Dedham, MA – Grogan and Company Fine Art Auctioneers and Appraisers announces their upcoming September 30th Auction will include over 700 lots of Fine Art, Furniture, Decorative Works of Art, Silver, Jewelry and Oriental Rugs, and will span five centuries of artistic expression and craftsmanship from various estates and collections throughout New England. 

     The highlight of the fine art offerings is Low Tide, Labrador, a  20 x 30 inch oil on canvas by celebrated 19th century Hudson River School artist William Bradford.  Born in New Bedford, a fishing town along the coast of Massachusetts,  Bradford was best known for his dramatic paintings of icebergs and Arctic landscapes, which were inspired by his seven voyages to Newfoundland and Greenland between 1861-1869. On his last voyage, which departed in July of 1869, Bradford set out aboard the Panther, a 325 ton sealing ship, for Newfoundland on an expedition funded by art collector and New York banker, LeGrand Lockwood.  Like his previous voyages, Bradford recorded what he saw in pencil and oil sketches, but this time he brought along two photographers, William Dunmore and John Critcherson.  By August, the Panther had to turn around and return due to impenetrable ice.   In 1873, Bradford published a collection of albumen photographs, taken on the voyage by Dunmore and Critcherson, in a book titled The Arctic Regions, documenting his 1869 expedition to Newfoundland.   The Arctic Regions was a huge success and became instrumental in advancing Bradford’s career, resulting in numerous prominent commissions for his luminous views of the Arctic region, the most notable being from Queen Victoria.  This 1888 panoramic view of a fishing village along the coast of Labrador, came from a Lexington, Massachusetts estate and is estimated to sell in the $40,000-60,000 range.

      Another fine art highlight is an impressionist portrait by Concord born artist and member of the “Ten”, Edward Simmons. The Reflection, a 24 x 24 inch oil on canvas, depicting a woman in profile contemplating her reflection in a small hand held mirror, was exhibited at M. Knoedler & Co.’s exhibition of Paintings by ‘The Ten’ in 1916.  The painting, from a Westwood estate, has descended within the family of the original owner until now and is estimated to sell in the $20,000-30,000 range.  Works by other Massachusetts artists include several oils by Lynn Beach painter Charles Edwin Lewis Green, watercolors by John Whorf and Aiden Lasell Ripley, an oil on canvas by Gloucester artist Emile Gruppe and works by fellow Cape Ann painter, James King Bonnar.  

     Other fine art highlights include a landscape by New York/Massachusetts artist George Inness, Sr.  once in the prominent collection of George A. Hearn.   Landscape with Cows, an oil on canvas circa 1891, is expected to fetch $8,000-12,000; while works on paper include a John LaFarge watercolor of a Geisha with Dog, estimated at $10,000-15,000 and two charcoal drawings by Max Liebermann. 

    Contemporary offerings include an untitled abstract composition by Jon von Wicht, circa 1956, formerly in the collection of Elizabeth Ames, bears an estimate of $800-1,200.  Ames was the director of Yaddo, the Saratoga Springs New York artist colony active in the early part of the 20th century, where Wicht painted in 1956.   A Karl Knath’s oil on canvas, titled Job, painted in 1966 is estimated to bring $6,000-8,000; while David Hockney’s color lithograph, Flowable Table, is estimated at $8,000-12,000.  Prints by Roy Lichtenstein, Frank Stella, Sam Francis, Marc Chagall and Salvidor Dali are complimented by black and white photographs by Ansel Adams, Edward Curtis, and Sam Shaw. Sculptures  include works by Russian artist Evgeni Alexandrovich Lanceray, French artist Antoine Barye and American Abastenia St. Leger Eberle. 

    The exhibition is open to the public and begins on Thursday, September 27th.  Hours:  Thursday, 10 a.m. – 8 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Sunday, 10 a.m. – 12 noon.  The auction will begin with Fine Art at 12:00 noon and will be conducted in lot number order. A fully illustrated catalogue can be found online at www.groganco.com. For more information regarding upcoming auctions, consigning or appraisal services, please call the gallery at 781-461-9500.