Contemporary Art Part I
“The quality selection of the May auction reflects the discerning standards that the contemporary market demands. With top works across the entire spectrum of mid-century through cutting edge art, we have high expectations for global competition and record prices.” Michael McGinnis, Senior Director and Worldwide Head of Contemporary Art.

Contemporary Art Part II

This season begins an exciting run for contemporary art. We are pleased to present top works that are fresh to the market, from private collections all over the world. The selection is wide-ranging and dynamic.” Sarah Mudge, Head of Contemporary Art Part II.

Sotheby’s May 18 sale of American Indian Art in New York will offer a rich selection of artwork from the Northwest Coast, Southwest, Plains, Eastern Woodlands and the Eskimo. Native traditions including porcupine quillwork, beadwork, basketry, blanket weaving and carving are well represented. There is also an exceptional group of contemporary paintings and sculpture from the Southwest.

The sale is distinguished by a number of private collections including The Bruce and Nancy Berman Collection of Navajo Blankets, which features weavings that date from the mid-19th century. A highlight is a rare and exceptionally dazzling wedge weave blanket. There are also several large and pristine rugs that reflect the enormous creativity found within the Navajo weaving tradition.

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Sotheby’s Geneva 17th May sale of Magnificent Jewels & Noble Jewels is spearheaded by the most important emerald and diamond tiara to have appeared at auction in over 30 years and a superb fancy intense pink diamond weighing 10.99 carats. The sale also comprises fine jewels of noble provenance, and an impressive array of white diamonds and coloured gemstones including Kashmir sapphires and two important Burmese rubies.

In addition, there is a broad selection of period jewels, and creations signed by some of the world’s greatest jewelers; among them, 50 jewels by Cartier, nearly 40 creations by Van Cleef and Arpels, and a group of jewels by JAR.

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Ivey-Selkirk Auctioneers’ May Jackson Rooms Auction is finally here!  You’ll see a variety of beautiful pieces – far too many to list here!  But here are a few of the many pieces available at this amazing auction:

• A Fine Selection of English Furniture and Decorative Art including a Harvest Table, Welsh Dresser, Pew, Cupboards, Bookcase, Terra Cotta Chimney Pots and Mirrors
• Exceptional Painted French Louis XV Style Armoire with Beveled Edge Mirrors, Louis XV style Marble Top Bombe Chest, Pair Louis XV Belle Epoque Armchairs and a Louis XV Belle Epoque Settee
• Antique American Bookcases, a Baker Armoire, China Cabinets, Contemporary Design Furniture and Wrought Iron and Patio Furniture and Outdoor Elements
• Oil Paintings and Prints including a large Floral Oil by Sebouten
• Asian Decorative Art, Lamps & Chandeliers
• Handwoven Carpets and Area Rugs, Sterling and Plated Silver
• Flo Blue, Ashworth Bros., Mottahedeh, Limoges, Staffordshire, Waterford, Baccarat and More
• Large Selection of Silver, Costume and 14k Gold Jewelry
• American Samplers and Longaberger Baskets
• Toys & Collectibles, Much More!

Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Sale on the evening of May 10^th provides rare opportunities for collectors seeking extraordinary masterworks from the mid-20^th century thrugh to the 21^st century.

Iconic works by Andy Warhol and Jeff Koons are the star offerings of the sale.  The Pink Panther is the paramount work in Koons’ seminal and coveted Banality series and this exquisitely crafted porcelain sculpture is among the most important works of the late 20^th century to come to auction.  Pink Panther embodies Koons’ classic themes of popular culture and rarefied elitism, eroticism and naivety, all captured in luxuriant color and surface textures.

Sixteen Jackies is a testament to Warhol’s keen perception of the role of media in American popular culture, as captured in his selection of eight haunting images of President Kennedy’s wife in the week of his assassination in late 1963.  In its full range of palette, grid format and image selection, this work is homage to the greatest of his multi-panel Jackies of 1964, The Week That Was. Warhol’s insight into the dissonance between the public and private face of celebrity, as well as the darkness underlying American prosperity, makes Sixteen Jackies a powerful memorial of the time.

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The May auction of African, Oceanic, and Pre-Columbian Art at Sotheby’s offers a rich selection of exceptional art from the traditional cultures of sub-Saharan Africa, the Pacific Islands and Indonesia, as well as Central and South America.

The inspiration modern European artists drew from these traditional cultures in the first decades of the 20th century is particularly evident in a selection of sculpture from the collection of renowned Modern art dealer Pierre Matisse (lots 167-202). The son of the painter Henri Matisse opened his gallery in New York in 1931 and launched some of the earliest exhibitions of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas in the United States. Represented in the group are a beautiful Fang Reliquary Figure, a striking Kanak Roof Spire, and a sublime Teotihuacan Greenstone Mask.

Pre-Columbian art is well represented from various private collections including an important group of Andean textiles and ceramics from the collection of Roland Hartmann, Switzerland; fine Maya ceramics, Central American gold and an Olmec jade spoon pendant of extraordinary emerald green color from a North American private collection. A large Chinesco Seated Male Figure, Type A, is among the evocative West Mexican ceramic figures from various American collections.