Swann Galleries News -

April 25, 2018|Ferry Foster|Vintage Posters

How Car Posters Drove Graphic Design

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

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 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 Coming Soon William A. Wheeler III’s interest in history began in childhood,…

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 Ai Weiwei, Banksy,…

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 | 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 | American Art

#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…

March 30, 2018 | American Art

#5WomenArtists: Jessica Feldman’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 | Vintage Posters

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Graphic Design

At Auction May 3 Graphic Design This auction celebrates innovation in the field of graphic design, with a colorful offering of vintage posters, along with a coterie of fine…

March 29, 2018 | Books

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Fine Illustrated Books & Graphics

At Auction April 26 Fine Illustrated Books & Graphics is a multifaceted auction that spans media and disciplines. Early twentieth-century graphic design and the fine arts include a never-before-offered trade catalogue…

March 29, 2018 | Vintage Posters

#5WomenArtists – Lauren Goldberg’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 28, 2018 | Books

#5WomenArtists: Christine von der Linn’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 27, 2018 | African-American Fine Art

#5WomenArtists: Atina Sutton’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 26, 2018 | Photographs & Photobooks

#5WomenArtists: Deborah Rogal’s List

We’re jumping into Women’s History Month to offer a week of #5WomenArtists, inspired by the National Museum of Women in the Arts. We asked some women of Swann to tell…

March 26, 2018 | Autographs

Records & Results: Autographs

Our auction of Autographs on March 22 offered a selection of letters, photographs and works by some of history’s greatest game-changers, with communications by founding fathers, letters from artists and…

March 23, 2018 | Printed & Manuscript African Americana

Huey Newton’s Portraits & The Founding of the Black Panthers

New findings in our March 29 auction of Printed & Manuscript African-Americana clarify information behind iconic portraits of Black Panthers co-founder Huey P. Newton. Ensconced in a wicker…

March 19, 2018 | Autographs

Charles Dickens Reveals His Inspiration

A very formal letter by Charles Dickens to Lord Robert Grosvenor was a highlight of our March 22 auction of Autographs. The letter, dated July 9, 1838, was…

March 15, 2018 | Prints & Drawings

Records & Results: 19th & 20th Century Prints & Drawings

Our auction of 19th & 20th Century Prints & Drawings on March 13 offered an especially grand selection of original works by some of the greatest artists of the last…

March 13, 2018 | Illustration art

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Illustration Art

A look inside the highly-anticipated catalogue for our upcoming June 5 auction of Illustration Art. Following successful December 2017 runs of works by Ruth Eastman and John Falter, we are…

March 12, 2018 | Books

Records & Results: Early Printed Books

Our March 8 auction of Early Printed, Medical, Scientific & Travel Books coincided with the opening of Rare Book Week in New York City. With 94% of offered lots sold, the…

March 9, 2018 | Vintage Posters

Records & Results: Vintage Posters Featuring Highlights from the Gail Chisholm Collection

Vintage Posters Featuring Highlights from the Gail Chisholm Collection offered premier examples of advertising and propaganda from around the world, and broke several auction records. Nicholas D. Lowry, President of…

March 8, 2018 | Prints & Drawings

Monet: The Master at 16

Before the term “Impressionism” and the overthrow of the established art world, Claude Monet was just a creative teenager. A rare example of Monet’s early experiments with en plein air…

March 1, 2018 | Photographs & Photobooks

A Look Inside the Catalogue: The Knowing Eye: Photographs & Photobooks

At Auction April 19 The Knowing Eye: Photographs & Photobooks features a rare vintage print of Alfred Eisenstaedt’s iconic Premier at La Scala, Milan, circa 1933, and Robert Frank’s quirky Portrait of art…

February 28, 2018 | Photographs & Photobooks

Records & Results: Icons & Images: Photographs & Photobooks

We opened the 2018 season with a $1.6M auction of Icons & Images: Photographs & Photobooks on February 15. Important rare and unique work, both fine art and vernacular, brought…

February 27, 2018 | Books

The Earliest French Erotica

A titillating section in our March 8 auction of Early Printed, Medical, Scientific & Travel Books contains two scarce early examples of French erotica. L’Escole des Filles, ou La Philosophie…

February 23, 2018 | Vintage Posters

Erik Nitsche’s Modernist Vision

One of many highlights in our March 1 sale of Vintage Posters is a run of posters designed by Erik Nitsche in a series of campaigns for General Dynamics. Nitsche’s…

