
Although his work was not the highest valued sales at Swann’s African American Art auction on October 5th, Sam Gilliam was the big winner last week. His Rubiyat significantly out-performed estimates. A more recent work from 2001 also did quite well.
Also significantly out-performing was Norman Lewis’s work.
Sale total: $2,750,585 | Estimates for sale (without premium): $2,283,500-$3,371,000; 154 lots offered; 124 sold (81% sell-through rate by lot)
All prices include Buyer’s Premium.
- 4 Henry Ossawa Tanner, Flight into Egypt, oil on canvas, circa 1910. $341,000 I
- 48 Norman Lewis, Untitled (Processional Composition), oil on marbleized slate, 1960. $233,000 C
- 88 Sam Gilliam, Rubiyat, acrylic and flocking on canvas, 1973. $191,000 C
- 20** Elizabeth Catlett, War Worker, tempera, 1943. $149,000 C
- 31 Hughie Lee-Smith, Untitled (Youths on a Lakeshore), oil on board, 1952. $93,750 C
- 39* Richmond Barthé, The Awakening of Africa, cast bronze, 1959. $87,500 D
- 68 Charles White, I Have A Dream, Series #11 (Study for the Wall), oil on board, 1968. $81,250 C
- 12 Barthé, Stevedore, cast bronze on marble base, modeled in 1937, cast in 1985. $75,000 D
- 150 Eldzier Cortor, Lady with Fan II, oil on canvas, 2005. $75,000 C
- 147 Gilliam, Not Spinning, acrylic on plywood construction with aluminum frame, 2001-04. $57,500 C
- 124 Lee-Smith, Interlude, oil on canvas, 1991. $55,000 C
- 125 Lee-Smith, The Encounter, oil on canvas, 1991. $52,500 C
- 95* Ernie Barnes, The Maestro, acrylic on canvas in artist-built frame, circa 1978. $47,500 C
- 42 Alma W. Thomas, In the Studio, oil on canvas, 1956. $45,000 C
- 129 Carrie Mae Weems, Sea Island Series, quadriptych with two silver prints and two text panels, 1992. $45,000 C
- 101 Catlett, Glory, cast bronze on wood base, 1981. $40,000 I
- 1 Edward M. Bannister, Untitled (Rhode Island Coastal Scene), oil on canvas, circa 1885-89. $40,000 I
- 109 Romare Bearden, The Evening Boat, collage and watercolor on board, 1984. $40,000 C
- 110 Bearden, At the Dock, watercolor, 1984. $37,500 C
- 21 Jacob Lawrence, Eight Passages, eight color screenprints illustrating the Book of Genesis, 1990. $30,000 C