During Freeman’s Hindman’s upcoming American & Pennsylvania Impressionists auction, collectors can expect to see a tightly curated sale of around 100 lots, offering a thoughtful complement of 19th and 20th century American artists, works, styles and price points. A breadth of American art will be included in the sale, with highlights including a Gilded Age portrait by John Singer Sargent; still lifes by William Merritt Chase and John Frederick Peto; works by American expats Robert Vonnoh and Charles Sprague Pearce, including the latter’s monumental L’Italienne (At the Fountain); and The Mother, a rare and fresh-to-market offering by Maria Oakey Dewing, known for her floral paintings.
Jessie Arms Botke (1883-1971), Peacock in Classical Landscape. Oil on panel, 30 x 25 in. Estimate: $50/80,000
Albert York (1926-2009), Girl in Rowboat. Oil on panel, 9½ x 12 in. Estimate: $80,000/120,000
Auction specialist Adam Veil notes a few major lots to pay attention to in the forthcoming sale, including Albert York’s Girl in Rowboat, which has an estimate of $80,000 to $120,000. “To echo New Yorker critic, Calvin Tomkins, Albert York is still one of ‘the most highly admired unknown artist[s] in America,’ but much less so now, thanks in part to Freeman’s | Hindman’s efforts,” he says. “We’ve offered, and have had terrific success with, the last 13 oils by York to come on the market, including the current record holder, Still Life: Green Apples, which sold for $239,400 in June 2021. The present work, Girl in Rowboat, is equal to these in every way. It’s never been offered for sale publicly, has uninterrupted provenance dating back to its acquisition from Davis Galleries, and boasts all the simplicity, economy and ‘quiet modernity’ that distinguishes the best of York’s works.”
Veil continues, “Another lovely work, and a personal favorite of mine, is Jessie Arms Botke’s Peacock in Classical Landscape. It’s standard fare from the artist (in the best possible way) and the perfect blend of decorative flair and exotic naturalism. The pure white of the peacock, with its exquisite train, the autumnal hues of the foliage, the stylized background; it’s the sort of Botke one builds a collection around. It’s also perfectly fresh-to-market, having been well loved and cared for by the same family for generations.”
Edward Willis Redfield (1869-1965), Frosty Morning, 1933. Oil on canvas, 32½ x 40¼ in.
Estimate: $80,000/120,000
Edmund Henry Osthaus (1858-1928), On a Point. Oil on canvas, 24 x 36 in. Estimate: $40/60,000
Peacock in Classical Landscape is expected to fetch between $50,000 and $80,000.
In addition, the auction will have sporting scenes by Osthaus and Rosseau, a strong selection of American illustration, and modern highlights by the likes of Arthur B. Carles, Milton Avery, Will Barnet and Wolf Kahn.
The American & Pennsylvania Impressionists sale is set for December 7 at 1 p.m. ET. —
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