Swann Galleries opened the fall 2025 season on Thursday, September 18, with an auction of 19th & 20th Century Art. The sale brought $980,503, with 177 of the 223 lots offered finding buyers. Of the sale, Specialist Meagan Gandolfo noted:

“We were very pleased with the enthusiastic response for our first auction of the fall season. We saw high prices for a diverse group of American and European artists. Highlights exceeding their estimates include a modernist oil painting by Arthur Dove, an iconic M.C. Escher woodcut, and a nude painting by Philip Pearlstein. There was significant interest in a group of works on paper by the Bloomsbury Group, led by a portrait of Duncan Grant by Vanessa Bell, fetching her highest price for a drawing at auction. High prices were also seen for a scarce watercolor of Bermuda by Edward James and a Jan Matulka watercolor of a native American dance.”

Works on Canvas

Philip Pearlstein, Nude Seated on Chair, oil on canvas, 1963-64. Sold for $50,800

The sale was led by Arthur Dove’s Spiral Road, oil on canvas, 1940, at $99,060. Further works on canvas included Philip Pearlstein’s Nude Seated on Chair, oil on canvas, 1963-64 ($50,800); Jean Fautrier’s Vase de fleurs, oil on canvas, circa 1929 ($30,480); Luigi Cima’s Village Scene with Washerwomen, oil on canvas, circa 1880 ($22,860); and Eric Sloane’s Autumn Sundown, oil on masonite, circa 1960. Of special note was Charles Seliger’s Jewelscape, acrylic on canvas, 1976, which earned a record for the artist ($7,112).

Luigi Cima, Village Scene with Washerwomen, oil on canvas, circa 1880. Sold for $22,860.

Charles Seliger, Jewelscape, acrylic on canvas, 1976. Sold for $7,112, a record for the artist.

The Bloomsbury Group

Vanessa Bell, Portrait of Duncan Grant, pencil on paper, 1931. Sold for $25,400, a record for a pencil drawing by Bell.

Artists from the Bloomsbury Group saw great success with Vanessa Bell’s 1931 pencil drawing, Portrait of Duncan Grant, which brought $25,400, a record for a pencil drawing by the artist. Also of note was Henry Lamb’s 1913 pencil drawing, Portrait of Lytton Strachey ($10,160), his pencil drawing, Portrait of Lady Ottoline Morrell ($5,588), and his circa 1931 watercolor Family Group (Boris Anrep and his Family)  ($2,286).

Fine Art Prints

Maurits C. Escher, Day and Night, color woodcut, 1935. Sold for $63,500.

Fine art prints brought top prices with M.C. Escher’s Day & Night, color woodcut, 1935, leading the group at $63,500. Also of note are Martin Lewis’s Which Way?, aquatint, 1932 ($27,940); Pablo Picasso’s Compotier, Partition, Bouteille et Guitare devant une Fenêtre, color pochoir, circa 1920 ($10,160); Georges Braque’s Nature Morte, color aquatint and etching, 1923, which earned a record for the print ($8,890); and Rufino Tamayo’s Adán, and Eve, two color lithographs, 1990 ($6,350).