Swann President Nicholas Lowry Gets Daily News Centerfold

Be sure to read today's Daily News centerfold story featuring Swann President and Posters Specialist Nicholas Lowry.


In her article "Cash-strapped households sending their belongings to auction block", Phyllis Furman writes:

Public relations exec Stephanie Rabinowitz stood in an East Side auction house and listened intently as the crowd was coaxed to bid during a sale of vintage posters....more
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Swann Supports The Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership Business Improvement District

Swann cares about our community and has joined the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership.


As a member of the Business Improvement District, Swann has sponsored a lamppost banner (above) that hangs across the street from our offices on 25th Street. The banner will be on display for a year.

Greetings from The Antiques Roadshow

Three Swann specialists attended The Antiques Roadshow in Atlantic City last weekend, and each of them found materials that merited a taped appraisal. Look for them to air next season. To view past segments from the show, and to find the current schedule, visit the PBS website.

Prints and Drawings Specialist Todd Weyman

at the Prints & Posters Table

Photographs Specialist Daile Kaplan

Swann President and Posters Specialist Nicholas Lowry

International Furnishings and Design Association Event June 24

From time to time, we will share with you information about fun or interesting events that are not directly related to Swann.

For example, on Wednesday, June 24, the New York chapter of the International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA) will be conducting an intimate evening with industry experts Wendy Moonan, antiques and collectibles journalist; Clinton Howell, antiques and furniture dealer; and Eric Cohler, interior designer. They will share insights on the recent surge of antiques in modern design.

The event starts at 6 PM. Reservations and payment required. RSVP by June 19 to 212-686-6020, or ifdanyny@verizon.net

Barron's Article Highlights Swann's Book Department

Dimitra DeFotis writes in her article "Recession Beaters: Rare Prices for Rare Books":

THERE IS NOTHING LIKE A GOOD, OLD BOOK. Despite the ravages of the recession and the advances of the digital age, prices of high-end rare books are holding firm.

In fact, Swann Auction Galleries in New York, a specialist in the field, recently garnered a record $72,000 for a book from Latin America. In fact, it was the first book published in Peru (some light reading on Catholic doctrine). Illustrated art books also have been selling well: A signed, first-edition Andy Warhol hardcover from 1967 recently went for $6,000 at Swann....more

Prints in American & Contemporary Art Sale Break Records

Cy Twombly's offset color lithograph Roman Notes VI, 1970 (above) realized $33,600 at Swann's auction of American Art & Contemporary Art yesterday. That price, including buyer's premium, equals the previous auction record for this print.

Andy Warhol color screenprint portraits set new records. Teddy Roosevelt, 1986 (top left) fetched $24,000; General Custer, 1986 (top right) brought $21,200; and Louis Brandeis, 1980 (bottom) sold for $9,000, all including buyer's premium.

Three Swann Specialists Will Participate in Antiques Roadshow This Weekend

Swann specialists Nicholas Lowry, Daile Kaplan, and Todd Weyman will be in Atlantic City with the Antiques Roadshow this weekend.

Be sure to check the Antiques Roadshow website for the schedule and additional information.

Daile Kaplan Speaks Tonight on the Art of Appraising Art

Swann Galleries' Vice President and Photography Specialist Daile Kaplan will speak tonight at The Coffee House Club on "The Art of Appraising Art." Ms. Kaplan will be joined by three fellow members of the Appraisers Association of America who will discuss the Club's art collection.

The event is open to the public.

The Coffee House Club is located at 20 West 44th Street, Sixth Floor, New York, NY 10036.
For more information, please call 212 391 5609 or email coffeehouseclub@hotmail.com.

Swann Galleries is Listed as the Dominant American Book Auction House in the $500 to $10,000 Range

The Americana Exchange, a well regarded San Francisco-based website that tracks book auction prices, recently released a detailed analysis of the 2008 market, covering 78 auction houses across the world, including all major American houses. According to their statistics, Swann was the dominant U.S. book auction house for the $500 to $10,000 range in 2008.

