Center for the Arts, Jackson, WY
September 17-18
John Clymer, Buffalo Scouts, oil, 10 x 20. Estimate: $60,000-$90,000.
Like everyone else, collectors are ready to experience the world in person again, including the pleasure of joining with others to appreciate exceptional art. Happily, the reopening of in-person public events coincides with the 15th annual Jackson Hole Art Auction, set for September 17-18 in Jackson, WY. Last year the auction, though conducted live, took place entirely online; the Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival, of which the auction is a highlight, was canceled because of pandemic restrictions. Now, both the auction and festival are back in downtown Jackson.
“It’s very exciting,” says auction partner Roxanne Mowery, adding, “This year we probably have the broadest and most diverse range of artworks we’ve ever had.” Presented by Trailside Galleries and Gerald Peters Gallery, the auction features classic and contemporary western, wildlife, and sporting art by preeminent historic and living artists. This year’s 340 works include 30 pieces from the collection of legendary oilman and entrepreneur T. Boone Pickens.
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- William R. Leigh, Patient, oil, 22 x 28. Estimate: $60,000-$90,000.
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- Carl Rungius, Above the Treeline, oil, 30 x 40. Estimate: $300,000-$500,000.
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- Bob Kuhn, Stuff of Legends, acrylic, 22 x 30. Estimate: $100,000-$150,000.
The auction is a destination event, Mowery says. With the exception of last year, many collectors have attended every year since its inception. Conducted in two sessions, the bidding action starts at noon on both Friday and Saturday at the Center for the Arts. While all aspects of the event are being offered in person, several remote bidding options are also available, including phone and absentee bidding and the auction’s own downloadable app. Previews are available at the auction showroom at 130 East Broadway in Jackson. The full catalog can be perused online, and provenance, condition reports, and other details are available for each artwork.
Among the works in the T. Boone Pickens collection are paintings by John Clymer and G. Harvey, as well as an important piece by Howard Terpning titled VANISHING PONY TRACKS. Commissioned by Pickens, the painting has an auction estimate of $700,000 to $1 million. “Howard is not just a great artist but is considered a master storyteller of the Plains Indians,” Mowery says. She adds that Pickens himself was “an icon in the western American art market. He hoped to perpetuate western values—morality, truth, duty, honor, and country—by collecting art. And he had a great eye!”
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- Howard Terpning, Vanishing Pony Tracks, oil, 60 x 40. Estimate: $700,000-$1,000,000.
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- E. Martin Hennings, Untitled, oil, 30 x 30. Estimate: $600,000-$900,000.
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- Allan Houser, Dance of the Mountain Spirits I, bronze, 68 x 50 x 26. Estimate: $40,000-$60,000.
Also on the block are more than two dozen pieces from the corporate collection of Eddie Basha Jr. of Arizona, with a focus on major works by Cowboy Artists of America members including Tom Lovell, James Reynolds, and Clymer. Wildlife art includes paintings by Bonnie Marris, Luke Frazier, and “an incredible grouping by Bob Kuhn,” Mowery says.
Richard Schmid, Yellow Roses, oil, 20 x 30. Estimate: $75,000-$125,000.
Other highlights this year: a floral still life by the late, beloved Richard Schmid; a large oil by Jim Norton that won the Gold Medal at the 2001 CAA show; and an untitled painting by Taos Society artist E. Martin Hennings that has never before been on the market. Three-dimensional offerings include two striking bronzes by Chiricahua Apache artist Allan Houser. Mowery notes that Houser’s sculpture “really made a statement in a collector’s home and will in another collector’s home, too.” Indeed, the same could be said of each piece in this noted auction. –Gussie Fauntleroy
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- Luke Frazier, Frick and Frack, oil, 24 x 30.
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- Oscar Berninghaus, Taos Field of Workers, oil, 25 x 30. Estimate: $300,000-$500,000.
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- John Nieto, Running Wolf, acrylic, 30 x 40.
contact information
866.549.9278
www.jacksonholeartauction.com
This story appeared in the August/September 2021 issue of Southwest Art magazine.