modern civil rights era, and highlights the contributions of black artists, musicians, educators, statesmen, athletes and more.  

The lots within Sale 2342, Printed and Manuscript African Americana, are divided into broad subject fields, such as the following: slavery and abolition, art, Black Panthers, business, civil rights, education, film, Marcus Garvey, literature and poetry, military, music, photography, and other areas. Every item is described in a print and online catalogue. A print catalogue may be purchased directly from Swann Auction Galleries and the online catalogue may be viewed at its website.
 
The items will be on public exhibition at Swann Auction Galleries on March 22, 24-26, 2014. This is an opportunity for all prospective buyers, collectors, scholars, dealers, students, and anyone with an interest to preview the exhibition and see items and their condition first-hand. However, if unable to attend the exhibition, the experts at Swann's are available to discuss any aspect of the sale, including condition.     

The following are selections from the 596 lots included in Sale 2342:

Lot 41: This item is included in the large archive of the Bourne Family . Image: Swann Auction Galleries

Lot 41: Archive of the Bourne Family, 1793-1919. Large archive of manuscript and printed matter: letters, documents, flyers, broadsides, pamphlets etc. Hundreds of items, contained in four large ring binders. Estimate for this lot is $40,000 - 60,000.  
 

Lot 280: This item is included in an archive of 97 G. W. Carver letters. Image: Swann Auction Galleries

Lot 280: Carver, George Washington. Archive of 97 Letters Signed, "G.W. Carver," to his friend Mrs. Sophie Liston. This lot has the  highest pre-sale estimate in this sale, and consists of letters signed by George Washington Carver to his friend Mrs. Sophie Liston who he met his first year at Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. The letters -- written from 1925 to 1937 -- cover various topics, including agricultural lecture tours, racism, conditions during the Great Depression, Tuskegee Institute life, Christian Science Church, national government policy, polio treatments, massage and oil therapy, painting and gardening, and most come with their original envelopes. The pre-sale estimate is $80,000 to $120,000. 

Lot 339A: Pullman Porter Collection. Image: Swann Auction Galleries

Lot 339A: RANDOLPH, A PHILIP. Collection of material relative to the Pullman Porters. This large collection of rare Pullman Porter material includes virtually all the equipment needed by a porter, plus personal identification, etc. This exceptional collection of Pullman Porter material is the most complete that Swann Galleries has ever offered. The pre-sale estimate is $15,000 to $25,000.

Lot 433: 48 star linen reunion flag, 14" x 23½". Columbus Ohio, circa 1900. Image: Swann Auction Galleries

Lot 433: 5th Regiment U.S. Colored Troops Survivor Reunion, Columbus Ohio. This is a circa 1900 rare survivor's reunion flag for the 5th Regiment with the lettering "U. S. Colored Troops Survivor Reunion, Columbus, Ohio". The estimate is $7,000 to $10,000. 

Lot 589: Personal archive of Eulace Peacock. Image: Swann Auction Galleries

Lot 589: PEACOCK, EULACE. Personal Archive of this great African American Track and Field star. Eulace Peacock was an American track and field athlete of the 1930s, and was often referred to as the "Fastest Man on Earth". He was Jesse Owens's chief rival, and beat Owens five times in the trials running up to the 1936 Olympics, where he was unable to compete due to injury. The archive contains gold, silver and bronze medals, correspondence, newspaper clippings, programs, the passport he would have used to travel to Berlin, and more. The estimate is $10,000 to $15,000. 

Live online bidding is available via Invaluable. Also, you may make advance  arrangements to bid by telephone during the auction, please call Swann's bid department (212-254-4710, ext. 0) during business hours (Monday - Friday, 10 AM - 6 PM). For further information, please contact Wyatt Houston Day at 212-254-4710, extension 300, or via e-mail at whday@swanngalleries.com. 

