Leon Kroll (1884–1974), “Late Afternoon, Monhegan,” 1913, oil on canvas, realized $48,800.
SOUTH PORTLAND, MAINE – The fine art auction house Barridoff Galleries, long a venerable fixture in Maine’s and the Northeast’s art auction scene, sold a number of significant pieces in its summer 2019 international fine art auction, well above their estimates, in an overall successful sale of approximately 260 pieces of art at the gallery’s facility on June 22. This marks a major achievement for the gallery, which was purchased just two years ago upon the retirement of its former owners.
The two top pieces to sell were a Harry Bertoia sculpture “Gathered Wire Form” ($12/18,000), which sold for $52,460; and a Leon Kroll oil painting, “Late Afternoon, Monhegan” ($25/30,000), which realized $48,800.
Other notable sales were a work by Stephen Pace, “A Day’s Catch” ($3/5,000), selling for $9,760, and Hale Aspacio Woodruff’s “Tenement Cats” ($8/10,000) fetching $19,520.
The most surprising sales of the day were two oil paintings by William Irvine, both estimated $300/500, with “View of the Bay” selling for $1,464 and “Woman with Forsythia” bringing $4,270. Similarly, John Wesley Hardick’s oil painting “Autumn Landscape” ($300/500) surprised at $4,270.
Along with many Monhegan-themed pieces, including those by Elena Jahn, there were many Maine artists represented in the auction, most notably Bernard Langlais, whose 8-foot wood relief “The Lion” ($7/9,000) finished at $13,420.
“This was a significant sale for Barridoff Galleries, not only for the high percentage of pieces sold, many well above their estimates, but also because it represents how far we have come since purchasing the auction house two years ago,” said William Milliken, licensed auctioneer and partner in the new ownership of Barridoff Galleries.
Prices reported include the buyer’s premium, as stated by the auction house.
The gallery has two major upcoming auctions, the first being an estates sale on September 21 featuring the collections of Rosalyne Bernstein, longtime Portland-area promoter of the arts and moving force behind the establishment of the Portland Museum of Art, and Mary Leigh Call Smart, founder and benefactor of the Surf Point Foundation in York, Maine, with all proceeds from the sale of that collection going to the foundation, including the Bertoia sculpture that was included in this past auction. The other major auction is Barridoff’s next international fine art auction, which is currently scheduled for February 2020 and for which consignments have already been received.
For information, 207-772-5011 or www.barridoff.com.