• Swann conducted 29 related auctions with 8,122 lots sold in 2008. This is the second-most of any house in the world, behind only one London house.


• Swann sold more lots in the $500 to $1,000 and $1,000 to $2,000 range than any American house.


• Swann sold more lots in the $2,000 to $5,000 range than any auction house in the world--by a wide margin.


• Swann sold more lots in the $5,000 to $10,000 range than any auction house in the world.


• In the highest range, $10,000+, Swann was third in the U.S. with 458 lots.

The Americana Exchange's analysis only covers what they consider book auctions, not art auctions. They included most of Swann's sales last year, including posters and photographs. Americana Exchange subscribers can view the supporting charts at the Americana Exchange's website.

Fine Books & Collections Features Article on Swann's Illustrated Books and Livres d'Artiste Sale

Ellen Firsching Brown writes in her article "Swann Song: A Last Hurrah for the Ritter Collection of Artist Books":

Last month Swann held the largest auction of modern illustrated books in recent memory. The 200-piece collection, assembled by Arizona collector Mel Ritter over a period of 35 years, was a veritable what’s what of book art, everything from early 20th-century livres d’artiste by Picasso and Braque to modern fine press works and sculptural book objects....more

Swann Auctions American & Contemporary Art This Thursday

With only two days until Swann's two-part sale of American Art and Contemporary Art, the galleries have been buzzing with interested previewers and early telephone bidding.

The first part of auction beginning at 10:30 a.m. will feature approximately 150 works of American Art—primarily drawings and paintings.


The auction continues at 2:30 p.m. with 240 lots of Contemporary Art by American and international artists, including prints, drawings, mixed media works, and sculpture multiples.

Swann's Modernist Poster Sale Exceeds Expectations

Swann Galleries’ May 21 auction of Modernist Posters exceeded expectations, posting excellent results that defied a sagging economy and weakened art market.

“The sales room was more crowded then usual, swelling to possibly the largest audience ever in attendance for a Swann poster auction,” said Nicholas Lowry, President and Director of Posters. “High-quality pieces estimated in keeping with the current market climate proved to be the perfect formula for a successful auction. Nearly 75 percent of the posters found buyers—a figure that would be impressive in any economy, and these days is exceptionally high.”

Several records were set. Dear God, Keep them Safe! / Buy War Bonds and Stamps, one of a series of three patriotic posters issued by the Kroger Grocery & Baking Company during World War II, fetched $16,800*, making the grim, almost surreal image of school children wearing gas masks the most expensive American war poster ever sold at auction.

Also bringing record prices were Jean Carlu’s Cubist poster for Théâtre Pigale, Paris, 1929, $21,600; René Péron’s chilling image of King Kong atop the Empire State Building swatting at airplanes, used for the French release of the film, Paris, 1933, $16,800; and Jan Tschichold’s typographical masterpiece, Der Berufsphotograph, Basil, 1938, $9,600.

Artists’ records were established by Raymond Gid’s playful Duncan Yoyo, Paris, 1930, $8,400; and Peter Birkhäuser’s minimalist, elegant 1934 poster for the Swiss men’s clothing store PKZ, which depicts a nearly photographic image of a button against a brown background, $10,800.

The sale’s top lots were by Art Deco master A.M Cassandre, whose Cycles Brillant, Paris, 1925, realized $31,200, and Nord Express, Paris, 1927, $24,000. His poster for Triplex safety glass, Paris, 1931, sold for $12,000.

Other highlights included Johannes Molzahn’s powerful photomontage Wohnung und Werkraum, Breslau, 1929, $8,400; Valentina Kulagina’s constructivist Soviet propaganda poster Kunst Ausstellung / Der Sowjetunion, Zurich, 1931, $11,400; and a group of four posters by Leo Lionni, issued by the U.S. Office of Emergency Management just before the start of World War II, with the message Keep ‘em Rolling!, 1941, $8,400 for the set.

*All prices include buyer’s premium.