Collecting Art Catalogues, Brochures, and Ephemera: Swann's Printed and Manuscript African-Americana Sale

Lot 182 in the recent Swann Auction Galleries' Printed and Manuscript African-Americana Sale 2308 (March 21, 2013) featured a small set of five exhibition catalogues, dating from 1937-1961. Four of the items had a Howard University connection, and one had ties to the Phillips Collections; both institutions are located in Washington, DC. This lot was particularly appealing to me from the standpoint that I believe very strongly in collecting and preserving African American print materials, including ephemera. These materials serve as key items in identifying and documenting African American artists and in demonstrating the aesthetic and historical role they have played within a larger art perspective, particularly American art.                                          

The study of American art has historically and consistently been enriched by museum and gallery exhibition catalogues. Lot 182 and catalogues of similar and comparable content enriches and fill a substantial gap in the history of 20th-century American art. Careful study of these catalogues, as a genre, many written by scholars in the field, position the Black artist firmly in his time. This is accomplished through the use of primary source materials that place these artists in a social and historical context. These richly informative catalogues provide extensive biographical information; chronologies of works, often relevant to historical settings; and images and informative statements of the art work included. Oftentimes, they may be the only print materials on a given artist.

I was particularly interested in Lot 182, simply because it included a title, Oil Paintings, Watercolors and Prints by Negro Artists (Howard University, 1939) that has been on my "want list" for years. Also, I was curious about Survey  Number One by James Porter, not being familiar with its content. Because I owned 2 of the remaining titles, Art of the American Negro (Howard University Gallery, 1937) and Three Negro Artists: Horace Pippin, Jacob Lawrence, Richmond Barthe (1947), I decided to forgo bidding on the lot for two key reasons. First, I did not want to add another duplicate to the collection; particularly, as I develop plans to deaccession current duplicates on hand. Second, Lot 182 fell outside of my price point. It had a high estimate of $400.00 which is not out of line with the secondary market; however, in the final analysis, it sold for $1,440 with buyer's premium. So, I will continue to wait and follow my pattern of building a collection, one item at a time. In due time, my "want list" will be completed, either through locating missing items or editing items off the list. The fun still comes from the search, the discovery, the learning, and the sharing. 

Until Swann Auction Galleries has its next Printed and Manuscript African-Americana Sale, I will continue to search the secondary market for these small gems of African American art history.

Results of Swann's Printed and Manuscript African Americana Sale 2308

Swann Auction Galleries' Printed and Manuscript African Americana Sale 2308 was held on March 21, 2013 in which 72% of the 561 lots were sold. This was the 18th annual Printed and Manuscript African Americana Sale, and it included the largest number of lots over the past decade which is an encouraging sign that the market for African Americana items are still on the rise.

Seven lots in Sale 2308 were sold above $20,000 and of that number, four of the lots fell in the "Slavery and Abolition" category. 


Lot 44 (Slavery and Abolition)
This lot, which had a high estimate of $40,000, was the highest selling lot and sold for $66,000 with buyer's premium. It was a collection of ninety-one letters from the daughter of Horace Cowles, a noted Farmington Connecticut Underground Railroad conductor, discussing her family's dealings with the famed Amistad captives. The bulk of the letters were written by Charlotte Cowles to her brother Samuel, with three letters from Samuel to Charlotte.


Lot 194 (Black Panthers) 

This second highest selling lot consisted of an original Black Panther cloth banner from Lowndes County, Alabama along with a group of of three contemporary periodicals and a pamphlet dealing with the nascent Black Panther movement in Alabama. Its high estimate was $3,500; however, it far surpassed that estimate and sold for $43,200 with buyer's premium.


Lot 407 (Military-Civil War)
This lot was a letter from Morgan W. Carter, 28th U.S.C.T. Black soldier to a friend, consisting of four pages, written on three sides, with the original envelop. It exceeded its $8,000 high estimate and sold for $38,400 with buyer's premium. 



Lot 81 (Slavery and Abolition)

This book, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself, is of greatest rarity as it is one of only five known copies. Published at the North Star Office, 1848, and lacks the "frontispiece portrait of Douglass, as do all other copies examined." It had a high estimate of $22,000 and sold for $31,200 with buyer's premium. This was the fourth highest selling lot.





