Extremely Scarce Prints and Drawings at Swann Galleries March 6
New York—On Thursday, March 6, Swann Galleries will conduct a large and diverse auction of 19th & 20th Century Prints & Drawings that offers exceptional 19th- and 20th-century works of art by American and European masters.
The sale opens with more than 200 19th-century prints, highlights of which include an extremely scarce lifetime impression of Rodolphe Bresdin’s Le Bon Samaritaine, lithograph on chine appliqué, 1861 (estimate: $25,000 to $35,000); a run of works by James A.M. Whistler featuring Venice scenes such as The Balcony, etching and drypoint, 1879-80 ($15,000 to $20,000) and figural works including Nude Model, Reclining, lithograph, 1893 ($10,000 to $15,000); several prints by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, among them Les Deux Baigneuses, etching, 1895 ($18,000 to $22,000); Camille Pissarro’s Le Pont de Pierre, à Rouen, etching and drypoint, 1887 ($15,000 to $20,000); and two woodcuts by Paul Gauguin, Mahna no Varua Ino, 1893-94 and Femme Cueillant des Fruits et Oviri, 1896-97 ($20,000 to $30,000 each).
In the American Art section are early modernist examples, such as three very scarce 1913 etchings by John Marin depicting the Brooklyn Bridge ($15,000 to $20,000 and $20,000 to $30,000 each) in addition to George Bellows’s The Street, lithograph, 1917 ($5,000 to $8,000); Childe Hassam’s The Lion Gardiner House, Easthampton, etching, 1920 ($15,000 to $20,000); luminous city views by Martin Lewis, including Relics (Speakeasy Corner), drypoint, 1928 ($25,000 to $35,000); and Thomas Hart Benton’s rare, early lithograph Strike, 1933 ($6,000 to $9,000).
Compelling unique works are a watercolor over pencil by Ethel Mars of Provincetown, circa 1916-17, ex-collection of the artist ($20,000 to $30,000) and George Grosz’s New York Scene, watercolor, gouache and pencil, circa 1950 ($5,000 to $8,000).
Among the exceptional European examples is a rich and varied selection of prints by Pablo Picasso, including Tête de femme, de profil, drypoint on Japan paper, 1905 ($25,000 to $35,000); Groupe de Trois Femmes, etching and drypoint, 1922-23 ($15,000 to $20,000); Garçon et Dormeuse a la Chandelle, aquatint and etching, 1934 ($25,000 to $35,000); Corrida en Arles, aquatint, 1952 ($15,000 to $20,000); examples of his faience ware designs; and after prints such as Intérior Rouge avec un Transatlantique bleu, color aquatint, circa 1960 ($12,000 to $18,000).
Additional desirable after prints include Henri Matisse’s Odalisque au coffret rouge, color aquatint and etching, circa 1952 ($30,000 to $50,000); Carmen, color lithograph after Marc Chagall, 1967 ($40,000 to $60,000); and Hommage à J.S. Bach after Georges Braque, color aquatint and etching, 1950 ($5,000 to $8,000).
Rounding out the print highlights are Käthe Kollwitz’s Krieg, with seven woodcuts on Japan paper, 1923 ($30,000 to $50,000); Wassily Kandinsky’s Kleine Welten IV, color lithograph, 1922 ($20,000 to $30,000); Paul Klee’s Nicht ended, etching, 1930 ($10,000 to $15,000); Salvador Dalí’s St. George and the Dragon, etching, 1947 ($15,000 to $20,000); several lithographs by Alberto Giacometti, among them L’Homme qui marche, 1957 ($8,000 to $12,000); and M.C. Escher’s Ascending and Descending, 1960 ($25,000 to $35,000).
There are also fine drawings, such as George Grosz’s Gegan Kommunismus sind sie einig, pen and ink and brush and wash, 1922-23 ($12,000 to $18,000); Fernand Léger’s Composition (pour Arthur Rimbaud Illuminations), gouache on paper, 1950 ($30,000 to $50,000); Tsuguharu Foujita’s Le Jardin, pen and ink with white gouache heightening ($5,000 to $8,000); and Serge Charchoune’s In Mont Salvat Gennannt N°6, oil on canvas, 1955 ($15,000 to $20,000).
The first session of the auction—consisting of 19th century prints and drawings—will begin at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 6. The sale will continue after a lunch break at 1:30 p.m. with American and European prints and drawings. The works will be on public exhibition on Saturday, March 1, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.; and Monday, March 2 through Wednesday, March 5, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
An illustrated catalogue, with information on bidding by mail or fax, is available for $40 in the U.S./ $50 elsewhere from Swann Galleries, Inc., 104 East 25th Street, New York, NY 10010, or online at www.swanngalleries.com.
For further information, and to make advance arrangements to bid by telephone during the auction, please contact Todd Weyman at (212) 254-4710, extension 32, or via e-mail at tweyman@swanngalleries.com.
Live online bidding is also available via Invaluable.com.
First image: John Marin, Brooklyn Bridge and Lower New York, etching and drypoint, 1913 (estimate: $20,000 to $30,000).
Second image: Wassily Kandinsky’s Kleine Welten IV, color lithograph, 1922 (estimate: $20,000 to $30,000).
