Swann Galleries News -

August 10, 2018|Lauren Kristin|African-American Fine Art

A Look Inside the Catalogue: African-American Fine Art

At Auction October 4 Complete Catalogue Coming Soon Preview a few of the highlights scheduled for our upcoming selection of fine art by African-American masters: Elizabeth Catlett…

August 7, 2018 | Vintage Posters

Records & Results: Vintage Posters

Poster Passion Leads to a Successful Auction Our August 1 Vintage Poster sale set at least six auction records, including a new high price for Sutro Baths. The exhibition for…

July 30, 2018 | Vintage Posters

Keep It Under Your Stetson

Wartime propaganda can serve a variety of purposes, from recruitment and morale-building to conservation. During World War II all of these played a role in the Office of War Information’s…

July 30, 2018 | Prints & Drawings

A Look Inside the Catalogue: 19th & 20th Century Prints & Drawings

At Auction September 20 Complete Catalogue Coming Soon Preview what we’re looking forward to in the first auction of our Fall 2018 season, 19th & 20th Century Prints…

July 27, 2018 | Vintage Posters

Thirsty? Wine & Liquor Posters May Satisfy

We may be at the height of the craft beer renaissance, but the history of alcoholic beverages goes way back. Humans have proven, over millennia, that we like a good…

July 23, 2018 | Printed & Manuscript Americana

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Printed & Manuscript Americana

Featuring The Holzer Collection of Lincolniana At Auction September 27 Complete Catalogue Coming Soon Preview some of the highlights from our September offering of Printed & Manuscript Americana: …

July 18, 2018 | Contemporary Art

Specialists in the Field: Rockaway! 2018

Lauren Kristin at Narcissus Garden by Yayoi Kusama Communications Digital Content Coordinator Lauren Kristin shares their most recent venture to Rockaway! 2018. Rockaway! is an ongoing public…

July 16, 2018 | Autographs

Specialists in the Field: The Magic of Handwriting

Marco Tomaschett at the Morgan Library For our first Specialists in the Field segment of 2018, Autographs Specialist Marco Tomaschett discusses his recent visit to The Morgan Library’s newest exhibition, The Magic…

July 10, 2018 | Vintage Posters

The Hot Bid Interviews Nicho on Cassandre’s “Best Way”

Sheila Gibson Stoodley, author of The Hot Bid, interviewed our President & Principal Auctioneer Nicholas D. Lowry about the most expensive travel poster ever sold. Sheila’s blog, The Hot Bid showcases…

July 1, 2018 | Autographs

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Autographs

At Auction November 8 Complete Catalogue Coming Soon Preview some of the items that will be available in our November 2018 catalogue of Autographs: Artists, Authors & Musicians…

June 30, 2018 | Photographs & Photobooks

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Photographs & Photobooks

At Auction October 18 Complete Catalogue Coming Soon Here’s a look at what’s to come on October 18 in Artists & Amateurs: Photographs & Photobooks: …

June 28, 2018 | Swann

Specialists in the Field: Summer Reading List 2018

Our Specialists in the Field summer series is back for 2018! As before we’ll start with our reading list. Here’s what some of us are cracking into in the off-season.…

June 25, 2018 | Swann

2017-18 Year in Review

The 2017-18 auction season at Swann Galleries was replete with record prices and rediscovered paintings, offering works created as early as the fifteenth century and as recently as last year.…

June 25, 2018 | Autographs

Records & Results: Revolutionary & Presidential Americana from the Collection of William Wheeler IIII

On June 21, our auction of Revolutionary & Presidential Americana from the Collection of William Wheeler III saw a 91% sell-through rate for important autographs, letters and documents from some of…

June 23, 2018 | Books

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Early Printed, Medical, Scientific & Travel Books

Including Philippine Imprints At Auction October 16 Complete Catalogue Coming Soon The offerings in this characteristically diverse sale of early printed books range from incunabula to early twentieth-century works…

June 18, 2018 | American Art

Records & Results: American Art

Our auction of American Art on June 14 offered original works by bastions of the category including William Glackens and John Singer Sargent, as well as artists whose work has…

