Clars Auction
August 10th-12th
www.clars.com
888 339 7600 (toll free)
510 428 0100 (local) info@clars.com
5644 Telegraph Ave. Oakland, CA 94609

OAKLAND, CALIF. — Clars will host its jewelry and timepieces auction on Thursday, August 10, beginning at 1 pm Pacific time. The sale includes a selection of colored diamond, diamond, colored gemstones, antique and signed jewelry and timepieces.

The sale is highlighted by a 4-carat fancy yellow, internal flawless diamond, diamond and 14K white gold ring ($50,70,000); a pair of fancy intense yellow diamond, diamond and 14K white gold earrings ($20/40,000); a diamond and 18K white gold bracelet ($8/12,000, a pair of diamond and 14K gold earrings ($2/4000); and a 2.47-carat diamond and 14K gold ring ($4/6,000).

Complementing the auction will be a selection of colored gemstones, including a pair of Burma ruby and diamond earrings ($6/8,000); a Burma ruby, diamond and gold pendant necklace ($5/7,000); and a rare natural pearl, diamond and platinum necklace ($6/8,000).

Makers such as Tiffany & Co are represented in a coral, diamond and 18K gold brooch pendant designed by Schlumberger for Tiffany & Co, France ($1/1,500; and a ruby, diamond and 14K brooch and earrings suite, Tiffany & Co. ($1,5/2,500). Also featured in this sale is an antique Mughal diamond, enamel, gem-set and high karat gold bracelet ($4/6,000); and a diamond, cultured pearl and platinum bracelet ($3/5,000).

Day 2 will be devoted to design, art and Asian art on August 11. Highlights include a pair of T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings slipper lounge chairs and ottoman ($4/6,000) and a T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings sofa, Model 1711 ($4/6,000). This rare sofa has the original upholstery and retains the Widdicomb label. Robsjohn-Gibbings is perhaps most well-known for his work for Widdicomb, where he worked as a designer from 1943 to 1956.

The softness and shapeliness of his designs for the company were a stark contrast to the rigidity of the Bauhaus aesthetic that was popular at the time.

Largely inspired by the classical world, Robsjohn-Gibbings was also recognized for his Klismos furniture (designed in collaboration with Susan and Eleftherios Saridis). Robsjohn-Gibbings was largely inspired by Greek furniture and design. Also on offer will be a set of four Mario Bellini cab chairs ($2/4,000). There will be a Charles and Ray Eames 670 and 671 lounge chair and ottoman ($3/5,000).

The sale will feature a collection of pottery items, including examples by Marguerite Wildenhain. The collection belonged to Lorelei Brede, who studied at Pond Farm with Wildenhain from 1960 to 1962. Afterwards, Brede opened a pottery studio and became a pottery instructor in her own right. Several pieces by Brede will be included in the auction alongside Windenhain’s works. Other designers in the sale include Clyde Burt, Betty Feves, Paolo Soleri, Julian Watts, Ward Bennett, Daum, Burgun, Schverer & Cie, among others.

Clars will offer a painting by California artist Henrietta Berk. A member of the Bay Area Figurative Movement, Berk and her peers dedicated much of their practice to restoring focus on human form and experience in an artistic landscape that was primarily concerned with modern abstraction and conceptual art. As a student of Richard Diebenkorn, whose own work had shifted from Abstract Expressionism to figurative painting, Berk was introduced to his wife, psychologist Phyllis Deibenkorn, of whom she painted this portrait.

Berk’s technique in painting this portrait does not completely eschew abstraction; Diebenkorn is rendered in broad, painterly brushstrokes with an impressionistic feel, with bold color choices and a somewhat geometrical approach to the play of light and shadow on the subject’s face and hair. Berk’s portrait embodies the concurrence of traditional figurative art with innovative abstraction during the mid-Twentieth Century, creating an emotive and dynamic depiction of her subject.

The Asian art auction will feature the following items sourced from various estates and private collections. They are a Seventeenth Century Chinese cloisonné enamel meiping vase, Kangxi period Chinese famille verte phoenix-tail vase, a collection of Chinese embroidered robes, various Tang dynasty sancai-glazed pottery horse and amphora vase, a group of four Qing dynasty imperial edicts and various archaic and later period jade carvings.

Day 3 is a Discovery sale offering an eclectic selection of European décor, sterling silver and furniture.

Bidding for Clars’ August 10, 11 and 12 auctions is available by phone, absentee bid and live online.

Clars Auction Gallery is at 5644 Telegraph Avenue. For information, 510-428-0100 or www.clars.com.

1. John Wells James, Autumn in Pennsylvania, oil on panel, 18″ x 18″. 2. A Rolex stainless steel wristwatch, Submariner, Ref. 16610. 3. A French 19th century silvered bronze figure of a young beauty. 4. A Chinese cloisonne enamel meiping vase. 5. A Burma ruby, diamond and gold pendant necklace. 6. A Chinese lady’s embroidered turquoise-ground silk robe. 7. A selection of Italian Modern furniture, including Mario Bellini Cab Chairs and a Marc Ange for Visionnaire II Pavone Armchair. 8. Zhu Qizhan, Daffodils. 9. Henrietta Berk, Portrait of Phyllis D. (Phyllis Diebenkorn), 1960, oil on canvas, 25″ x 16″. 10. A colored diamond, diamond, cultured pearl and white gold pearl necklace. 11. A Chinese Tang dynasty style pottery horse. 12. A fancy yellow, internal flawless diamond, diamond and 14k white gold ring. 13. A pair of Burma ruby and diamond earrings. 14. A pair of fancy intense yellow diamond, diamond and 14k white gold earrings. 15. A private collection of $20 Liberty Eagles and $20 St Gaudens Double Eagle gold coins, including a number of Carson City coins and NGC MS64-65 graded examples, as well as $2.50, $5, $10 gold coins and Morgan silver dollars. 16. A selection of French decorative arts, including a fine S. Louis suite of gilt cut glass stemware for twelve.

1. Diamond and 18K white gold necklace. 2. T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings Slipper Lounge Chairs and Ottoman. 3. Chinese famille verte porcelain vase. 4. Indian enamel, diamond, ruby and gold bracelet. 5. Chinese lady’s embroidered turquoise-ground silk robe. 6. Daum Nancy Bowl.
7. Audemars Piguet 18K white gold wristwatch. 8. Marguerite Wildenhain Pond Farm Mermaid Vase. 9. Chinese cloisonne enamel meiping vase. 10. T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings Sofa, Model 1711.
11. Tanzanite and diamond pendant. 12. Chinese iron-red decorated ‘dragon’ charger. 13. Jadeite, diamond and 18K white gold pendant.
14. Diamond and pearl with seed pearl bracelet.
Clars Auctions | 5644 Telegraph Ave. Oakland, CA 94609
In Person + Online Bidding | Preview: August 10th, 9 AM – 1 PM PDT