November 25, 2020Kelsie JankowskiContemporary Art Helen Frankenthaler’s ‘Hermes’ Earns Record in November 2020 Contemporary Art Sale Read more about Helen Frankenthaler’s ‘Hermes’ Earns Record in November 2020 Contemporary Art Sale Our Thursday, November 19, 2020, sale of Contemporary Art boasted exceptional prices for works on paper, prints, and editions. The auction delivered three records, with Abstract Expressionist artists drawing significant…
Read more about Chiron Press—The First of Its Kind November 12, 2020 Contemporary Art Chiron Press—The First of Its Kind In our November 2020 Contemporary Art sale, we’re honored to offer more than thirty important works from the Collection of Stephen Poleskie, founder of Chiron Press, New York’s first fine art…
Read more about Vintage Posters: At Auction August 27, 2020 August 4, 2020 Vintage Posters Vintage Posters: At Auction August 27, 2020 During a summer of containment and people staying close to their personal bubbles, this auction’s assortment of beach and summer resort posters (see below) seems especially poignant, as for many…
Read more about Upcoming Highlights: LGBTQ+ Art, Material Culture & History July 22, 2020 Pride Upcoming Highlights: LGBTQ+ Art, Material Culture & History Our second annual auction dedicated to the art, material culture, and history of the LGBTQ+ community features items by and from major figures and trailblazers; Richmond Barthé, JEB, Paul Cadmus, Antonio Lopez, Harvey Milk, Freddie Styles, Toyen, Oscar Wilde, Walt Whitman, David Wojnarowicz and more.
Read more about The Making of a Portrait: Michael Halsband’s Photograph of Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat June 5, 2020 Photographs & Photobooks The Making of a Portrait: Michael Halsband’s Photograph of Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat Michael Halsband is known for his striking portraits of celebrities, from rock stars to artists, as well as his commercial work for major publications such as Vogue, GQ, and Esquire.…
Read more about Contemporary Art: At Auction June 25, 2020 June 2, 2020 Contemporary Art Contemporary Art: At Auction June 25, 2020 This Contemporary Art auction on June 25, 2020 includes works for sale by Jackson Pollock, Louise Nevelson, Helen Frankenthaler, Andy Warhol, and Edward Ruscha.
Read more about What You Should Know About Collecting Exhibition Posters April 8, 2020 Vintage Posters What You Should Know About Collecting Exhibition Posters Lauren Goldberg, our vintage poster specialist, takes us through the ins-and-outs of what to look for when collecting an exhibition poster.
Read more about Fine Photographs: Highlights by Diane Arbus, Robert Mapplethorpe & Michael Halsband March 22, 2020 Photographs & Photobooks Fine Photographs: Highlights by Diane Arbus, Robert Mapplethorpe & Michael Halsband At Auction June 11, 2020 Masterworks of 20th-Century Photography Michael Halsband’s iconic 1985 silver print, Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat, presents the two painters in boxing attire. Robert Mapplethorpe’s oversize…
Read more about Telling Queer Stories: The Challenges of Unearthing a History July 17, 2019 Pride Telling Queer Stories: The Challenges of Unearthing a History What are the inherent challenges in telling a history that is still being unearthed, and what can media and material objects add to that story? Against the backdrop of the…
Read more about Records & Results: The Pride Sale June 27, 2019 Pride Records & Results: The Pride Sale Historic Pride Sale at Swann Brings Market Premiers and Auction Records The Pride Sale on Thursday, June 20 offered a curated selection of LGBTQ+ art, photography, literature, autographs…
Read more about Notes from the Catalogue: Candy Darling June 12, 2019 Pride Notes from the Catalogue: Candy Darling “Every woman who wants to be beautiful should be beautiful” Among the many items up for auction in our June 20 Pride Sale, is an archive of personal effects of Candy Darling an enduring trans icon, American actress…
Read more about Upcoming Highlights: Contemporary Art March 12, 2019 Contemporary Art Upcoming Highlights: Contemporary Art At Auction May 16 Complete Catalogue David Hockney’s Red Celia, a portrait of designer Celia Birtwell, for which Hockney looked to Picasso and Matisse for inspiration, is among the highlights,…
Read more about In Your Hands or On the Wall: an Appreciation for the Tangible Photograph February 12, 2019 Photographs & Photobooks In Your Hands or On the Wall: an Appreciation for the Tangible Photograph Our upcoming sale of Photographs: Art & Visual Culture celebrates photographs as objects. Daile Kaplan, the house’s Director of Photographs & Photobooks, shares her appreciation of the tangible in the…
Read more about A Look Inside the Catalogue: Contemporary Art October 18, 2018 Contemporary Art A Look Inside the Catalogue: Contemporary Art At Auction November 15 Complete Catalogue Original Works This sale is notable for its strong selection of original works on paper, including an abstract gouache by Sonia Delaunay, as…
Read more about Records & Results: Contemporary Art 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…
Read more about A Look Inside the Catalogue: Contemporary Art 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…
Read more about A Look Inside the Catalogue: Graphic Design 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…
Read more about Vintage Posters 101 January 23, 2018 Auctions 101 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…
Read more about Magnum Photographs: 70th Anniversary October 16, 2017 Photographs & Photobooks Magnum Photographs: 70th Anniversary Magnum Photos, founded as a cooperative agency in 1947, is perhaps the most well-known photographic collective in the world. Through the Magnum photographs included in our October 19 auction of Art…
Read more about Swann Summer Reading List 2017 July 13, 2017 Swann Swann Summer Reading List 2017 We spoke to specialists at Swann about their extracurricular activities. Unsurprisingly, their interests are generally aligned with their specialty! We asked them to talk about what they’re reading, and compiled…
Read more about Records & Results: Graphic Design June 1, 2017 Vintage Posters Records & Results: Graphic Design Our May 25 auction of Graphic Design offered a cornucopia of inspired works spanning fin de siècle Art Nouveau masters to modernist posters. The top lot of the sale was Col…
Read more about Wearable Art: Basquiat Tags a Jacket November 4, 2014 Contemporary Art Wearable Art: Basquiat Tags a Jacket A highlight in our upcoming auction of Contemporary Art is a leather jacket tagged by various 1980s graffiti artists, including Jean-Michel Basquiat (1960-1988). These artists frequented the popular four-floor after-hours…
Read more about Records & Results: Vintage Posters April 29, 2014 Vintage Posters Records & Results: Vintage Posters The three top lots in Swann Galleries’ April 24, 2014 auction each set new auction records in a sale marked by incredible results for esoteric images. Lot 1 was Bertold Löffler’s Kunstschau…
Read more about The Photobook Library of Bill Diodato: Provocateurs & Innovators February 19, 2014 Photographs & Photobooks The Photobook Library of Bill Diodato: Provocateurs & Innovators As collector Bill Diodato knows, photography begins with the birth of the photobook. Long before the white wall or editioned print–and more than century before galleries and museums exhibited pictures–photographers…
Read more about Andy Warhol’s Index Book December 6, 2010 Photographs & Photobooks Andy Warhol’s Index Book Finely packaged and replete with surprises, Andy Warhol’s Index (Book), included in Thursday’s Important Photographs & Photobooks auction, introduces Warhol’s parallel themes of charming whimsy, and his brilliant upending of…