Brunk Auctions: Premier Auction & Single Owner Sale of the Barrow Collection
May 19 & 20
www.brunkauctions.com
info@brunkauctions.com
828-254-6846

ASHEVIILLE, N.C. — Brunk Auctions will conduct a single-owner sale of the Barrow collection on May 19-20.

While lately it has been all the rage to talk about mixing it up when collecting and decorating with Modern art and antiques, Jim and Jean Barrow have been doing it for decades. Their coastal South Carolina home was filled with what is arguably the best collection of American Federal furniture to come to market in years, with masterpieces from Boston, Portsmouth, New York, Baltimore, Virginia and Charleston among the offerings. The simple elegance and perfection of the furnishings perfectly complemented the Modern masterpieces on the walls.

The art collection includes some of the most recognizable imagery and names of the Twentieth Century, featuring significant works by Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, Kenneth Noland, Jim Dine, James Rosenquist, Robert Indiana, Joseph Albers, Roy Lichtenstein, Donald Judd and Damien Hirst. In their home, a masterful carved Salem side chair shared space with the elegant simplicity of a Donald Judd. The iconic Andy Warhol “Marilyn Monroe” hung over a Boston Federal sofa and the Charleston mantel was graced by a Damien Hirst oil and a rare George Washington figural bronze clock. A Jeff Koons balloon dog had a Baltimore inlaid pembroke table for a pedestal, and works by Dale Chihuly and Toots Zynsky made their home on the sideboard.

Always with an eye toward the highest quality, the Barrows pursued the very finest in American Federal furniture, acquiring many well-documented and published masterworks. The furniture collection was assembled over decades, under the careful guidance of advisor Milly McGehee, with additional research and expertise supplied by John Bivins, Deanne Levison, Sumpter Priddy, Albert Sack and Robert Mussey. The fine art was purchased through various galleries and New York and London auctions, much of it with the guidance of Kristy Stubbs Gallery in the couple’s home town of Dallas.

But ultimately, across categories it was the couple’s own keen sense of quality and form that built the collection.

The extensive map collection begins in the Fifteenth Century and continues through the Eighteenth Century, with a focus on Southern rarities such as Horne’s Carolina Described of 1666. Southern decoys are also featured, including rare examples by South Carolina makers. Folk art standouts include a rare painted chest from the Mahantango Valley of Pennsylvania, a dramatic carved and gilt sunburst and a large, painted pig trade sign. Other unusual items that struck the couple’s fancy include Katharine Hepburn’s carved and painted goose, known as “Spencer’s Goose” for Spencer Tracy, and a monumental, three-dimensional depiction of asparagus stalks by Pop artist Marjorie Strider.

The Barrows are known for their philanthropy and support of numerous charitable causes. This includes generous support of museums, especially in Jim’s native state of South Carolina. The couple has given quietly and extensively to the Nathaniel Russel House of the Historic Charleston Foundation and the McKissick Museum at the University of South Carolina, among others. Proceeds from the sale will go to further the couple’s many charitable initiatives through the James Purdy Barrow Foundation.

A limited number of print catalogs for the sale will be available. Call the gallery to reserve your copy.

Brunk Auctions is at 117 Tunnel Road. For more information, www.brunkauctions.com or 828-254-6846.

Featuring significant works by Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, Kenneth Noland, Jim Dine, James Rosenquist, Robert Indiana, Joseph Albers, Roy Lichtenstein, Donald Judd, and Damien Hirst; American Federal furniture masterpieces from Boston, Portsmouth, New York, Baltimore, Virginia, and Charleston; Important maps from the 15th century through the 18th century, including Horne’s Carolina Described of 1666; Southern decoys are also featured, including rare examples by South Carolina makers. Folk art standouts include a rare painted chest from the Mahantango Valley of Pennsylvania, a dramatic carved and gilt sunburst, and a very large painted pig trade sign. Over 500 bottles of wine from the Barrow’s cellar cap it all off. Be sure to put this one on your calendar.