February 16, 2018 | Vintage Posters

Gail Chisholm: A Life in Posters

Nearly a quarter of our March 1 auction of Vintage Posters was devoted to highlights from the collection of renowned poster dealer and aficionado Gail Chisholm. The sale opened with more…

February 12, 2018 | Photographs & Photobooks

Cataloguing History’s Darker Moments

In advance of our February 15 auction of Icons & Images: Photographs & Photobooks, we asked Associate Director Deborah Rogal to talk about the planning that goes into a successful…

February 3, 2018 | Maps & Atlases

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books

Our auction of Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books on June 7 encompasses a broad range of American and European cartography. Highlights include Robert Morden’s…

January 30, 2018 | Printed & Manuscript Americana

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Printed & Manuscript Americana

Our April 12 auction of Printed & Manuscript Americana illustrates the multifaceted tapestry of American history, featuring a cypress twig cut by General Lafayette at George Washington’s tomb, attractively framed in…

January 30, 2018 | African-American Fine Art

A Look Inside the Catalogue: African-American Fine Art

Two highlights of this sale on April 5 are significant, vibrant paintings by modernist New York artists. Beauford Delaney’s large Untitled (Village Street Scene), 1948, depicts a Greenwich Village corner in…

January 29, 2018 | Photographs & Photobooks

Lewis Hine’s Legacy

Scarce and important prints spanning the career of pioneering photojournalist Lewis W. Hine crown our February 15 auction of Icons & Images: Photographs & Photobooks. Here are some notes from the…

January 23, 2018 | Vintage Posters

Vintage Posters 101

So you’ve fallen in love with a vintage poster. What next? Here are some of the most important things to consider when talking about, looking for, and decorating with vintage…

January 19, 2018 | Maps & Atlases

What Sets A Chart Apart?

We asked specialist Caleb Kiffer to reminisce about some of the most interesting and important charts we’ve handled in the last few years. Why charts? We wanted to explore (pun…

January 17, 2018 | Photographs & Photobooks

Bertha Trujillo: Matadora in Photographs

On May 30, 1968, Bertha Trujillo became the first woman awarded a doctorate of matadorship, the highest technical level achieved in bullfighting. The photographs appearing in our February 15 auction…

January 16, 2018 | Printed & Manuscript African Americana

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Printed & Manuscript African Americana

On March 29 we will offer Printed & Manuscript African Americana, an array of material that encompasses a wide range of the African-American experience, from letters by Frederick Douglass to his…

January 15, 2018 | Autographs

A Look Inside the Catalogue: Autographs

Gracing this March 22 sale is a poem completed by Walt Whitman on his deathbed, transcribed by a secretary and signed, with holograph edits. It was his last poem, entitled A…

January 14, 2018 | Prints & Drawings

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

Here’s an overview of our auction of 19th & 20th Century Prints & Drawings on March 13: Diego Rivera’s scarce lithograph El sueño (La noche de los pobres), 1932, leads a…

January 14, 2018 | Books

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

This sale on March 8 will feature an extensive selection of early Spanish books on a variety of subjects including agriculture, heraldry and genealogy, history, horses, law, literature, medicine, theology…

January 4, 2018 | 19th & 20th Century Literature

The Top Five Fahrenheit 451s

According to our Literature specialist John D. Larson, there are five first editions of Fahrenheit 451 of interest to collectors. As with all important modern first editions, a set of criteria…

December 28, 2017 | Swann

2017: Year in Review

In our diamond anniversary year, we offered a star-studded roster of 30 auctions, setting nearly 100 records and introducing countless items to the market, including a previously unknown photograph of Harriet…

December 19, 2017 | Illustration art

Records & Results: Illustration Art

The grand finale of our 2017 roster was a successful auction of Illustration Art on December 14. Highlights of the sale ranged from large-scale oil paintings to sentimental children’s characters…

December 8, 2017 | Maps & Atlases

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

Maps were so plentiful at our December 5 auction of Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books that one could be forgiven for getting lost. Many buyers chose…

December 7, 2017 | Illustration art

Ingeborg Willy & the Making of Snow White

A scrapbook, presumably kept by an inker at Walt Disney Studios, reveals much about the production of Snow White. The album is a highlight in our December 14 auction of Illustration…

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