SUNRISE, Fla. – An internet, phone and absentee bid auction featuring around 750 lots of ancient to modern antiques, arms and art will be held on Sunday, May 15th, by Louis J. Dianni, LLC (www.LouisJDianni.com). There won't be live bidding, but items can be previewed from 10 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday, by appointment, at 4630 North Hiatus Road in Sunrise, Fla.

A strong candidate for top lot of the auction is a stainless steel sculpture by the Chinese sculptor Zhan Wang (b. 1962) titled Artificial Rock #53. Created in 2002, the work is able to be displayed in more than one orientation. It was purchased at a New York gallery in 2004 for $9,000 (and the invoice is included in the lot), but prices for Wang’s sculptures have exceeded $3 million for larger works. This piece comes from the Lorber estate in Palm Beach, Fla.

Zhan Wang’s career as an iconoclast skyrocketed with In a Twinkling (1993), an installation of surrealist figurative sculptures positioned outside, creating a vision of a world gone awry. Many of the ideas expressed in his works pertain to Chinese culture. Since 1993 he has been showcased in over 125 exhibits, 24 of them solo exhibitions. Today, he is highly sought after by collectors.

Also to be sold will be an extraordinary collection of ten paintings on papier-mâché by the Russian military artist Adolf Ivanovich Gebens (1819-1888). Each work retains its original frame, with a double-headed eagle at the top. These paintings were likely commissioned by Tsar Nicholas 1st and finished under the reign of Alexander 2nd. Lithographs after these works have been sold at auction.

Many Chinese objects will be featured in the sale, including an extremely fine 18th century jade bowl with the Qianlong mark and of the period, having a relief carved dragon and phoenix; and a cloisonné tea pot with the mark and of the period of Yung-Lo, Longle (1403-1424), decorated with multi-colored lotus flowers and heightened with bronze mounts of dragon foo at the base and spout.

The auction will also feature over 125 original paintings, including Florida art by Purvis Young and a Harold Newton sunset in the Everglades scene, plus a wonderful collection of over 100 pair of 19th century opera glasses from a single-owner lifetime collection.

Internet bidding will be facilitated by LiveAuctioneers.com, Invaluable.com and Bidsquare.com. An estimated 8,000 or more bidders from over 70 countries are expected to register to bid online.

Louis J. Dianni, LLC, has been in the business of selling fine antiques since 1973. The firm’s auctions are big events, held at the peak of the season, in lucrative and historic areas of the country. It conducts advertising campaigns that include full-color ads in major antiques and arms publications, and sends e-mail blasts to over one million buyers 10 days prior to the auction date.

Louis J. Dianni, LLC, is always accepting quality items for future auctions. To inquire about consigning an item, a collection or an entire estate, you may call them at (954) 895-8727 or you can send an e-mail to ljdmarine00@gmail.com. To learn more about Louis J. Dianni, LLC and the upcoming antiques, arms and art auction slated for May 15th, log on to www.LouisJDianni.com.

# # # #