Lozowick Mural Studies

Louis Lozowick, Mural Study: Lower Manhattan (left) and Mural Study: Triborough Bridge (right), lithograph, 1936. Estimate: $7,000 to $10,000 (left) and $$4,000 to $6,000 (right). 

Two lithographs in the September 16th auction, Scenes of the City: Prints, Paintings & Drawings of New York 1900 - 2000, are familiar images for those who have ever been to Manhattan's Midtown Post Office. In 1936, Louis Lozowick accepted a commission from the Treasury Relief Art Project for two large oil paintings to adorn the walls of the post office at 33rd Street and 8th Avenue; they are still found there today. The prints are studies Lozowick made prior to executing the murals. 

Louis Lozowick, Lower Manhattan and Triborough Bridge. 

Swann Expert Profiles: Daile Kaplan Part I

With hundreds—and sometimes thousands—of items going through each of Swann’s departments per year, specialists are rapidly observing every fluctuation in their markets for how it will affect their next auction. Since many of Swann’s specialists have worked at Swann for 10, often 20 years, their expertise in their respective fields is particularly valuable. 


In a series of posts, we sought to provide a personal response to many questions currently surrounding the Photography market, which is, perhaps, one of the most rapidly changing. In the first video, Daile Kaplan speaks about photography in the age of the internet. Tune in later this week for information on the Photobook and more.       

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Daile Kaplan on the Value of a Photograph

Ansel Adams, Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico, silver print, 1941; printed 1948. Sold at Swann Galleries for $360,000 on December 8, 2009. 

With the unfolding story surrounding a box of photographic negatives discovered in California, which were originally reported to have been taken by esteemed photographer Ansel Adams, many questions have popped up related to the photographs market. Those include establishing authenticity and monetary value, as well as what makes one photographer’s work more desirable than another’s. Swann’s Director of Photographs Daile Kaplan shares her expertise. 


Because photography is considered one of the most popular—and populist—art forms, there's plenty of misinformation regarding what constitutes the value of a fine art photograph. Authenticating a photographic print or negative is essential—particularly if it's unsigned. Establishing authenticity is the first step in evaluating a work of art and requires a detail-oriented approach, which is known in the trade as “due diligence.” Often the provenance, or history of ownership, is key in clarifying whether a photograph is authentic. Knowing the particular choices each photographer makes is also essential: type of paper, size or format of image, tonal range of print, placement of signature, and presentation (mounted or unmounted). Specialists at auction houses bring years of experience and a knowledgeable eye to each artwork, regardless of its commercial value. Read More...

Introducing: Scenes of the City

Scenes of the City: Prints, Drawings & Paintings of New York is an important collection of some of the finest and most significant examples of 19th and 20th century New York-centric art. Shawna Brickley writes that "this collection reflects the remarkable art and social history of the citizens and the great city that we call home."

Martin Lewis, Shadow Dance, drypoint and sandpaper ground, 1930. Estimate: $20,000 to $30,000.

If it can be said that the soul of a place is largely measured by the artistic gifts it has inspired and imbued on the world, there is perhaps no more soulful place than New York. No other modern city has galvanized a greater cross section of the world to create. The heroism of industry, the cool stoic beauty of a great machine, the pride of human union through labor, the grace and strength of individuality and the simple appreciation of everyday life have served as a most dynamic and provocative set of inspirations. It is a city whose history, at its roots, is a celebration of potential and, from its sub-terrain to its shining architectural apexes, it is a living museum and monument to human ingenuity. 

Artists living and working in New York in the late 19th/early 20th century, like Childe Hassam, took on the current innovations in European art at a time of entrenched artistic tradition and national insecurity. Hassam and his contemporaries proved that American Impressionism could earn respect and recognition regardless of its pedigree or the broad acceptance of connoisseurs.


The groundbreaking attitude of going against tradition for tradition's sake gave rise to the realism of the Ash Can School and artists like John Sloan and George Bellows. New York served as a backdrop of natural wonders for the Ash Can artists, who were encouraged to freely express themselves and portray life the way it existed—the absurd, ugly and sublime were treated with equal measure. This philosophical shift would soon spawn a new Realism and inspire artists like Martin Lewis, Raphael Soyer, Armin Landeck, Isabel Bishop and Reginald Marsh to further the distinction between romanticism and reality. 
Above: Childe Hassam, Fifth Avenue, Noon, etching, 1916. Estimate: $10,000 to $15,000.

John Sloan, Night Windows, etching, 1910. Estimate: $5,000 to $8,000.

The desire and demand for experimentation bred Modernism, which meant to be free from classification. Today's Postmodern era reflects on the transitions of the previous century, as New York's art scene both then and now produces art bound only by its unique brand of individuality. 

Yesterday's Top Lots: Vintage Posters

James Montgomery Flagg, I Want You for U.S. Army, 1917. Sold for $12,600.

Yesterday's Vintage Posters sale had a patriotic air, with James Montgomery Flagg's iconic recruiting poster, I Want You for U.S. Army, 1917, selling for $12,600. The artist's Wake Up America Day, also 1917, brought $8,400, a record price for the poster. Howard Chandler Christy's We the People, 1937, signed twice in ink by the recently deceased Senator Robert C. Byrd, also exceeded estimates, selling for $7,200—records for both the artist and the poster. 

James Montgomery Flagg, Wake Up America Day, 1917. Sold for $8,400; Howard Chandler Christy, We the People, 1937. Sold for $7,200 on August 4, 2010. 

Mather Work Incentive posters were the other stars of the day. Chance Takers Keep Hospitals Busy!, 1925, set a record for Mather posters at auction, bringing $11,400. There were 23 Mather posters in all.

Chance Takers Keep Hospitals Busy!, 1925. Sold for $11,400.

The Man in the Blue & Green Suit

Old paintings and furniture weren't the only decorative items on display at the Antiques Roadshow taping July 24th in Biloxi, MS. Swann President and Director of Vintage Posters Nicholas Lowry made a sartorial splash in blue and green plaid while appraising posters. So far this season, his brightly-colored getups have been seen from Montana to Miami. This week, you have two chances to view Nicho's ever-changing assortment of suits—Wednesday, Nicho will be on the auction podium for the Vintage Posters sale, while the weekend brings him to Des Moines for the taping of Antiques Roadshow.