At $96,000, the auction was led by “The Buffalo Rattler” by Martin Grelle (b 1954), 2004, oil on canvas, 48 by 52 inches ($100/150,000).
Review by Carly Timpson
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. — Scottsdale Art Auction’s two-day Summer Sale, August 21-22, achieved a 99.4 percent sell-through rate and brought $3,188,387 million, a figure that marks the highest August and online auction total in the firm’s history. The 507-lot auction, of which only four lots went unsold, was highlighted by 15 lots from the collection of collector, dealer and Western art scholar A.P. “Abe” Hays (1930-2025), a grouping that the auction house has been selling since he passed in 2025.
While this August auction is 100 percent online, representative Haley Delaunais noted that there were “well over 3,000 registered bidders” competing for the vast selection of historic and contemporary Western, wildlife and sporting art. The grand total was driven by record-setting results for contemporary Western artists and the enthusiastic reception of 16 works by Western illustrator, artist and novelist Will James, which kicked off the second session with all but one lot landing within or well beyond the estimate range.
“Our August auction as well as our April auction proved without a doubt that the market for classic and contemporary art is not just alive and well but absolutely thriving,” said Brad Richardson, co-owner of Scottsdale Art Auction. “Our August auction saw over 3,000 people bidding online across our three platforms, more than ever before. Additionally, we are continually seeing new and very active buyers on the market and sold works are being sent out all over the country.”
“Evening Storm” by Ed Mell (1942-2024), oil on canvas, 22 by 22 inches in 27-by-27-inch signed Ed Mell frame, earned $84,000 ($35/55,000).
The sale’s top price came from the traditional Western category when Martin Grelle’s 2004 “The Buffalo Rattler” crossed the block for $96,000 during the second session. From a private collection in Arizona, this was the original oil on canvas painting of Grelle’s most sought-after prints. The work showed three Native Americans on horseback, “pausing on the open plains to behold the strength of the buffalo rattler’s medicine,” according to a note from the auction house. Other Grelle works to find success were the 2004 oil of a Native warrior “Crossing the Greasy Grass,” also known as Little Bighorn River, at $48,000 and the 2008 acrylic of a horse standing out in the snow in its thick “Winter Coat” at $39,000.
According to the firm’s representatives, the auction saw some of its most competitive bidding on the 16 lots from the Hays collection of works by Will James, which reached a combined total of $305,100. The selection was led by a drawing titled “Eventually” that featured two riders on horseback followed by a spirited wagon train, a scene said to depict the One-Elevens Rodeo Caravan, according to a label on its reverse. This graphite drawing sold for $51,000, more than tripling its high estimate.
Other James works included “Smoky and his Mammy,” a 1926 graphite drawing of James’ famous Smoky the Cowhorse character. On the reverse, James inscribed the work, “To my wife / who faithfully helped me with ‘Smoky.’” After the artist’s death, his wife, Alice, gave the work to Hays and further inscribed, “This picture is my pride and joy, has been through the years and my heart goes with it. My best to you, Abe Hayes [sic]. Alice James Ross. July 30/79, Reno, Nev.” The illustration was exhibited alongside other art and literary works in the Autry Museum of the American West’s (Los Angeles) “Will James: Cowboy Artist and Author” in 1997-98. It achieved the second-highest price of the grouping at $39,000.
“Smoky and his Mammy” by Will James (1892-1942), 1926, graphite on paperboard, 13 by 11 inches, brought $39,000 ($6/9,000).
Bringing $84,000 was Ed Mell’s abstracted “Evening Storm” landscape in bold, warm tones of yellow, orange, red and navy. The oil on canvas was housed in a signed Ed Mell frame and in excellent condition, per the catalog notes. As the firm reported, “Many of the strong results in both sessions came from work by first- and second-generation artists associated with the New West movement. The market for paintings by Arizona icon and Modernist Ed Mell continues to show strength and resilience as several of his paintings sold well above the auction estimates.” This painting was estimated $35/45,000 and nearly doubled the high mark. Mell was further represented by his 1983 “Canyon Fog,” which was featured on the February 1984 cover of American Artist, Volume 48, Issue 499, published by Glenn Heffernan. A copy of the magazine accompanied the lot when it sold just above its $45/65,000 estimate at $66,000.
Second-generation New West artists included Logan Maxwell Hagege (b 1980), whose “Sky Flower 2” blossomed well beyond its $25,000 high estimate to bring $45,000; Kyle Polzin (b 1974), whose still life “Leading the Charge” brought $36,000; and Kim Douglas Wiggins (b 1960), whose “The Dispute of Don Cristobal” closed for $24,000. “Under the Sheltering Sky” from 2024 topped the selection of five offerings by contemporary artist Billy Schenck at $72,000.
Taos Society artist E. Martin Hennings, considered one of the defining figures of early Twentieth Century Southwestern art, also had pieces bid beyond estimates. His sunny autumn landscape titled “Aspens,” which had provenance to a private Massachusetts collection, achieved the auction’s third-highest price at $84,000. Two floral still lifes by Joseph Henry Sharp each sold for $27,000.
Marking a record for a wildlife painting by John Nieto, “Buffalo Medicine – 1999” was pushed more than double its high estimate and finished at $66,000.
Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. Scottsdale Art Auction’s next sale is scheduled for August 23. For information, www.scottsdaleartauction.com or 480-945-0225.