June 12, 2018 | Maps & Atlases

Records & Results: Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books

Our auction of Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books on June 7 brought to market landmarks from the history of cartography and ornithology. The nearly 400 lots…

June 11, 2018 | Autographs

William Wheeler III: The Quest for American History

William Wheeler III’s collection of Revolutionary and Presidential Americana, coming to auction June 21, began on his 21st birthday with the gift of his three-times-great-uncle’s appointment as an Ensign to…

June 8, 2018 | American Art

The Many Illustrious Circles of Pavel Tchelitchew

Multi-talented artists can appear in multiple departments at Swann. Our June 14 auction of American Art will feature highlights by Pavel Tchelitchew, whose work also appears in our auctions of Illustration…

June 7, 2018 | Illustration art

Records & Results: Illustration Art

Secrets & Set Designs: Illustration Art Breaks Records The June 5 sale of Illustration Art at Swann Galleries broke long-standing records and brought new artists to auction for the first…

June 4, 2018 | Swann

Pride Month: Some Artists I Love

This post is by Keavy Handley-Byrne of our Photographs & Photobooks department. To celebrate Pride Month, I wanted to share a couple of queer artists’ work in recognition of…

June 1, 2018 | Maps & Atlases

The Original Beaver Map & Its Legacy

Tucked into the top left corner of an eighteenth-century map in our June 7 auction of Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books is a vignette that at…

May 25, 2018 | Illustration art

Interview with Rick Meyerowitz: “A Literate, Civilized & Mature Fellow”

Artist and illustrator Rick Meyerowitz was kind enough to talk to us in advance of our June 5 sale of Illustration Art, which will include highlights from his personal collection,…

May 24, 2018 | Contemporary Art

Records & Results: Contemporary Art

Abstract Attractions We offered nearly 400 works by some of the twentieth century’s greatest innovators in our May 22 auction of Contemporary Art. Abstract works ruled the day, with…

May 17, 2018 | Books

Records & Results: 19th & 20th Century Literature

Science fiction ruled on May 15 at our auction of 19th & 20th Century Literature. Selections from the Estate of Stanley Simon, featuring 84 rare and first editions of cornerstones…

May 16, 2018 | Contemporary Art

Contemporary in 3D

Our May 22 auction of Contemporary Art features a selection of recent sculpture and multiples by some of the world’s most famous living artists. Here are a few of our favorites.…

May 11, 2018 | Vintage Posters

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Vintage Posters

At Auction August 1 Complete Catalogue Wine & Liquor Advertisements Numerous posters by Leonetto Cappiello and Luciano Achille Mauzan, including rarely-seen works, capture the essence of their styles.…

May 11, 2018 | Prints & Drawings

Records & Results: Old Master Through Modern Prints

With highlights spanning six centuries, our auction of Old Master Through Modern Prints on May 8 offered works by the greatest innovators in the field. The sale totaled more than…

May 10, 2018 | Books

The Sci-Fi Collection of Stanley Simon

Stanley Simon of New York City was a passionate life-long collector of sci-fi, thriller and fantasy first editions. His paramount collection of almost 100 first editions, nearly all of them signed,…

May 9, 2018 | Vintage Posters

Records & Results: Graphic Design

Our auction of Graphic Design on May 3 offered vintage posters that defined the styles of the twentieth century. In a highly-curated selection of just over 250 lots, the highlight…

May 8, 2018 | Contemporary Art

Specialist Selections from Contemporary Art

We asked the Contemporary Art department to pick their favorite work from their May 22 auction. For people who see dozens–if not hundreds–of works of art each day, it takes…

May 7, 2018 | Prints & Drawings

Ancient Then & Ancient Now: Piranesi’s Views of Rome

Giovanni Battista Piranesi spent eight years researching the ancient ruins of Rome before completing his magnum opus, Le Antichità Romane. A complete set of the 220 engravings in four volumes is a…

May 3, 2018 | Prints & Drawings

Rembrandt’s Self-Portraiture in Etchings

The self portraits of Rembrandt van Rijn have been the focus of art historical examination since their creation nearly 400 years ago. Scarce examples from our May 8 auction of…

May 1, 2018 | Vintage Posters

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Rare & Important Travel Posters

At Auction October 25 Complete Catalogue Coming Soon Preview some of the vibrant travel posters coming up in our October catalogue: Railroads …

