By Carter B. Horsley

The big "Important" American Paintings sales at Sotheby's and Christie's are getting expensive for the new and not necessarily rich collector and over the last two years or so those auction houses have not only raised their commission fees but have also not been holding as many "small," or "arcade" sales.

This Spring Season Phillips has launched an impressive campaign to move into the "big leagues" of art auctions and held impressive sales in Impressionist & Modern Art and Contemporary Art at the rented quarters of the American Crafts Museum at 40 West 53rd Street across from the Modern Museum of Art with very impressive and slick catalogues and many fine pictures. The first sale was not a resounding success with many major works being failed to sell, although the star lot, "Suprematist Composition" by Kazimir Malevich did sell for an impressive $17 million. The second sale, however, was very successful with 95 percent of the lots selling, two setting auction records for the artists.

This is the third major Phillips sale of the season with a very slick catalogue but the auction is being held at Phillips existing, small quarters at 406 East 79th Street. The executives of Phillips have indicated that they are looking to find impressive and large new auction quarters, probably in midtown.

While this sale had no "blockbusters," it had plenty of good paintings and it was very successful with 144 of 185 lots being sold for a total of $3,526,810, well over its high pre-sale estimate of $3,130,900. The Spring auction season had been remarkably strong until the African and Oceanic Art auction May 19, 2000 at Sotheby's (See The City Review article) at which barely over half the lots were sold, possibly foreboding the end of an otherwise euphoric season generally. This sale, however, not only indicated that a softening was not the case, especially in the field of American Paintings, but also that Phillips's foray into the big leagues should be taken quite seriously. As the first of the three auction houses to put up its American Paintings, the sale obviously was being closely watched to get a sense of the market for the big auctions the next two days at Sotheby's and Christie's, especially since the stock markets have not recovered yet from a substantial slump over the last month or so.

Many works at Phillips soared.

Lot 137, shown above, "Gaillardias in a Chinese Vase," by Edward Steichen (1879-1973), a 16-by-12-inch oil on canvas, had an estimate of $20,000 to $25,000 and sold for $85,000 including the buyer's premium as do all the sales results in this article. This is an extremely strong Steichen painting as the artist is best known for his photography and for his beautiful Tonalist paintings. His paintings are quite rare and have long been greatly undervalued, but this price indicates that may be about to change dramatically.

Lot 22, "Still Life with Fruit and Nuts," by Robert Scott Duncanson (1821-1872), a 12-by-16-inch oil on board, dated 1848, shown above, was the catalogue's cover illustration and had an estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. It sold for $225,500, a remarkable price considering the painting's small size, its less than pristine condition, and the fact that the artist is primarily known as the best "Antebellum African-American" painter of landscapes in the mid-19th Century and not as a painter of still lifes. The painting is, in fact, very nicely done, and the very high sales price reflects the market's very strong recent affection for this type of painting despite the fact that it cannot compete historically and aesthetically with the simultaneously achievements of the Hudson River School of landscape painters, the Luminist landscape painters and America's many fine genre artists of the period. Similar still life paintings by Duncanson, who was self-taught, are in the Corcoran Gallery in Washington, DC and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

The auction had two nice marine paintings by James Edward Buttersworth (1817-1894), the prolific and superb painter of yachts. Lot 35, shown above, "Off The Battery," is a good typical, small work by him that is interesting because it not only shows Castle Clinton at the southern tip of Manhattan but also the forest of sailing ship masts that dominated the skyline. Buttersworth's paintings are noted for their fine detail and accuracy and for the wonderful sky treatments. This painting had a reasonable estimate of $50,000 to $70,000 and sold for $211,500. The other Buttersworth, Lot 34, had a higher estimate of $60,000 to $80,000 reflecting its larger size, 14 1/4 by 22 inches and the fact thatit had a more dramatic sky. Entitled "The Dauntless Off Sandy Hook," it sold for $167,500. The price differences between the two paintings reflect both the quality and the location.

Lot 8, "Under the Palisades," by Granville Perkins (1830-1895), a 12-by-18-inch oil on canvas had an estimate of only $7,000 to $9,000, reflecting the artist's lack of celebrity. The quite charming painting, however, is very fine and an excellent rendition of the New Jersey Palisades that surprising were not painted that much by the Hudson River School landscape painters with one notable exception of a large work by Jasper Francis Cropsey. This painting is also interesting because it shows three very different kinds of boats reflecting the river's busy traffic. Given the specific geography, the overall quality and nice depiction of the different boats and how strong the market was on this day it is a little surprising that this lot sold for only $10,925.

