An American trade buyer, bidding on the phone, paid $15,680 and the top price in the sale for “Seedling” by Sam Gilliam (American, b 1933). Stephanie Kenyon said the hinged composition was a nice feature, as was its size, measuring 24 by 48 inches ($20/30,000).
Review by Madelia Hickman Ring, Catalog Photos Courtesy Sloans & Kenyon Auctioneers & Appraisers
CHEVY CHASE, MD. – Two days of estates sales, online only on December 16 with phone and in person bidding available for the sale on December 17, closed out the year for Sloans & Kenyon Auctioneers & Appraisers. Slightly more than 900 lots crossed the block between the two days of sale with an accumulated total of $274,500.
“The sales did fine,” Sloans & Kenyon’s president, Stephanie Kenyon said by phone the day after the auction closed. “It was sort of our holiday sale, with affordable things, and we saw good action on silver, jewelry and South American coins; modern works of art did well, too.”
Indeed it did, with two works by Sam Gilliam (American, b 1933) bringing the top and third highest prices in the sale. The house has historically done well with works by Gilliam, the abstractionist and color-field painter and Washington, DC, native, with pieces in nearly every auction. Bringing the top price in the sale and selling for $15,860 to a trade buyer bidding on the phone was his 2007 work “Seedling,” done in acrylic on birch in three hinged panels. Acquired from the “20 by 20” exhibition at the Coldwell Banker Art17 Space, the piece was accompanied by the original purchase receipt and a file of information. For those who can not afford an original work by Gilliam, his works on paper and multiples are much more affordable, as exemplified by a 1999 monoprint with intaglio relief titled “Platimum Series SG-CM-BLUE,” which measured 34½ by 46½ inches and sold to a local collector for $4,270.
Bringing the second highest price in the sale and $6,222 from a local private collector was this 22K yellow gold geometric hinged oval cuff bracelet that was signed Zolotas ($4,5/6,500).
Following the theme, another local artist saw competition and leading interest from a local collector. “Natural Woman,” done by Robin Rose (American, b 1946) in 2011 in encaustic on linen on aluminum, had been initially acquired in 2011 from Hemphill Fine Arts, the gallery that represents the artist. It sold for $3,538.
Several of the jewelry lots brought strong prices and exemplified the diversity of the offerings in the sale. Topping the selection was a heavy 22K yellow gold geometric hinged oval cuff bracelet by Greek jewelry designer, Zolotas. It sold to a local private collector for $6,222, just shy of its high estimate. Kenyon noted its contemporary look had been appealing to bidders. A collector in Baltimore prevailed against competition to win an 18K yellow gold and diamond tasseled pendant choker for $3,538, while a trade buyer in New York who specializes in Art Deco jewelry paid $3,172 for an Art Deco platinum, diamond, sapphire and emerald evening watch that was unsigned but which Kenyon said “had the look of Cartier” to it.
Among silver offerings, stand-out lots were a 125-piece Royal Danish pattern sterling silver flatware set by International Co. A trade buyer took it for $3,050. Four lots of service pieces by Dominick & Haff that were all descended in the same family were done, somewhat unusually, in a repousse style. Kenyon said the bold vigorous floral decoration attracted a lot of interest and saw competition from bidders online, on the phone and in the room. In the end, two dealers and a private collector in Baltimore divided up the lots, which brought a total of $9,028.
Bringing $5,185 and leading not only the first day of sale, but a group of approximately 50 early South American and European coins from an estate collection, was this lot of five Spanish Colonial silver reales ($600/800).
A large estate collection of Spanish colonial and European coins headlined the online-only sale on December 16, with a lot of five Spanish Colonial reales bringing $5,185 against an estimate of $600/800. Other notable results for the coins included $2,074 for a 100-piece lot of early Nineteenth to early Twentieth Century Republic of Bolivia silver soles and 50-centavos and $1,830 for a 13-piece lot of assorted Nineteenth Century South American silver coins that included pieces from Chile, Venezuela, Brazil and Columbia. The approximately 50 lots saw competition from a number of buyers, including a numismatic dealer in Arizona.
Sloans & Kenyon’s next sale will take place in February. Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. Sloans & Kenyon is at 7034 Wisconsin Avenue. For information, 301-634-2330 or www.sloansandkenyon.com.
