Los Angeles – On August 6, Bonhams will present an exceptional auction of California and Western Paintings & Sculpture, which includes 174 works by celebrated artists such as August Gay, Selden Connor Gile, Armin Hansen, Edgar Payne, Eanger Irving Couse, Nicolai Fechin, among many others. Leading the sale is Joseph Raphael’s Tea in the Orchard from the John H. Garzoli Collection (estimate: $400,000-600,000).

Scot Levitt, Bonhams Director of Fine Arts, commented: “Tea in the Orchard is considered to be from Raphael’s best Impressionistic period of the 1910s. When it was shown in 1933, the work was lauded by a critic as ‘an example of true impressionism carried to its farthest point to be safe’”. 

The work also has the distinguished provenance of having been gifted to the San Francisco Museum of Art by the avant-garde collector Albert M. Bender. Bender championed Raphael's work in San Francisco, facilitating his first solo exhibition in 1910, and subsequent shows at the San Francisco Institute of Art and the Helgesen Gallery.   

Additional highlights include several works by members of the Society of Six artists including August Gay’s Fishing Boat Aground, painted circa 1930 (estimate: $60,000- 80,000) and Selden Connor Gile’s Alameda Slough, painted in 1914 (estimate: $15,000-25,000); Armin Hansen’s Sailboats at Monterey Bay (estimate: $40,000- 60,000), is from a group of works from a San Francisco private collection; William Wendt's California Landscape, which is fresh-to-the-market (estimate: $40,000-60,000); and contemporary Western art by Wilson Hurley’s The Yellowstone off Point Sublime, painted in 1999 (estimate: $30,000-50,000). The Taos painters are well represented by Eanger Irving Couse's The Belt Maker (estimate: $30,000-50,000) and a lovely Nicolai Fechin The Rock House (estimate: $30,000-50,000).

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Enquiries

For further information and images call Sung-Hee Kim on +1 917-206-1692, or email sunghee.kim@bonhams.com .

NOTES FOR EDITORS

Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world's largest and most renowned auctioneers, offering fine art and antiques, motor cars and jewellery. The main salerooms are in London, New York, Los Angeles and Hong Kong, with auctions also held in Knightsbridge, Edinburgh, Paris, San Francisco and Sydney. With a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives in 22 countries, Bonhams offers advice and valuation services in 60 specialist areas. For a full list of forthcoming auctions, plus details of Bonhams specialist departments, please visit bonhams.com.