“Scenic wallpaper inspires designers and collectors to dream their way, not only into a bygone era, but also into a better one.” Holly Alderman, director of Alderman Arts, quotes Walter Benjamin in…

NEW YORK CITY — The special exhibition featured in the Museum of Broadway, “The American Theatre as seen by Hirschfeld,” curated by David Leopold, creative director of the Al Hirschfeld Foundation is now on display through March 15. Created exclusively for the Museum of Broadway, the exhibition takes visitors through nine decades of Hirschfeld’s iconic images of theater in the United States with 25 drawings and prints from 1928 to 2002. Visitors will be brought face to face with original production illustrations as well as a selection of sketchbooks that he used to record his initial impressions of shows in out-of-town tryouts and previews. There are also photographs of Hirschfeld on display throughout the exhibition, as befitting the man who historians have called “the logo of the American Theatre.”

NEW BRAUNFELS, TEXAS — An elaborately embroidered Qing dynasty Chinese robe topped Lark Mason Associates’ sale on www.igavelauctions.com that closed on January 26, bringing $57,500 on 21 bids against a $7/10,000 estimate. The buyer is in Beijing. The arm span was 82 inches and the length, collar to hem, was 53½ inches. The sale was first in a series of multiple sales from the property of an American collector. Said Lark Mason, “With highlights reflecting a wide swathe of cultures, including Chinese,

PITTSFIELD, MASS. — Fontaine’s Auction Gallery conducted its Fine & Decorative Arts sale on January 28, presenting more than 550 lots of furniture, fine art, collectibles and jewelry…

CRUMPTON, MD. — Dixon’s Crumpton Auction hosted a various owner auction of Americana & Decorative Arts on January 26, presenting 363 lots from all categories. At the forefront was a Long Island farm scene from Gaines Ruger Donoho (American, 1857-1916), dated 1893. Donoho was born on a plantation in Mississippi and trained in Manhattan, later settling in East Hampton, N.Y. The oil on canvas painting showed past restoration and some in-painting, but still achieved an impressive $23,370 against its $5/10,000 estimate. More on this and other winning lots to follow.

DALLAS — A Tiffany Studios leaded glass Arrowroot shade with rare patinated bronze Cattail base, circa 1905, nearly doubled its high estimate when it sold for $212,500 to lead Heritage Auctions’…

LITCHFIELD, CONN. — Litchfield Auction’s January 24 sale featured the fifth installment of property from the vast modern collection of John “Parker” Prindle Jr. Sold to a New York buyer online was a Pollio Perelda/Fratelli Toso “Stellato” vase, circa 1950, executed by Licio Zuffi. Measuring 14 inches high, it sold for $2,860 with buyer’s premium, having started at just $500. The next day, January 25, the focus was on property from the personal collection of music mogul Seymour Stein. As co-fou

KNOXVILLE, TENN. — One of the top lots in Case Antiques, Auctions & Appraisals’ 2023 Winter Fine Art & Antiques Auction, January 28-29, was Beauford Delaney’s (1901-1979) pastel on paper portrait of a man, which sold for $48,000 (inclusive of premium) to a collector bidding in the room. Set against a mottled green background, the composition is enlivened by the artist’s use of swirling linework to create a network of electric blue forms that seem to radiate from the sitter’s eyes — accentuating his facial features and bust before spilling into the background. Along with the warm orange, pink and yellow tones describing the sitter’s skin, this blue is echoed subtly in the clothing and background through layers of applied color. Delaney is one of the few African American Abstract Expressionist painters to hail from the South, and interest in his work has been steadily rising in recent years. The portrait had provenance to the estate of the artist and had been estimated at $10/12,000. A more extensive recap of this sale will appear in an upcoming issue.

NEW YORK CITY — On January 24, Bonhams presented Cohen & Cohen: 50 Years of Chinese Export Porcelain, an auction of 155 lots from dealers Michael and Ewa Cohen. Chinese export porcelain appeals to…

BLOOMFIELD, N.J. — Nye & Co Auctioneers hosted a three-day, online-only sale January 25-27, featuring American furniture, folk art and Native American art. The auction featured nearly 1,000 lots…