Clarke Auction will offer an incredible array of important and finely executed works by artists of historical note on October 27th, 2013.

The featured work in the fine art selection is oil on canvas Parisian scene entitled “Ponte Marie” by famed Parisian painter, Francis Picabia (1879 -1953).

Picabia’s “Ponte Marie” is an exciting and historically valuable work due to the technique and manner in which its context is expressed. Classically trained, Picabia played a role in the Dada movement after a brief transition through post-impressionism at the turn of the century between 1902 and 1908. Picabia’s “Ponte Marie” at Clarke Auction is a fine example from the artist’s post-impressionist phase that displays his developments as an emerging artist.

Shortly after his exercises in post-impressionism, he became personally acquainted with several famed artists, most notably Marcel Duchamp, which elevated his style toward mechanomorphism and Dada around 1915. The Guggenheim has featured collections by Picabia, and it is exciting to see such a relevant piece of an artist’s timeline come to market. The painting offered at Clarke on October 27th is a beautifully executed representation of artistic evolution and solidification of cultural and artistic identity.  The work is estimated at $15,000 to $25,000 and accompanied by the original receipt and gallery information.

Also featured in the fine art selection is finely painted figural oil on canvas by British artist Frederick R. Pickersgill (1820 – 1900). The painting, entitled “Jealousy” is a tightly executed genre scene of figures in traditional English dress. The figures, two women, a man, and a dog, is an excellent portrayal of emotion through facial expression and body language. Pickersgill’s ability to properly capture a moment wrought with emotion, in this case “jealousy,” is a merit to both his perception and technically gifted artistry.  The conservative $4,000 to $6,000 auction estimate hardly defines the depth of humanity and projection of personality visible on the canvas.

 In less traditional motifs, three extraordinary works by African American artist Lloyd McNeill will be offered on October 27th. The first of three works by McNeill, who was active in the Washington D.C. area in the mid to late 1930s, is a modernist figural painting that shows expert use of perspective through a subtle geometrically divided canvas. The figure is a modern example of a long standing tradition of capturing a subject in totality through various means of technique. McNeill’s first of three offerings will be estimated at $1,000- $1,500.

McNeill was proficient in a variety of techniques and mediums as exemplified in the other two lots by the artist to be offered at Clarke on October 27th. An ink wash silhouette of a pianist and a watercolor of a musician offer two different approaches to figural works that show the artist’s incredible range. The subject matter is similar to the artist’s own experience as a jazz musician but the simplicity, in both color and geometry, of the ink wash directly opposes the chaotic and colorful watercolor. Although they are juxtaposed in vibrancy, they most accurately represent their own subjects, and the music each play can almost be heard playing through the work as it is viewed.

Another notable international artist, Alejandro Santiago Ramirez, will be featured in the sale. Ramirez is a Mexican artist and Clarke Auction will offer one of his large abstract figural paintings on October 27th with a $4,000 to $6,000 estimate. The elongated figures stand firm and numerous in the painting and go faceless through the mountainous terrain in the background. To the lower left is a large face with forlorn look that may serve as a commentary to the faceless crowd behind.

Many of Ramirez’s works reflect an artistic obsession with migration into the United States from Mexico and this painting in particular is a stark reflection of his own experiences and that of other immigrants crossing into the U.S. Ramirez uses the size and proportion of his subjects to create vibrancy and tone rather than color as the entire painting exists in blacks, whites, grays and other washed neutral palettes.

Each of these incredible featured works is just a few notable examples of over 100 lots of fine art in the October 27th selection at Clarke.

Please view the catalog on www.ClarkeNY.com to view and enjoy the complete offerings, as well as nearly 400 lots of art, design, midcentury, antiques, jewelry, sterling silver, Asian objects and more.  

The sale will be held on October 27th, 2013 at 12pm EST. In house previews will be held Friday October 25th and Saturday October 26th from 12pm to 6pm. The catalog is available 24/ 7 on www.ClarkeNY.com and is updated daily.