Copley Fine Art Auctions will host its 2021 Sporting Sale this July 9 and 10, featuring 507 lots of premier sporting and decoy art. Distinguished shorebird decoy and folk art collector Linda Johnson’s collection of American bird decoys will be one of the primary highlights of the two-day sale. And a variety of offerings from other important single-owner estates and collections will be up for bidding.
Ogden M. Pleissner (1905-1983), Waiting for the Rise. Watercolor on paper, 16½ x 26½ in. Estimate: $50/80,000
A highlight in the fine art portion of the sale is Ogden M. Pleissner’s watercolor Waiting for the Rise, a foggy scene of two fishermen in the moment of making a catch. The painting is expected to fetch between $50,000 and $80,000. An oil by Pleissner, Salmon Fishing, has a presale estimate of $60,000 to $90,000. 
John Clymer (1907-1989), Early Morning-White Tails and Tamarack. Oil on board, 20 x 30 in. Estimate: $30/50,000
“The upcoming Sporting Sale has a tremendous lineup,” says Copley principal Stephen O’Brien Jr. “I am thrilled with the quality of items that our team assembled and super excited for our clients. There are several estate consignments as well as highly curated private collections. The bird carving session is incredibly dense, and I will be encouraging our bidders not to blink! There are dozens of museum-quality works to choose from.”
Robert Lougheed (1910-1982), Mount Rundle Beyond. Oil on canvas, 24 x 36 in. Estimate: $35/55,000
Other major works in the sale include three watercolors by painter and outdoorsman Aiden Lassell Ripley. Grouse and Thorn Apple and Two Woodcock are both estimated at $20,000 to $30,000 each, while Long Pool, Rapid River has an estimate of $10,000 to $20,000. Other pieces to keep an eye out for are John Clymer’s misty scene of a family of deer, Early Morning-White Tails and Tamarack (est. $30/50,000), and Robert Lougheed’s depiction of a regal elk in Mount Rundle Beyond (est. $35/55,000).
“We’ve seen consistent, strong interest in sporting and wildlife art throughout the last year,” says Copley’s ine art specialist Leah Tharpe. “I am excited to see how our buying clients respond to the latest offering of fine art.”
Aiden Lassell Ripley (1896-1969), Grouse and Thorn Apple. Watercolor, 20 x 30 in. Estimate: $20/30,000
Copley Fine Art Auctions will also offer in its July sale John James Audubon’s complete, hand-colored set of first royal octavo edition Birds of America, anticipated to fetch between $150,000 and $250,000. The Sporting Sale begins at 10 a.m. both days. —
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