The house held a sale celebrating the contributions of the artists of the Works Progress Administration in February. The auction included paintings, prints, photographs, posters, books and related ephemera by artists whose careers were sustained by Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal-era programs.
African American Art, Contemporary Art, Modern & Post-War, and Prints & Drawings
Fne art sales shined at Swann in 2021, delivering dozens of records for established artists, market newcomers, and underrepresented artists alike. For the African American Art department, 2021 was their best year yet — in April the department held (what they thought was) the second-highest-grossing sale in the department’s history, but the October sale proved to be even better: it was the all-time highest-grossing sale for the department, as well as the house, bringing over $5 million.
Contemporary Art offered a selection of works from the Feminist Art from the Collection of Harriet Lyons in their June sale. The Modern & Post-War Art category at Swann, helmed by Harold Porcher, turned one this December, with three sales under our belt the department has established a solid footing in Swann’s regular roster of sales and is aiming to expand their Latinx Modernist offerings in the next year. And, prints and drawings, our busiest department with a minimum of six sales a year, continued to offer exceptional and rare works on paper from art historical stalwarts.
In September the house offered The Virginia Zabriskie Collection—a combined effort from our prints and drawings and photographs departments. Zabriskie was a pioneering gallerist who was responsible for launching the careers of a number of artists, as well as bringing photography to the forefront of collectors’ minds at a time when the medium was still considered vanguard. The sale was a success, exceeding the pre-sale estimate.
In November we offered Contemporary Artists’ Books: The Property of a Texas Collector. The single-owner sale featured rare and original works by leading artists, many that had not been seen outside of institutional collections. The important sale of books brought more than $1.2 million.
This past summer we held our first auction devoted to the accomplishments of women. The sale featured early printed books, archives, vernacular and fine art photography, among other materials, all created by or relating to women who are pioneers in their respective fields. We are pleased to announce another edition of this sale, to be held in June 2022, once again spearheaded by Devon Eastland, our Early Printed Books Specialist, but offering a wide assortment of material.
Illustration Art had a standout year, opening 2021 with the first sale of the year, and closing it out in December—each sale filled with auction debuts and record prices. The year began with the Dick McDonough Collection of Golf Illustration, which featured an incredible selection of original golf and sport-related illustrations. The department also brought new auction records for Edward Gorey and Edmund Dulac in their December sale.
2021 highlights for the vintage posters department included a two-day sale event offering works from the Letterform Archive alongside Graphic Design in May; and the top-grossing Rare & Important Travel Posters sale for the house on November.
