Christie’s – Important Americana; Part of Americana Week
New York 24 January 2025
christies.com

NEW YORK CITY — Christie’s is pleased to present Outsider Art, the first sale of New York Americana Week, taking place at 10 am on Wednesday, January 22, at Rockefeller Center. The sale offers an array of more than 140 exceptional works with important examples by the category’s most iconic artists including Martín Ramírez, Bill Traylor, Adolf Wolfli, William Hawkins, Thornton Dial, Winfred Rembert and more. With estimates ranging from $800 to $200,000, the sale offers an opportunity for buyers just embarking on their collecting journey and seasoned collectors alike.

Cara Zimmerman, head of Outsider Art, commented, “It is a pleasure to present the Outsider Art sale to our clients this January in New York. The auction is replete with outstanding artwork by the category’s most notable artists. We are particularly delighted to once again offer works from the William Louis-Dreyfus Foundation.”

The sale kicks off with a group of 41 objects being sold by the William Louis-Dreyfus Foundation. Among the selection are works by Purvis Young, Nellie Mae Rowe, Thornton Dial, Clementine Hunter and Bill Traylor, including Untitled (Pitcher and Bowl), an elegant, widely-published and exhibited work by the artist. Further sale highlights include two magnificent three-dimensional pieces by William Hawkins and the large and important pieced-paper Untitled (Stag with Two Dogs) by Martín Ramírez, who stands among the best known self-taught artists of the Twentieth Century.

Christie’s is proud to present Important Americana, the annual sale of works of art, furniture, silver, folk art, Chinese Export works and documents that trace American history, taking place live on January 24 at Rockefeller Center. This year’s offerings include a number of discoveries including the only known double-sided portrait by Ammi Phillips ($40/60,000), likely of the same young woman, rendering her more and then less plainly. Another important discovery is the Samuel Jones Declaration of Independence ($2/3,000,000), the only obtainable contemporary manuscript of the nation’s founding charter, as well as two remarkable furniture offerings: a block-and-shell bureau table made by celebrated Newport cabinetmaker John Goddard ($300/500,000); and a previously unknown survival from a rare set of Queen Anne Philadelphia armchairs ($20 0/400,000). These discoveries are complemented by highlights that include The Alaska Railroad, an American presentation 14K gold railroad spike ($30/50,000), commemorating the completion of the railroad line that shaped the history of Anchorage and the entire state; a marquetry and parquetry-inlaid walnut desk-and-bookcase ($70/100,000) signed by Uriah Eberhart, a masterpiece of folk furniture making. Various private collections are represented in the sale, including Midwestern Virtue: Property from the Collection of Sam and Patty Mccullough, which features Sheldon Peck’s portrait of Oscar Gilbert Adams ($50/80,000).

Christie’s is at 20 Rockefeller Plaza. For information, 212-636-7000 or www.christies.com.

CONTACT
Julia Jones jjones@christies.com +1 516 585 3357
MIDWESTERN VIRTUE: PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF SAM AND PATTY MCCULLOUGH SHELDON PECK (1796 1868) Oscar Gilbert Adams, c.1828 Estimate: $50,000-80,000