Swann Galleries

Poster collecting is a relatively new pursuit, especially when compared to print or book collecting, which means that there are all the more opportunities to contribute to scholarship in the field. Nicholas D. Lowry, Swann president and vintage poster specialist, takes us through the excitement of discovering Previously Unrecorded Travel Posters and what we mean when we say something is Rare" at the link below.

"Against all apparent odds, the last six turbulent months have shown promising developments within the auction world. Sales are robust and interest is brisk" - Swann President & Principal Auctioneer Nicholas D. Lowry It is with this spirit that we bring to you our first digital edition of The Trumpet. We look forward to bringing it back to print again soon, but meanwhile, join us online as we ring in the beginning of the new auction season at Swann.

As autumn approaches, we come to appreciate the feeling of liberation that summer brought us. Travel has always been synonymous with summer, especially for those of us wishing to escape the stifling heat of the city. Each summer, tourists, artists among them, flocked to Northeastern coastal havens to cure their urban fatigue, become closer with nature, and enjoy the slower pace for the season. Our September 17, 2020 sale of American Art features a beautiful selection of works by artists working in these coastal havens. Here we discuss the paintings and drawings on offer and the destinations that served as inspiration for the artists who made them.

Our August 27, 2020 Vintage Poster auction includes a selection of historical trolley cards, broadsides and original bathing suits from the famous Sutro Baths overlooking the Pacific Ocean. These items come from the collection of Marilyn Blaisdell, a respected historian of San Francisco photography, and well-loved proprietor of a shop at the Cliff House. Lauren Goldberg takes us through the history of the baths and shares a few highlights from the upcoming sale.

My personal LGBTQ+ Nightlife and HIV/AIDS Collection from my time at Studio 54, Palladium, AREA, Tunnel and The Saint will be auctioned THIS THURSDAY,... August 13, 2020 by Swann Auction Galleries. Click the URL to my website for the complete story and to register for the Swann Salon Series Q+A on Zoom this evening, Monday, August 10 at 7:00 PM EDT (UTC-04:00) https://markdesollaprice.com/LGBTQ_HIV_Archive_Sale

Black cultural practitioners explore the Black gay male physical and mental state through a variety of artistic cues and symbols at their disposal. These tools help them to demystify racial and sexual stereotypes that plague their white counterparts’ prejudiced work. Black gay male visual artists have worked to change how they are portrayed within their community and the general culture. They convey their bodies with dignity and familiarity versus the dominant culture’s gaze ...and fetishization. Sculptor Richmond Barthe, painter Beauford Delaney, and postmodern artists Freddie Styles and Glenn Ligon express Black queer male sexuality and identity on their terms free of prejudice and racial stereotypes. They are but a few of the artists that portray the Black gay male body in opposition from their white counterparts. Here Corey Serrant touches on these artists among others, and how they are reclaiming the narrative of how they are depicted and seen. See more

Any experienced cataloger, scholar, collector, or reader of early printing is accustomed to discovering an array of random objects within the pages of books. Even though some of these tidbits may have fallen out of ancient beards, today we celebrate and study them and put them into categories. Devon Eastland, senior specialist for early printed books, provides a handy glossary for these curious items found within various old books, some on the block in our July 30 sale of Fine Books & Manuscripts.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the first decade of Hirschfeld’s creative output. It is also the 75th anniversary of most famous artistic signaturehis inclusion of his daughter Nina’s name within the lines of his caricatures. Here we take a look at past caricatures and theater portraits by Hirschfeld, as well as those set to come to auction in our July 16 sale of Illustration Art.

Swann offered four sales of Fine Art this past June, each one proving audiences are undeterred by the remote bidding format due to social distancing guidelines. Read more about our African-American Fine Art, Fine Photographs, Graphic Design / Modernist Posters, and Contemporary Art sales below.

Our July 9 sale of Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books features a strong selection of pictorial maps, including a rare example of a chart of Greenwich Village featured in 'Manhattan: A Weekly for Wakeful New Yorkers, No. 3, Vol. 1' published in 1933. Here we provide a round-up of some of the top humorous cartography printings offered in the sale.

Our June 25 sale of Contemporary Art features a run of prints by Louise Nevelson. Behind great artists are studio assistants equally devoted to their craft. For Nevelson one of those assistants was Teddy Haseltine. Meagan Gandolfo, one of our cataloguers for the prints and drawings department, takes us through the collaborative relationship between Nevelson and Haseltine throughout her career.

Donna Kaz is a writer, director, choreographer and activist, who has led the theatre troupe Guerrilla Girls on Tour for the past two decades. Lauren Goldberg, our vintage poster specialist, asked Donna to unmask yet again and share some insight into her own experiences with the movement. Graphic Design is at auction this Thursday, June 18.