Lot 57 (Slavery and Abolition)

This lot, Provisional Constitution and Ordinances for People of the United States, has been classified as "of the utmost rarity". As described in the auction catalogue, "16 pages, self-wrappers, sewn; a fine, wide, untrimmed copy. [St Catherine, Ontario, 1858]" It had a high estimate of $15,000 and sold for $22,800 with buyer's premium.
 





Lot 352 (Labor Unions)

This magnificent collection of material relative to the Pullman Car Porter and his work included: "a white dining car jacket and matching towel, a heavy metal tray with four stainless steel Thermos bottles for hot and cold water, a Porter's summer cap with the original brass Pullman badge; a Pullman whiskey glass, deck of cards, ashtray, brush, two pencils, a "swizzle" stick, and a box of wooden matches... [and more]". Its high estimate was $15,000 and it sold for $22,800 with buyer's premium.


Lot 110 (Slavery and Abolition)

Rounding out the top seven lots that sold above $20,000 is a "true copy" of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution as ratified by the state of Rhode Island. It is marked "a true copy," and signed by the Secretary of State, John R. Bartlett. Its description is as follows: "Single 4to leaf 10 x 7-3/4 inches, removed from a scrapbook, edges trimmed (?), some traces of paper backing; blind-stamp state seal...." Lot 110 surpassed its high estimate of $2,500 and sold for $21,600 with buyer's premium. 


NOTE: All images: Swann Auction Galleries

Swann Galleries: Printed and Manuscript African Americana, Sale 2308

Lot: 274  Charter to the members of the Reading, PA Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), signed by Mary White Ovington and John Shilady, 1919. Estimate: $2,000 - 3,000. Image: Swann Auction Galleries 

Swann Auction Galleries will feature its 18th Annual Printed and Manuscript African Americana Sale 2308 on March 21, 2013. The scope of Sale 2308 "covers 300 years of history from slavery and abolition through the Civil War, Reconstruction and into the twentieth century." As in the past, this year's sale of African Americana will offer a wide range of materials grouped into broad subject areas that include, but are not limited to the following categories: slavery and abolition, civil rights, Black Panthers, business, education, labor unions, literature and poetry, art, music and much more. Every item is described in a print and online catalogue. A print catalogue may be purchased directly from Swann Auction Galleries and the online catalogue may be viewed at its website.

Items will be on exhibit in Swann Auction Galleries on March 16, 18-20, 2013. This is an opportunity for all prospective buyers, collectors, scholars, dealers, students, and  anyone with an interest to preview the exhibition and see items and their condition first-hand. However, if unable to attend the exhibition, the experts at Swann's are available to discuss any aspect of the sale, including condition.

The following are selections from the 555 lots included in Sale 2308:

Lot 44
Collection of ninety-one letters from the daughter of Horace Cowles, a noted Farmington Connecticut Underground Railroad conductor, discussing her family's dealings with the famed Amistad captives. The bulk of the letters were written by Charlotte Cowles to her brother Samuel, with three letters from Samuel to Charlotte. Connecticut, 1833-46. Estimate: $30,000 - 40,000.

Lot 275
Minutes of the Charleston, West Virginia branch of the NAACP, consisting of approximately 200 pages, typed; bound in 1/4 leather ring binder; 1922-35. 

Estimate: $2,000 - 3,000. 

The Junior Branch of the NAACP, June 8, 1924. Image: 
Swann Auction Galleries

Letter from Walter S. White, Assistant Secretary, NAACP, 1922. 
 Image: Swann Auction Galleries

Lot 352

Collection of materials relating to Pullman Car Porters and their work, circa 1910-1950's. Estimate: $10,000- 15,000.

Pullman Car Porters. Image: Swann Auction Galleries

Lot 317
Film Poster (one sheet poster, 41 x 27 inches). Bill Pickett, World's Greatest Colored Champion, Norman Films, 1921. Estimate: $6,000 - 8,000.

