A Modern Take

Edward S. Curtis and Southwest Modernism lead the way at Santa Fe Art Auction’s Annual Signature Live Sale

The Santa Fe Art Auction’s Annual Signature Live Sale has long featured a great collection of categories and genres—from cowboys and landscapes to abstraction and modernism, and everything in between—and this year’s sale, held on November 5 and 6, was no exception. Not only did the sale have a 90 percent sell-through rate, it also realized nearly $4 million. Edward S. Curtis (1868-1952), The North American Indian - Harriman Set Volumes I-XX, Alaska Expedition Volumes and Ephemera, 1907-30. Estimate: $250/350,000 SOLD: $1,260,000

The top lot of the sale, a unique departure from recent top lots, was a partial set—20 text volumes, as well as other ephemera—of Edward S. Curtis’ masterpiece The North American Indian. The books offered at the sale were part of the personal set of American tycoon and railroad executive E.H. Harriman, who worked closely with Curtis on a scientific exploration to Alaska in 1899. The set, estimated at $250,000 to $350,000, sold for $1.26 million, the highest price ever paid for a Curtis set without accompanying portfolios. The auction house also paired individual Curtis volumes with portfolios, with several lots performing strongly. A pairing of a Volume I book and corresponding portfolio brought in $110,000, well over its high estimate of $65,000.Gustave Baumann (1881-1971), Processional, 1956. Color woodcut, ed. 47 of 125, 13 x 127/8 in. Estimate: $10/15,000 SOLD: $42,000

Other top lots were three Gerard Curtis Delano paintings coming in at the third, fourth and fifth best lots of the two-session sale. The highest selling of the three was Sunlight and Shadow (est. $30/50,000), a masterful small work by the artist that achieved $61,500. Two other Curtis works, Arizona Thunderhead and Lady of the Lonely Land, realized $48,000 and $43,000, respectively.

Another strong area of the sale was a grouping of works devoted to New Mexico painter and printmaker Gustave Baumann, whose color woodcut prints are highly prized by collectors. The top Baumann was a 1956 woodcut titled Processional that flew past its high estimate of $15,000 when it sold for $42,000. The Baumann pieces did so well that Santa Fe Art Auction immediately nabbed a large grouping of Baumann works for a dedicated sale that was held in December. Gerard Curtis Delano (1890-1972), Arizona Thunderhead. Oil on canvas, 16¼ x 18¼ in. Estimate: $40/60,000 SOLD: $48,000

Elsewhere in the sale was Barbara Latham’s Fall Landscape (est. $4/8,000) that sold for $13,200, an untitled work (est. $2/4,000) from Peter Miller (Henriette Myers) that sold well over estimates at $33,000, and an Allan Houser marble sculpture, Pueblo Woman (est. $20/30,000) that sold for $36,000.Allan Houser (1914-1994), Pueblo Woman, 1983. Black Tennessee marble, 28 x 9½ x 7 in. Estimate: $20/30,000 SOLD: $36,000

Additional lots include Susan Hertel’s Two Horses, Three Dogs in the Snow (est. $20/30,000) that sold for $42,000 and Fritz Scholder’s Love Stream, 1962 (est. $40/60,000) that also sold for $42,000. Other modernist pieces include highlights from John Nieto, Kevin Red Star, Emil Bisttram and others. Auction records set include records for Red Star, Pablita Velarde, Hertel, Albert Handell, Edna Bradley Stevenson, Catharine Phillips Fels and Miller.Peter Miller [Henrietta Myers] (1913-1996), Untitled (Animals of the Earth). Oil on canvas, 21¾ x 35¾ in. Estimate: $2/4,000 SOLD: $33,000

“We are particularly proud of the records we set for women artists who have lived and worked in the Southwest, especially Santa Fe and Taos throughout the 20th century,” says Gillian Blitch, president and CEO of the Santa Fe Art Auction. “We have been fortunate to uncover and highlight the work of many artists, often women, who were neglected or overlooked while traveling through or residing here in the West. These burgeoning auction records prove that this region was crucial to the exciting developments in American art at the time, and their recognition on the world stage. Collectors all over the country are discovering that Santa Fe has long been at the very heart of this movement.” —

Top 10 Sales
Santa Fe Art Auction, Annual Signature Live Sale, November 5-6, 2021 (including buyer’s premiums)
Artist Title Low/High Est. SOLD
Edward S. Curtis The North American Indian $250/350,000 $1,260,000
Edward S. Curtis The North American Indian —Volume I $45/65,000 $110,000
Gerard Curtis Delano Sunlight and Shadow $30/50,000 $61,500
Gerard Curtis Delano Arizona Thunderhead $40/60,000 $48,000
Gerard Curtis Delano Lady of the Lonely Land $40/60,000 $43,050
Fritz Scholder Love Stream, 1962 $40/60,000 $42,000
Susan Hertel Two Horses, Threes Dogs in the Snow $20/30,000 $42,000
Gary Erbe Western Album, 2015 $30/40,000 $42,000
Gib Singleton Santa Fe Trail, 2001 $20/30,000 $39,000
John Nieto Zuni Woman Making Pottery, 1994 $20/30,000 $39,000