April 30, 2018 | Books

Records & Results: Fine Illustrated Books & Graphics

Our auction of Fine Illustrated Books & Graphics on April 26 featured highlights by artists of the twentieth century and scarce volumes from fine presses. Leading the sale…

April 25, 2018 | Vintage Posters

How Car Posters Drove Graphic Design

In the dawn of the motor car, most automobile purveyors relied on a “keeping up with the Joneses” mentality, touting ever-evolving technology and styles to drive car sales. A selection…

April 24, 2018 | Books

Have You Met Breuer? An Architectural Archive

An archive of illuminating material from the office of the great modernist architect and designer Marcel Breuer leads the architecture section of our April 26 auction of Fine Illustrated Books &…

April 23, 2018 | Photographs & Photobooks

Records & Results: The Knowing Eye: Photographs & Photobooks

Our April 19 auction The Knowing Eye: Photographs & Photobooks was led by the only known extant print of River Rouge Plant, Detroit (with Ford signage on freight car), 1947,…

April 20, 2018 | Autographs

A Look Inside the Catalogue: The Collection of William Wheeler III

Revolutionary & Presidential Americana from the Collection of William Wheeler III At Auction June 21 Complete Catalogue William A. Wheeler III’s interest in history began in childhood, browsing at…

April 16, 2018 | Printed & Manuscript Americana

Records & Results: Printed & Manuscript Americana

Our auction of Printed & Manuscript Americana on April 12 was the department’s highest-grossing sale in four years, continuing an upward trajectory as each offering of Americana and African Americana…

April 13, 2018 | Photographs & Photobooks

A Walker Evans Print, The Only One of Its Kind

The cover lot of our April 19 auction, The Knowing Eye: Photographs & Photobooks is the only known extant print of Walker Evans’s graphic silver print, River Rouge Plant, Detroit, Michigan…

April 12, 2018 | Contemporary Art

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Contemporary Art

At Auction May 22 Our spring auction of Contemporary Art features a wide-ranging selection of sculpture, paintings and multiples from the last 75 years, with works by Banksy, Barbara Kruger, Yayoi…

April 10, 2018 | Books

A Look Inside the Catalogue: 19th & 20th Century Literature

At Auction May 15 Cornerstones of science fiction from the Estate of Stanley Simon form the backbone of our May 15 auction of 19th & 20th Century Literature; of special…

April 9, 2018 | African-American Fine Art

Records & Results: African-American Fine Art

We held our highest-grossing auction to date on April 5, totaling $4.5M—more than $1M over the high estimate of the sale. The 160 works that made up the highly curated…

April 6, 2018 | Printed & Manuscript Americana

Dream vs. Reality in the Civil War

Personal correspondence and manuscript material are always a highlight in our auctions of Printed & Manuscript Americana. On April 12, we’ll be offering a selection letters from Thomas Belknap, a clerk…

April 2, 2018 | Printed & Manuscript African Americana

Records & Results: Printed & Manuscript African Americana

Institutional purchases dominated the buying field at our auction of Printed & Manuscript African Americana on March 29. The top lots of the auction were almost entirely manuscripts, archives, early…

April 1, 2018 | American Art

A Look Inside the Catalogue: American Art

At Auction June 14 This highly curated sale of American Art presents original works in a variety of media, including drawings, watercolors and sculpture. Offerings range from nineteenth-century paintings…

April 1, 2018 | Prints & Drawings

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Old Master Through Modern Prints

At Auction May 8 Old Master Through Modern Prints The highlight of this wide-ranging event from our Prints & Drawings department is Tête de femme, de profil, 1905, an…

March 30, 2018 | Prints & Drawings

#5WomenArtists: Lisa Crescenzo’s List

As part of Women’s History Month, we’re offering a week of #5WomenArtists, inspired by the National Museum of Women in the Arts. We asked some women of Swann to tell us…

March 30, 2018 | African-American Fine Art

William Johnson’s Jitterbugs

Two extremely scarce prints from William H. Johnson’s Jitterbugs series will make their auction debut with African-American Fine Art on April 5. The series was conceived and executed during Johnson’s tenure in New York…

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