At the top of the sale with a result of $16,250 was an untitled New England coastal scene painting by Alfred Thompson Bricher (American, 1837-1908), oil on canvas, 25 by 36¾ inches, framed. The scenic painting found a new home in Illinois with a private collector ($20/40,000).
Review by Kiersten Busch; Photos Courtesy Helmuth Stone Gallery
SARASOTA, FLA. — On April 14, Helmuth Stone Gallery conducted its Fine Arts & Antiques Auction, which featured an important Sands Point, N.Y., single-owner lifetime collection of Asian porcelains and sculpture, many of which were acquired in the early 1990s through Sotheby’s and Christie’s. Additionally, the sale highlighted prominent artists such as Alfred T. Bricher, Henry F. Farny, Ignacio Iturria, Jasper Cropsey and Thomas Hill. The auction realized $213,500 with a sell-through rate of 71 percent after offering 330 lots to bidders from around the world.
Achieving top-lot status was an oil on canvas New England coastal scene with sailboats by American-born Bricher, which sold for $16,250 to a private collector in Illinois. The untitled oil on canvas painting was housed in a fluted cove frame that measured 25 by 36¾ inches. It had provenance from an important American art collector and was acquired by descent; an old exhibition number was stenciled on the back of the stretcher.
Another top-selling painting was Cropsey’s “Autumn Afternoon,” which sold for $7,500, blowing past its estimate of $2/4,000. The oil on board painting was a Hudson River autumnal landscape, featuring a figure fishing in a stream. It was signed by the artist in the lower left corner and measured 13 by 17 inches in its giltwood frame. “Autumn Afternoon” also had a Campanile Galleries (Chicago) label verso. The painting found its new home with a Pennsylvania collector.
This large, intricately carved Chinese lapis lazuli “Eighteen Louhans” boulder from the single-owner Sands Point, N.Y., collection closed at $10,000, the second highest priced lot of the day. It measured 22 by 20 by 9¼ inches and was sold to a private collector in New Jersey ($8/16,000).
Chinese art and porcelain were also popular with the bidding crowd, with two lots in particular landing in the top five best-selling of the auction. The first was a large Chinese carved lapis lazuli boulder, titled “Eighteen Louhans,” and signed with characters on the upper right portion of the sculpture. The design featured intricately carved scholars, figures, animals and flowers throughout. It had provenance to the Sands Point estate and measured 22 by 20 by 9¼ inches. It realized $10,000, landing comfortably within its $8/16,000 estimate. It was sold to a private collector in New Jersey.
A Chinese rose medallion punch bowl from the Qing dynasty, which was cataloged as “important and monumental” by the auction house. The bowl depicted an elaborate courtyard scene with figures, flowers and butterflies with gilt highlights. The exterior was also adorned with elaborate figural scenes and the bottom bore an old Christie’s label. Also from the Sands Point estate, the bowl measured 23 by 9 inches. It sold for $9,375 to a collector in Hong Kong.
This early Khmer sandstone figure of Buddha Muchalinda closed at $7,187. The statue was initially purchased from the Beverly Hills, Calif., gallery I.M. Chait, then became part of the Smith Point, N.Y. collection. It is 30½ by 13½ by 8¾ inches.
Another lot from the Sands Point estate was an early Khmer sandstone figure of Buddha Muchalinda that exceeded expectations to sell for $7,188. The figure was displayed on a stand and featured a finely incised seven-headed Naga – a half-human, half-cobra being from Buddhist and Hindu culture. Overall, it measured 34½ inches in height and had been purchased in the 1990s from I.M. Chait Galleries in Beverly Hills, Calif.
Helmuth Stone Gallery’s next auction is June 9. Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. For information, 941-260-9703 or www.helmuthstone.com.