Another marine painting, Lot 33, "Sinking of the Cumberland by the Merrimack," a 19 3/4-by-24 1/2-inch oil on canvas by Edward Moran (1829-1901), sold for $34,500, more than double its high estimate of $15,000, reflecting interest in the historical subject. It is a very dramatic painting and Moran is a member of one of the country's most illustrious artistic families, which also includes Thomas Moran, the great painter of the West.

Specific locations generally add more value to landscape paintings and the auction had several other works of prominent sites. Lot 9 was a pair of 18-by-24-inch oil on canvas paintings of Niagara Falls by Nicolino Calyo (1799-1884). The nicer of the two is shown above. Calyo and Thomas Chambers were the best "primitive" artists to depict the famous falls in the 19th Century. The falls, of course, were also painted by many of the country's greatest artists and the best versions are by Frederick Edwin Church, Alvin Fisher, Thomas Cole, John F. Kensett, Robert W. Weir, Albert Bierstadt and George Inness. This very handsome lot sold for $19,550, just shy of its reasonable high estimate of $20,000.

One of the most spectacular scenic wonders in New York, or for that matter the Northeast is Mohonk Lake atop Mohonk Mountain in the Shawangunk Mountains a few miles west of New Paltz, New York. Amazingly, it does not appear to have been painted very often. James Hope (1818-1892) painted many natural wonders on the East Coast and Lot 16 is his view of the lake and its marvelous cliffs, shown above, a 19-by-26-inch oil on canvas that sold for $8,050 within its estimate. From the little pavilion atop the cliffs, there is a spectacular view of the Hudson River and several states!

One scenic spot, Kauterskill Falls, further north in the Catskills was very popular with artists. The most famous painting of the falls was by Thomas Cole, the founder of the Hudson River School, and several versions were also done by Sanford Robinson Gifford. A very good vista of the falls was painted by Edmund Darch Lewis (1835-1910), Lot 17, a 20 by 15 1/4 inches, dated 1860. The painting, which is need of a major cleaning, sold for $19,550 and had an high estimate of $15,000.

Lot 26, "New England Sunset," by George Curtis (1816-1881), a 20-by-30-inch oil on canvas, also did extremely well selling for $123,500, more than double its high estimate. The lovely sunset beach scene was reminiscent of some works by John F. Kensett and Worthington Whittredge and its very high price reflected the fact that it was a very nice Luminist work. The price, nonetheless, was awesome as Curtis is not a famous name and hardly is recorded in most textbooks.

Another quite fine beach scene, Lot 54, by Edward Lamson Henry (1841-1919), who is best known for his genre scenes and not at all for beach scenes, sold for $39,100, well over its high estimate of $30,000 and quite impressive for a 8-by-14-inch oil on canvas painting in need of restoration and in-painting.

Another relatively obscure artist who fared well was Horace Wolcott Robbins (1842-1904), whose "A Keen Valley Runaway," Lot 30, a 24-by-36-inch oil on canvas, sold for $16,100, more than three times its low estimate. The painting was a nice, typical, well-done landscape, but nothing extraordinary, an indication that collector interest in landscapes is reviving.

Some very nice small Hudson River School landscape paintings did very well. Lot 51, "View of Lake Champlain," a 5-by-8 1/2-inch oil on panel in desperate need of a "cleaning" by John Frederick Kensett, one of the school's giants who also became a great Luminist painter, sold for $43,700, and had a high estimate of $20,000.

Another Kensett, Lot 25, shown above, "Points of Rocks, Newport," a 14-by-24-inch oil on canvas, sold for $29,900, just under its low estimate. It was unsigned.

Lot 36, "An Afternoon by the River," a 8 1/4-by-7-inch oil on artist board by Richard William Hubbard (1816-1888) sold for $20,700 and had a high estimate of only $5,000. The artist was a consistent but minor follower of the Hudson River School. Lot 38, "Summer Landscape," a 12 1/4-by-8 1/4-inch, arched oil on canvas by James MacDougal Hart (1828-1901), sold for $23,000 and had an estimate of $10,000 to $15,000. (I once owned the painting and had bought it at Sotheby's for about $2,500 a decade or so ago, but was not the consignor at this auction.) James Hart and his brother, William, were prominent Hudson River School painters.

