Rago Arts and Auction Center’s Fine Art auctions on November 15 brought in an impressive $2 million in sales, including the highest price paid in the U.S. in 2014 for a work on paper by Alexander Calder.  

“We saw enthusiasm and spirited bidding across the collecting categories, like the Theodoros Stamos in Abstract Expressionism, Adolph Alexander Weinman in American bronzes, Roy Lichtenstein in Pop Art,” said Meredith Hilferty, Director of Fine Art. “Our cover lot got the attention that it deserved, achieving the highest price realized for a Calder work on paper at auction in a year when there were a lot of good examples on the market.  I’d like to personally thank all our buyers and consignors, with special thanks to Carla and George Stellweg for entrusting us with their inspiring collection of Latin American and Mexican Art.”

HIGHLIGHTS/STATS

All Sessions

• Hammer:  $1,633,200
• Hammer + bp:  $2,036,000
• Number of Lots: 583
• In-House: 101
• Internet Bidders: 883 from the USA, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela, Columbia, Chili, Paraguay, Costa Rico, Mozambique, Argentina, UK, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, India, Sweden, Norway, Spain, Portugal, Croatia, Austria, Russia, China, Israel, Japan, Philippines and Australia.
• Phone Bidders: 195
• Absentee Bidders: 67
• Percent sold: 81%

Post-War and Contemporary Art

• Hammer:  $1,056,000
• Hammer + 25% bp =  $1,314,500
• Low estimate $1,167,000
• High estimate: $1,685,000
• Percent sold: 82% 

1. 587 Alexander Calder (American, 1898-1976), Girouette   $207,750
2. 514 Alexander Calder (American, 1898-1976), The Yellow Sky   $111,750
3. 552 Rufino Tamayo (Mexican, 1899-1991), Figura y Constelacion   $43,750
4. 607 Richard Anuszkiewicz (American, b.1930), Soft Blue   $40,000
5. 545 Theodoros Stamos (Greek, 1922-1997), Edge of Field   $27,500
6. 581 Jasper Johns (American, b 1930), Land's End   $27,500
7. 562 Ossip Zadkine (Russian, 1890-1967), La Foret Humaine   $25,000
8. 666 Francisco Toledo (Mexican, b. 1940), Mujer Con Gato   $19,200
9. 518 William Copley (American, 1919-1996) Untitled   $17,500
10. 714 Dennis Oppenheim (American, 1938-2011), Bad Cells Are Coming....,   $17,500

19th/20th C. American and European Art

• Hammer:  $577,200
• Hammer + 25% bp =  $721,500
• Low estimate: $ $670,900
• High estimate: $991,700
• Percent sold: 81%

1. 120 Andrew Wyeth (American, 1917-2009), Hill Drifts   $81,250
2. 178 Rolph Scarlett (American, 1891-1984), Torch   $40,000
3. 1   Adolph Alexander Weinman (German/American, 1870-1952), Descending Night   $28,750
4. 20  William Louis Sonntag Sr. (American, 1822-1900), Untitled   $25,000
5. 68  Emile Othon Friesz (French, 1879-1949), Le Havre  $16,250
6. 201 Marc Chagall (French/Russian, 1887-1985), In the Land of the Gods: Tomorrow...   $15,000
7. 209 After Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973), Barcelona Suite   $15,000
8. 193 Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973), Pierrot and Harlequin on Cafe Terrace   $12,500
9. 194 Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881-1973), Still Life with Musical Instrument   $11,875
10. 81  Bessie Potter Vonnoh (American, 1872-1955), Good Night   $10,880

Consignments are now being accepted for Rago’s May 2015 Fine Art auctions and all of Rago’s Spring 2015 auctions: 609.397.9374 or info@ragoarts.com. 

Rago is a leading U.S. auction house with $30 million in sales in 2013. We serve thousands of sellers and buyers internationally with a singular blend of global reach and personal service. Rago holds auctions of 20th/21st c. design, fine art, decorative arts, furnishings, jewelry, militaria, coins and currency, Asian, historic ephemera, and ethnographic property.  A world-class venue through which to buy and sell, it offers valuations for personal property (from a single piece to collections and estates), appraisals, estate services, exhibitions and lectures in house and online. Rago is based in New Jersey, midway between Philadelphia and New York City.