RAGO DEBUTS 20TH C. DESIGN WEEKEND WITH MODERN AND EARLY 20TH C. PROPERTY NOT SEEN ON THE MARKET IN Extraordinary private collections, exceptional individual pieces and conservative estimates promise to attract serious competition.
Lambertville, NJ Rago Arts and Auction Center begins 2010 with
Burton, estimated at $2,000-3,000; lot 280, a Dirk Van Erp red warty hammered copper vase, estimated at $2,000-3,000; and lot 292, a Gustav Stickley hammered copper charger with pods, estimated at $12,000-16,000, as well as work by Kalo, Roycroft, Yellin, Albert Berry and Liberty & Co.
The lighting in the sale features a number of lamps by Dirk Van Erp, including lot 288, a hammered copper and mica four-panel table lamp, estimated at $8,000-12,000; lot 172, a Tiffany Studios Colonial table lamp with blown-out bronze base, estimated at $18,000-22,000; and lot 171, a Tiffany Studios table lamp with Daffodil shade over Secessionist bronze base, estimated at $35,000-45,000. There is also lighting by Handel, Pairpont, Roycroft and Cleaveland.
Furniture offered includes several exceptional Rohlfs items: lot 147, a large 1903 blanket chest with carvings and ornate copper work, estimated at $14,000-22,000; lot 145, an extensively carved music cabinet, estimated at $7,000-10,000; and lot 146, an octagonal table with a repeating pattern of elaborate cut-out panels, estimated at $10,000-15,000. An important Tiffany chair, lot 169, from the New York Havemeyer residence, designed in conjunction with Samuel Coleman, will be offered for $100,000-$125,000. Early and rare Gustav Stickley pieces include lot 57, a 1902 office desk with paneled sides and a ten-drawer gallery top in exceptional original finish, estimated at $11,000-14,000; lot 58, a 1901 miter-mullion tall single door china cabinet, estimated at $8,000-12,000; lot 54, a Grueby tile-top plant stand from 1901, estimated at $7,000-10,000; and lot 235, a unique custom-made leather top desk from 1901 estimated at $8,000-12,000. There are also two five-leg cross-stretcher dining tables, one, lot 238, a custom-made example from 1901 estimated at $3,000-5,000. In spindle furniture, we are offering lot 66, a mint even-arm loveseat, estimated at $9,000-14,000, as well as five lots of spindle furniture from the Douglas Mansion in Warren, AZ built in 1907. There are numerous other examples of better quality Stickley furniture including an even arm settle #222, single and double door Ellis bookcases with leaded windows, two sets of V-Back chairs, an amber glass music cabinet, and much more. In other makers, we have a beautiful Roycroft Ali Baba bench, lot 156, estimated at $10,000-12,000; single, double, and triple door bookcases by L. & J.G. Stickley; and lot 165, a rare chestnut Limbert sideboard with butterfly inset doors estimated at $2,500-3,500. As a whole, the 91 pieces of Arts & Crafts furniture we are offering represents the strongest level of high-quality furnishings we have presented in many sales.
A few choice items for those with an interest in Western fine and decorative art include lot 52A, a threesome of Southwest baskets; three lots of blackware by Maria Martinez; a Maynard Dixon gouache landscape on paper dedicated to his friend Charles Greene, signed and dated 1897; an antler chandelier and a grouping of hunting trophy heads. Also in the sale are woodblock prints (featuring a fine example by Edna Boies Hopkins), rugs, textiles and stained glass windows.