Lot 19, "Fall River Landscape," a very good oil on canvas, 6 1/8 by 10 1/8 inches, by James David Smillie (1833-1909) sold within its estimate for only $6,125, which is surprising considering its quality and other prices at this auction. The artist's brother, George, was also an artist and both were quite good though not as famous as the Hart brothers.

Not all Hudson River School works were sold. Lot 42, a very fine 9 1/4-by-15-inch oil on canvas by David Johnson (1827-1908), an even better Hudson River School painter than the hearts and quite similar in quality to James Casilear, failed to sell despite its excellent quality. Entitled "A Lush Summer Landscape," it had a rather ambitious high estimate of $45,000.

Another disappointment was Lot 64, "News from the Front," by Louis Charles Moeller (1855-1930), a 12-by-16-inch oil on canvas. It had an estimate of $15,000 to $20,000 and failed to sell despite the fact that it is a great American genre painting. The artist has always been very popular for his club-like interiors with men chatting and lounging and outdoor scenes by him are quite rare.

Lot 28, "The Village Pump," by William Morgan, oil on canvas, 15 by 12 inches, is an exceedingly lovely genre painting by a relatively unknown artist painting in the popular style of John George Brown, Thomas Waterman Wood and Eastman Johnson. It sold for $12,650 and had a high estimate of $9,000.

Another work that is very striking and rather unusual is Lot 141, "Cafe Scene - A Study of a Young Woman in a Pink Dress," shown above, " " by George Benjamin Luks (1867-1933). The 25-by-30-inch oil on canvas is unsigned but has descended in the artist's family, according to Phillips. Luks is the most raucous and robust of the Ash-Can School of painters who were led by Robert Henri, but Luks can be uneven. At his best, though, he produced some smashing pictures and this one is quite bold. The bright dress and checkercloth are counterpoints to the darker figures of the two men in the picture, which are classic Luks. The woman's sharply delineated face and hat are rather unusual for the artist but the overall effect of the painting is very strong. It sold for $17,250 and had a low estimate of $20,000.

The auction had three very good works by Ben Shahn, Lots 177, 180 and 181. Lot 181, shown above, "Man Asleep," is an oil on gouache on paper, 3 1/4 by 12 3/4 inches and is a marvelous composition in classic Shahn style and palette. It was once in the Edith Gregor Halpert Collection and had a high estimate of $6,000 and sold for $12,650. Lot 177, shown below on the left, is entitled "Design of Spears from Hamlet" and is a ink on paper, 5 7/8 inches by 4 1/2 inches that sold within its estimate for $1,265, a fine example of Shahn's great calligraphic skill. Lot 180, shown on the right below, "The Gestures of the Little Flowers," a 8 3/4-by-7 1/2-inch watercolor and gouache on paper, also sold within its estimate for $3,680. These were all fine works by a great artist at very reasonable prices.

No recent sale of American paintings would be complete without at least one pretty "lady in white" painting and Lot 116, shown below, "A Summer Walk, a 12-by-9-inch pastel on canvas by Charles Courtney Curran, is a very fine example of the genre and a superb Curran painting. It sold for $36,800 and had a $35,000 high estimate.

The highest price achieved at the auction was "$442,500 for Lot 87, "Vista from Point Lobos," by Guy Orlando Rose (1867-1925), a 24-inch square oil on canvas that was executed in 1926. A fine and bright impressionist work, it had a high estimate of only $80,000 despite the fact that Rose had begun to achieve big prices in recent years and is now considered one of the better American Impressionists of that late period.

Lot 175, "Douglas," shown above, a 20-by-16-inch oil on board by George Copeland Ault (1891-1948), is a very strong portrait that the catalogue dates to 1923. It sold for $41,400, just over its low estimate of $40,000.

At the exhibition of American paintings at Sotheby's, Ben-Ali Haggin, a connoisseur in the field, welcomed Phillips foray into the big leagues and suggested it should not call it itself Phillips Auctioneers, but Phillips Sales, to further differentiate itself from Sotheby's and Christie's.