Los Angeles, CA— John Moran Auctioneers will present their bi-annual sale of Modern & Contemporary Art on Tuesday, June 11th, 2024, at noon PDT. This auction will feature works by many important artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, including paintings, prints and multiples, photography, and sculpture by artists such as Raimonds Staprans, George E. Hughes, Pablo Picasso, Masami Teraoka, Norman Rockwell, Jacques Lipchitz, Alec Monopoly, Marc Chagall, Joe Basso, Senaka Senanayake, Hunt Slonem, Ruth Armer, Peter Alexander, Henrietta Berk, Linda McCartney, and Joan Miro.
Masami Teraoka (b. 1936), "Rabbit Island Catfish" from the "New Waves Series," $20,000-30,000
The star of the show is a new-to-market work by Raimonds Staprans (b. 1926) titled, “Blue Skies, Red Paint,” 1994. Moran’s is excited to, once again, offer Staprans’s work since they achieved the world auction record for the artist last August with his orange-themed painting, “A Study of Down Rolling Oranges with a Staid Neon Apple,” 1995, achieving $237,500 (including buyer’s premium). Lot 34, “Blue Skies, Red Paint,” 1994, estimated $100,000-200,000, and was exhibited in, “Raimonds Staprans,” at the Mendenhall Gallery in Pasadena, CA from January 13-February 8, 1996, with Staprans’ current record holder set by Moran’s last summer. The lot includes the sales invoice and gallery’s exhibition brochure with an illustration of this painting and an essay written by Paul J Karlstrom. At the time, Karlstrom was the West Coast Regional Director of the Smithsonian Institution’s Archives of American Art, and editor of “On the Edge of America: California Modernist Art 1900-1950” published later that year. Karlstrom went on to write “Raimonds Staprans: Art of Tranquility and Turbulence” in 2006 for the University of Washington Press. “Blue Skies, Red Paint” appears as plate 46 on page 12 of that more recent publication. Also presented in this sale, Staprans’s “A Can and Orange,” 1996, estimated $20,000-40,000, and purchased from the Mendenhall Gallery during their 1997 exhibit, “Raimonds Staprans”. This work, lot 35, is sold together with a copy of the abovementioned exhibition catalogue, inscribed in ink on the title page, “For Greg with appreciation, R. Staprans / 1/11/[1997].”
There will also be two works by the New York artist, illustrator, and portraitist, George E. Hughes (1907-1990). Hughes started his professional career by providing freelance illustrations to the fashion industry including works for Vanity Fair and House and Garden. Then, in 1942, Hughes caught the eye of Saturday Evening Post Art Director, Ken Stuart. Stuart commissioned Huges for a series of WWII portraits of American generals titled, “These Art the Generals” that brought Hughes early national fame. During his time with The Saturday Evening Post, Hughes completed a total of 115 covers. Making their way to the block are two original works by Hughes that became Post covers. Lot 85, “Gossiping Neighbor,” 1951, estimated $25,000-35,000, and lot 86, “Don’t Block The Driveway,” 1953, estimated $25,000-35,000—and each come with a copy of their matching Post issue.
Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), Study for the Land of Enchantment $20,000-30,000
Another well-known Saturday Evening Post artist is Norman Rockwell (1894-1978). Read by millions, Rockwell’s art became iconic to the American public and emblematic of both the great events and the everyday life experiences of the twentieth century. This sale will offer one of his watercolors, lot 84, an unsigned study for the oil painting, The Land of Enchantment, estimated $20,000-30,000, currently in the collection of the New Rochelle Library, New Rochelle, New York, which appeared as a double-page spread in the December 22, 1934, edition of The Saturday Evening Post. The whimsical composition depicts the power of children’s imagination, placing a young boy and girl in the foreground, each immersed in a book, with the fable and fairy tale characters about which they read surrounding them. A copy of the magazine is included with this lot.
A defining artist of the contemporary ukiyo-e style is Masami Teraoka (b. 1936), who combines traditional Japanese woodblock printing with American pop culture and current events, all through the lens of evocative satire. His work is in numerous private and public institutions across the world and continues to be exhibited nationally and internationally. Presented in this auction is “Rabbit Island Catfish”, lot 42, estimated $20,000-30,000, from his 1992 New Wave Series, and depicts a Western tourist washed up on the shores of Japan.
Lot 52 will feature “White Tigers,” 1966, estimated $8,000-12,000, by the Sri Lankan painter, Senaka Senanayake (b. 1951). Senanayake’s work is characterized by its brilliantly colored scenes of lush, overlapping jungle fauna and vegetation, earning him a reputation as one of Sri Lanka’s most appreciated artists.
Collectors will also not want to miss works by Hunt Slonem, Ruth Armer, and Peter Alexander. Lot 60, Slonem’s “Merlin,” 2021, estimated $5,000-7,000, is an example of his Neo-Expressionist paintings of bunnies, this one created with diamond dust. The San Francisco Bay area artist, Ruth Armer will be represented with her work, lot 67, “Surreal Landscape,” estimated $5,000-7,000. Lot 38, “Hallelujah I,” 1988, estimated $1,500-2,000, is by Peter Alexander, an American artist who was part of the Light and Space artistic movement in southern California in the 1960s.
To view and bid on the sale, go to www.johnmoran.com.
— Brenda Smith, John Moran Auctioneers
“The star of the show is a new-to-market work by Raimonds Staprans (b. 1926) titled, “Blue Skies, Red Paint,” 1994. Moran’s is excited to, once again, offer Staprans’s work since they achieved the world auction record for the artist last August with his orange-themed painting, “A Study of Down Rolling Oranges with a Staid Neon Apple,” 1995, achieving $237,500 (including buyer’s premium).”
Raimonds Staprans (b. 1926), "Blue Skies, Red Paint" $100,000-200,000
Upcoming Auctions
John Moran Auctioneers is continuing their 2024 lineup with the Art of the American West auction, Tuesday, June 4th, followed by the Modern + Contemporary Fine Art sale, Tuesday, June 11th, 2024. Be sure to mark your calendars for these upcoming auctions so you don’t miss out on the action, and the treasures!
Art of the American West: Tuesday, June 4th | 10:00 am PDT
Modern + Contemporary Fine Art: Tuesday, June 11th | 12:00 pm PDT
ReDesigned: Tuesday, June 25th | 10:00 am PDT
Traditional Collector: Tuesday, July 30th | 12:00 pm PDT
Art + Design: Tuesday, August 13th | 12:00 pm PDT
For upcoming highlights, online catalogues, and more information on these sales, visit Moran’s website: www.johnmoran.com and follow us on social media: @johnmoran_auctioneers. Along with our website, bidding is now available online via Moran’s new mobile app, Moran Mobile, available on both iOS and Android operating systems. You may also choose to bid by phone or absentee.
Consignments are always welcome:
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