Grand Sierra Resort, Reno, NV
July 30-31
Carl Rungius, Bighorn Sheep, Nigel Pass, Alberta, oil, 12 x 16. Estimate: $40,000-$60,000.
Last year’s Coeur d’Alene Art Auction brought some changes to what many western art collectors consider the preeminent event of the year. Transforming it into a virtual sale due to the pandemic, with viewing and selling taking place exclusively online, meant that “we were forced to step up our technological game as far as online and telephone bidding,” says Mike Overby, one of three auction partners along with Peter Stremmel and Stuart Johnson. “But we did learn that you can hold a successful art auction online,” he continues, noting that while the 2021 edition welcomes 500-plus collectors back to Reno’s Grand Sierra Resort, “we’re going to have the best of both worlds this year, including all the advanced technology” for bidders who can’t be there in person.
Such enhanced options will be put to good use for an auction that features upwards of 360 lots, which Overby says is “about 10 percent more than we typically do, because of a lot of pent-up demand from people who decided not to sell last year.” Potential buyers gather for an all-day preview on Friday, July 30, followed by a lecture from western art expert Dr. Larry Len Peterson on his book The American West Reimagined, and then a gala cocktail party and dinner. The next morning brings a brunch and another preview opportunity; the sale itself—conducted by foremost western art auctioneer Troy Black—starts at noon and lasts about five hours.
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- E.I. Couse, Moonlight Sonata, oil, 36 x 30. Estimate: $200,000-$300,000.
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- William Gollings, Winter Country, oil, 34 x 24. Estimate: $100,000-$150,000.
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- Sydney Laurence, Mount McKinley, Alaska, oil, 20 x 16. Estimate: $30,000-$50,000.
This year’s auction promises some of the most exciting offerings in years, including ROPING A WOLF, “a rare oil from Charlie Russell’s prime period in 1904,” says Overby. The high-action scene is “the most major Russell painting to hit the market in quite a few years, and I won’t be surprised if it surpasses the estimated $1 million to $1.5 million selling range.” Other museum-quality works include THE HORSE THIEF by Frank Tenney Johnson and Walter Ufer’s GREASEWOOD AND SAGE, both of which are estimated at $300,000 to $500,000.
Sculpture is also prominently featured at the event. Among this year’s highlights are 30 western bronzes by the much-sought-after artist Harry Jackson, which are being sold from the collection of California State University, Northridge. Among Overby’s favorites are JOHN WAYNE ($20,000-$30,000) and TWO JAMS, depicting a rider on a bucking bronc ($15,000-$25,000).
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- Charlie Dye, Taking the Tally, oil, 30 x 40. Estimate: $50,000-$75,000.
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- Walter Ufer, Greasewood and Sage, oil, 25 x 25. Estimate: $300,000-$500,000.
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- Edgar Payne, Sardine Boats, Chioggia, Italy, oil, 25 x 30. Estimate: $30,000-$50,000.
Paintings by prominent contemporary artists are also sure to create excitement. Several important pieces by famed painter Richard Schmid, who passed away in April, are on the block. Other well-known names include Martin Grelle, Bonnie Marris, C. Michael Dudash, and Thomas Blackshear II. It all adds up to perhaps the most promising Coeur d’Alene Art Auction in memory. Then, says Overby with a chuckle, “Come Sunday morning, after two days of fun, everybody heads on out back home.” —Norman Kolpas
contact information
208.772.9009
www.cdaartauction.com
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- Paul Pletka, All the King’s Men, acrylic, 48 x 66. Estimate: $40,000-$60,000.
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- Frank Tenney Johnson, The Horse Thief, oil, 26 x 38. Estimate: $300,000-$500,000.
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- Herman W. Hansen, Attack on the Stagecoach, oil, 32 x 48. Estimate: $80,000-$120,000.
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- Maynard Dixon, Clouds of a Summer Afternoon, oil, 16 x 20. Estimate: $60,000-$90,000.
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- John Clymer, Visitors at Fort Clatsop, oil, 24 x 48. Estimate: $200,000-$300,000.
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- Albert Bierstadt, Mount Baker, Washington, oil, 15 x 20. Estimate: $250,000-$350,000.
This story appeared in the June/July 2021 issue of Southwest Art magazine.