Bill Pickett Film Poster, 1921. Image: Swann Auction Galleries

 
Lot 382
Fire!!  A Quarterly Devoted to Younger Negro Artists, 48 pages, New York, 1926. Artwork throughout is done by Aaron Douglas and Richard Bruce Nugent. This rare first and only issue (volume1, number 1) of this literary landmark is signed by the editor, Wallace Thurman, as well as Richard Bruce Nugent, Zora Neale Hurston, Aaron Douglas, Arna Bontemps, Helene Johnson, and Gwendolyn Bennett. Estimate: $5,000 - 7,500

Fire!! A Quarterly Devoted to Younger Negro Artists.  
Image: Swann Auction Galleries

As a reminder regarding bidding information, you do not have to be present at the auction to bid. Bids may be placed in advance via telephone, fax, mail, or email, and Swann's staff will bid on your behalf if you can not attend the sale in-person. Also, you may make advance arrangements to bid live by telephone during the auction. To make bidding arrangements, contact Swann Galleries at 212-254-4710.   

Swann Galleries African-American Fine Art Auction: Sale 2303

The upcoming African-American Fine Art Sale 2203 at Swann Auction Galleries is scheduled for Thursday, February 14, 2013. For Swann Galleries, this auction marks the fourteenth sale, over the past several years, that has had an African-American art focus. Sale 2303 includes many works by artists who rose to prominence in the 1960s and 70s, including Barkley Hendricks and William T. Williams, among others. Nigel Freeman, Director of African American Fine Art at Swann Auction Galleries, noted that Swann, "in addition to being the only auction house to feature regular sales of African American Fine Art, stands out as a leader in the sale of material by this 'Second Generation' of artists, who followed the Harlem Renaissance."

As in the past, the sale will include paintings, sculptures, and prints. Highlights include Barkley Hendricks’ The Hawk, Blah, Blah, Blah, a painting from the artist’s first solo show in 1971. It has an estimate of $75,000 – $100,000.

Barkley L. Hendricks, The Hawk, Blah, Blah, Blah, Oil and Dayglo on canvas, 1970.
Image: Swann Auction Galleries

William T. Williams' Up Balls, an acrylic on canvas, a bold composition from 1971 has an estimate of $75,000 –  $100,000. It is only the second painting by the artist to come to auction; see Eastern Star, the artist's first painting in auction, that appeared in Sale 2268 (Lot 141, February 16, 2012, sold for $120,000). 

William T. Williams, Up Balls, Acrylic on canvas, 1971. Image: Swann Auction Galleries

 

This African-American Fine Art sale also features a significant group of works sold by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston for the benefit of the collection, including works by Charles Alston, Richmond Barthé, Beauford Delaney, Norman Lewis, Laura Wheeler Waring, and Charles White. A sample from this collection includes Meeting Place by Norman Lewis and Trumpet Player by Charles White. Meeting Place which is the first Norman Lewis WPA-era oil painting to come to auction has an estimate of $150,000 – $200,000. Charles White’s Trumpet Player, a 1959-1960 charcoal and gouache drawing, has an auction estimate of $100,000 – $150,000. Images of Meeting Place and Trumpet Player follow.
 

Norman Lewis, Meeting Place, Oil on canvas, 1941. Image: Swann Auction Galleries

  

Charles White, Trumpet Player, 

Charcoal and gouache on board, 1959-60

Image: Swann Auction Galleries 

Sale 2303 will close with an exceptional group of prints by the late Elizabeth Catlett that includes a scarce, complete set of the 14 linoleum cuts that are a part of the I am the Black Woman series. This is the first time that the complete group has appeared in auction, and they have an auction estimate of $75,000 - $100,000. 

Here is the link to the online version of the catalogue for the upcoming African-American Fine Art Sale 2303.  


