Till Goodan (1896-1958), Untitled (Roping trouble). Oil on canvas, 24 x 32 in. Courtesy Brian Lebel’s Old West Show & Sale. Estimate: $7/9,000 SOLD: $24,600

For the first time ever, Brian Lebel’s 34th Annual Old West Show & Auction was held in Las Vegas at the historic Westgate Resort & Hotel, once known at the International Hotel where Elvis Presley famously performed. Lebel’s shows are known for bringing together some of the finest in Western art and artifacts, including paintings, sculptures, saddles, firearms and more. 

In total, the auction portion of the event, which took place January 26, realized nearly $2.3 million. A major portion of the lots sold included Western gear like spurs, tooled and braided leather, objects of engraved silver and more. Among the top lots in fine art were Till Goodan’s oil on canvas Untitled (Roping trouble) (est. $7/9,000) that sold for $24,600 as well as Help’s on the Way by George Dabich (1922-2013), which bested its $5,000 high estimate when it sold for $6,150.

Frank W. Benson (1862-1951), Souvenir of Florida. Watercolor, 19 x 24 in. Courtesy Copley Fine Art Auctions. Estimate: $30/50,000 SOLD: $168,000 

Plymouth, MA
Copley Fine Art Auctions
February 23-24
Winter Sale
$2.25 million

Copley Fine Art Auctions’ 2024 Winter Sale took place February 23 to 24. The annual sale realized over $2.25 million and was over 92 percent sold by lot. Categories represented in the sale included antique and contemporary decoys, decorative carvings, paintings, prints, folk art, bronze sculpture, fish carvings and Americana.

The top lots in the February sale included several works by Frank W. Benson (1862-1951), which came straight from the Benson family. Benson’s oil The Eagles broke past its $200,000 high estimate when it achieved $210,000, and his watercolor Souvenir of Florida sold for $168,000, more than three times its high estimate of $50,000. Copley has now sold three of the top four Benson watercolors to ever come up at auction.

Copley is currently gearing up for its Sporting Sale on July 11 and 12, filled with exceptional paintings, bronzes and decoys. 

Jean-Paul Riopelle (1923-2002), Untitled mixed media expressionist abstract painting. Courtesy Thomaston Place Auction Galleries. SOLD: $10,625

Thomaston, ME
Thomaston Place Auction Galleries
February 23-25
Winter Enchantment Sale
$1.1 million

The Winter Enchantment Sale, hosted by Thomaston Place Auction Galleries, brought in nearly $1.1 million, with many of the top lots among the paintings and jewelry categories. “This sale seemed to have something for everybody, and we saw lots of bidding across the broad diversity of items presented in the sale,” says owner and auctioneer  Kaja Veilleux. 

Painting highlights in the winter auction include Canadian artist Jean-Paul Riopelle’s mixed media expressionist abstract painting that reached $10,625, a geometric abstract painting by Genevieve Claisse (1935-2018) that brought in $9,000, as well as a cubist portrait of a woman by Mario Sironi (1885-1961) that sold for $9,375.

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