Art/Auctions: American Art at Christie's New York, November 20, 2018

This November 20, 2018 auction at Christie's New York of American Art is highlighted by two fine paintings by Georgia O'Keeffe, two excellent paintings by Sanford Gifford, two good works by Childe Hassam and nice small paintings by Alfred Jacob Miller, David Johnson and Seth Eastman and lovely portraits by John Singer Sargent and Frank Benson.

The catalogue's cover illustration is Lot 6, "The Red Maple at Lake George," an oil on canvas by Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986). It measures 36 by 30 inches and was painted in 1926.

Georgia O'Keeffe is one of the great American modernists whose magnified depictions of nature were voluptuous and wonderfully abstract. She was very prolific and her compositions were consistently intriguing and interesting, although the works varied considerably in painterliness.

At the December 4, 2004 Amerian Art auction at Christie's it was offered as Lot 99, "The Red Maple at Lake George," is a very vibrant O'Keeffe. It is a study of a red maple leaf in autumn that is startling because of its sharp edges and rich blacks that give it a formality and elegance that intensifies its focus. It had a modest estimate of $600,000 to $800,000 and it sold at that auction for $2,191,500 including the buyer's premium as do all results mentioned in this article. It has an estimate in this auction of $7,000,000. It sold for $8,187,500.

Lot 5 is a better though less colorful O'Keeffe entitled "Black Door with Snow." An oil on canvas, it measures 36 by 30 inches and was painted in 1955. It was consigned from the estate of Eugene V. Thaw. It has been widely exhibited.

The catalogue entry provides the following commentary:

"The door would prove to be an endless source of inspiration for O'Keeffe, who executed twenty-two paintings of the subjects between 1946 and 1960. Painted black, the entryway acts as a stark contrast for the earthy amber of the adobe walls, and O'Keeffe employed this feature to divide the compositional space in every one of her Patio paintings. Seventeen examples from the series are in public collections...."

It has an modest estimate of $1,000,000 to $1,500,000. It sold for $3,072,500.

Lot 14 is a fine landscape oil on canvas by Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900) entitled "On Otter Creek." It measures 18 by 24 1/8 inches and was painted in 1850. It was once owned by the Sheldon Museum in Middlebury, Vermont and has been widely exhibited and published. It is one of several works consigned by the Collection of Kevin
and Barrie Landry, an executive of TA Associates in Boston. It has a modest estimate of $400,000 to $600,000. It failed to sell.

Lot 11 is a very fine "Tropical Landscape" by Louis Remy Mignot (1831-1870). Another work from the Landry collection, it is an oil on canvas that measures 10 by 18 inches. It was painted in 1858. In 1857, Mignot accompanied Frederic Edwin Church on his second Latin American tour. It has an estimate of $150,000 to $250,000. It sold for $187,500.

Another highlight of the Landry collection is Lot 18, "The Natural Bridge of Virginia," an oil on canvas by David Johnson (1827-1908). It measures 23 1/2 by 19 3/4 inches and was painted in 1860. It was once owned by Jo Ann and Julian Ganz Jr. of Los Angeles and has been widely exhibited and published. The catalogue notes that a related work is owned by the Reynolda House Museum of Art in Winston-Salem. This lot has a modest estimate of $100,000 to $150,000. It sold for $456,500.

Another major consignment from the Landry Collection is Lot 16, a large landscape by Asher B. Durand (1796-1886) entitled "Haymaking." An oil on canvas, it measures 34 1/4 by 51 inches and was painted in 1854. It has a modest estimate of $250,000 to $350,000. It sold for $324,500.

This watercolor on paper was reproduced as a steel engraving by Seth Eastman (1808-1875) in H. E. Schoolcraft's 1884 six-volume work "The Indian Tribes of the United States. In 1868, Eastman did a related oil painting which is in the United States House of Representatives in Washington. This work measures 7 1/8 by 9 3/8 inches and was executed circa 1850. It has an estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. It sold for $20,000.

Lot 7 is a good nocturnal scene of the Sixth Avenue El in New York by Childe Hassam (1859-1935). An oil on canvas, it measures 18 1/4 by 14 1/4 inches and was painted in 1894. It was formerly owned by Mr. and Mrs. Frank Sinatra and Gordon Getty. It has an estimate of $500,000 to $700,000. It sold for $1,272,500.