By Carter B. Horsley This day auction of Post-War and Contemporary Art at Christie's May 12, 2004, offers a broad selection of good works by many famous artists. It is highlighted by a strong and colorful painting by Lee Krsasner (1908-1984), several nice mobiles by Alexander Calder (1898- 1976), an interesting work by David Smith (1906-1965), an early and intriguing work by Sam Francis (1923-1994), a good Adolph Gottlieb (1903-1974), a striking still life by David Hockney (b. 1927), a classic painting and a good sculpture by Frank Stella, (b. 1936), a nice study by Arshile Gorky (1904-1948), a very good painting by Philip Guston (1913-1980), a good sculpture by Mark di Suvero (b. 1933), a good painting by Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997), and a good sculpture by George Rickey (1907-2002). Lot 105 is a very painterly oil on canvas by Lee Krasner (see The City Review article). Entitled "Image Surfacing," it measures 27 by 27 ¼ inches and was executed circa 1945. It has a very strong palette of whites, blues, and reds and is an excellent abstraction. It has a modest estimate of $90,000 to $120,000. It sold for $153,100 including the buyer's premium as do all results mentioned in this article.
Another Krasner is Lot 179. Entitled "Peacock," it is an oil on canvas that is 82 inches square. Executed in 1973, it has an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000. It sold for $175,500. There are several good mobiles by Alexander Calder.
Lot 109, "Escutcheon," is a painted sheet metal and wire wall sculpture that measures 44 by 40 by 35 inches. Executed in 1954, it has an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000. It sold for $365,900.
Lot 177, "National Gallery II (Maquette)," is a standing mobile of painted sheet metal, wire, bolts and wingnuts that measures 14 by 43 by 22 inches. Executed in 1972, it is a study for a commission for the National Gallery of Art's East Wing in Washington, D.C. Eventually, I. M. Pei, the architect of the wing, desired a hanging mobile for the wing's large atrium, and Calder changed his design. This lot has an estimate of $220,000 to $280,000. It sold for $343,500.
Lot 178, "Yellow Counterweight," is a standing mobile of painted sheet metal and wire by Calder. It measures 51 by 24 inches and was executed in 1972. It has an estimate of $250,000 to $350,000. It sold for $321,100.
One of the auction's most interesting works is Lot 111, "Open Window," a spray enamel on canvas by David Smith, the sculptor. It measures 96 by 13 inches and was executed in 1959. It has an estimate of $100,000 to $150,000. It sold for $147,500. The catalogue provides the following commentary: "Open Window is a dynamic and original work that draws affinities to the artist's sculptures but remains wholly faithful to its medium. In its compositional scheme, the painting Open Window relates to sculptures like Circles and Angles. Both of these works depend upon a tight-knit relationship of sharp angled geometric forms. They portray an easy ebb and flow of movement that has neither a compositional beginning nor end. While Smith sought to make drawings in space with his sculptures, his paintings are heavily dependent upon the exploration of negative space and the absence of implied mass. Although Smith certainly created some paintings as studies for sculptures, most of his paintings like Open Window are meant to stand alone. Smith's paintings are some of his purest expressions. Smith was quick to admit that sculpture was a difficult medium with which to purse his Abstract Expressionist goals. The laborious process of assembling metal parts through welding and casting could easily squash the spontaneity and dynamism Smith sought.He did not rely on 'action' painting like his peers Jackson Pollock and Franz Kline, but instead created dynamic and spontaneous compositions on par with the best Abstract Expressionists canvases using metal parts and studio detritus as stencils."
The Prudential Foundation Art Collection has consigned an early and good abstraction by Sam Francis. Entitled "Composition," it is a 36-by-40 ¼-inch oil on canvas that was executed in 1948. It has a modest estimate of $50,000 to $70,000. It sold for $101,575. Lot 154 is a very bold and colorful and atypical abstraction by Adolph Gottlieb, entitled "Centipede." Executed in 1955, it is an oil on masonite that measures 20 by 24 inches. It has a modest estimate of $35,000 to $45,000. It sold for $69,310.
The catalogue's frontispiece is Lot 191, "Antheriums," a lovely floral still life by David Hockney. The oil on canvas in a handpainted artist's frame measures 41 ¼ by 53 ¼ inches and was executed in 1995. It has an estimate of $400,000 to $600,000. It sold for $847,500.
Lot 161 is a classic and excellent "concentric squares" painting by Frank Stella. An acrylic on linen, it measures 103 inches square and was executed in 1978. It has an estimate of $280,000 to $320,000. It sold for $444,300.
Lot 175 is a large oil and enamel on cast aluminum sculpture by Frank Stella. Entitled "The Spouter Inn," it measures 78 ¾ by 93 ¼ by 46 ½ inches and was executed in 1987. It has a modest estimate of $70,000 to $90,000. It was withdrawn.
Lot 101 is a strong ink on paper drawing by Arshile Gorky. It measures 10 by 14 7/8 inches and was executed circa 1932. It has an estimate of $30,000 to $40,000. It sold for $45,410.
Lot 180 is a good oil on canvas by Philip Guston that is entitled "Painting on Floor." It measures 60 7/8 by 52 ¼ inches and was painted in 1978. It has an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000. It sold for $522,700.
Lot 183 is an interesting untitled kinetic sculpture by Mark di Suvero. Executed in 1964-7, it is stainless steel, steel, aluminum, stone, wire and string and measures 22 by 39 by 24 inches. It has an estimate of $35,000 to $45,000. It sold for $53,775.
Another kinetic sculpture is Lot 210, "Eight Lines," by George Rickey. The brushed aluminum work measures 62 ½ by 55 by 6 inches. It was conceived in 1963 and executed in 1987. It has an estimate of $40,000 to $60,000. It sold for $57,360.
Lot 186 is an excellent 1992 work by Roy Lichtenstein entitled "Water Lily Pond with Reflections. It is screenprinted enamel on processed and swirled stainless steel with a painted wood frame. It measures 58 by 84 ½ inches. According to the catalogue, it is "the second presentation proof from an edition of twenty-three plus seven artist's proofs." It has an estimate of $40,000 to $60,000. It sold for $107,550.
Lot 112 is a good abstract study by Willem de Kooning (1904-1997). Entitled "Oil Painting on Paper VI," it was executed in 1958. It is an oil on paper laid down on canvas that measures 21 1/4 by 28 inches. It has an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000. It sold for $231,500.
Lot 160 is a fine oil on canvas by James Rosenquist (b. 1928). Executed in 1975, it measures 48 by 112 inches and is entitled "Hot Lake." It has a modest estimate of $40,000 to $60,000. It sold for $65,725.
Lot 121 is an strong untitled gouache on paper by Hans Hofmann (1880-1966). It measures 17 1/2 by 23 1/4 inches and was executed in 1943. It has a modest estimate of $25,000 to $35,000. It sold for $57,360.