As a reminder regarding bidding information, you do not have to be present at the auction to bid. Bids may be placed in advance via telephone, fax, mail, or email, and Swann's staff will bid on your behalf if you can not attend the sale in-person. Also, you may make advance arrangements to bid live by telephone during the auction. To make bidding arrangements, contact Swann Galleries at 212-254-4710.   

Swann Galleries African-American Fine Art Auction: Sale 2290

Swann Auction Galleries' African-American Fine Art Sale 2290 is scheduled for October 18, 2012. These biannual sales (February and October) have been growing over the years. Swann's first auction devoted entirely to African-American Fine Art was February 6, 2007, and many of us who have an interest in African American art/artists, either as viewers/observers or bidders, have come to expect a wide selection for our viewing or acquiring pleasure. There is a catalogue that accompanies each of the auctions, and it serves as historical documentation of the works sold, creating historical reference and provenance.

The market for modern and contemporary art continues to grow at a rapid pace; however, the actual number of artists that sell at high prices at auction is fairly small. Because of my interest in the works of African American artists, I am always concerned as to how successful their works fair in the auction setting, particularly as it compares with the larger field of American art. Regardless of selling price, one of the greatest benefits of these auctions has been the slow but progressive inclusion of African American art into auction data. 

According to Nigel Freeman, Director of African-American Fine Art at Swann Galleries, "Last year's sales met or exceeded expectations and that we're starting to see pre-recession numbers." I would tend to agree with Freeman's statements. The October 06, 2011 Sale was the most successful auction over the past three years (February 2009 to October 2011), bringing in $1,789,989 with Buyer's Premium, and selling approximately 75% of the lots.
 

Robert Duncanson, Young America

The following major highlights from Sale 2290 prove that substantial and importance pieces are steadily entering the art market. Robert Duncanson's Young America (1846), an oil on canvas, is a very scarce work from the beginning of his career and is the earliest painting in the Sale; its estimate is $50,000 to $75,000. "This unusual depiction of a heroic young man raising both sword and the American flag was possibly a commission by the subject's parents before the boy was sent off to fight in the Mexican-American War."

Eldzier Cortor, Classical Composition No. 4

Sale 2290 will offer two Eldzier Cortor paintings from important periods for the figurative artist. This is the first time that any works by Cortor have been featured in Swann's African-American Fine Art Auction. One of those works, Classical Composition, No. 4 (circa 1973), is a large impressive oil on canvas. It is the top lot and has an estimate of $200,000 to $250,000. Cortor is best known for elegant, elongated depictions of women that show the influences of his study of African sculpture, 19th Century French Painting, and his travels to the Sea Islands and the West Indies.
                 
                                         

Charles White, Songs  of Life

Charles White's Songs of Life (1953-54) is a tour de force in pen and ink. White used this drawing in his application for the John Hay Whitney Fellowship and it has not been exhibited since. White was one of the 27 African American recipients of a John Hay Whitney fellowship in 1955. His project under a Whitney Opportunity Fellowship was "to depict in a series of graphic prints, drawings, and paintings, the cultural meaning behind the spirituals, secular works, and blues song of the Negro people." Songs of Life is a recently discovered large and important drawing which has an auction estimate of $150,000 to $200,000. 

  

Norman Lewis, Magenta Haze

Three paintings from Norman Lewis' Abstract Expressionist period will be up for auction, including Magenta Haze (1947), one of his earliest abstract paintings to come to auction. This oil on canvas has an estimate of $60,000 to $90,000.

Elizabeth Catlett, The Co-Founder Award

Elizabeth Catlett's The Co-Founder Award, cast bronze (circa 1995) has an estimate of $10,000 to $15,000.

This post has featured only a few artists and select works in Swann's African-American Fine Art Sale scheduled for October 18, 2012. In addition to the fine  art artists and their works represented here, Sale 2290 will include works by Henry Ossawa Tanner, Hughie Lee Smith, Romare Bearden, Hale Woodruff, William Edouard Scott, Thelma Johnson Streat, and others.

See the Online African-American Fine Art catalogue.