COPAKE, N.Y. – A 24-by-30½-inch oil on canvas painting by Jessie Hazel Arms Botke (1883-1971) was the top lot at Copake Auction Inc.’s annual New Year’s Day sale when it sold for $11,210. The painting was a quintessential Botke work as it depicted two peacocks, one in full flourish. The artist is known for her bird studies, particularly those of peacocks. Earlier in her career, after studying at the Chicago Art Institute, she worked with Albert Herter at Herter Looms, where she completed all of the birds for a mural at the St Francis Hotel in San Francisco.
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