A Look Inside the Catalogue: Illustration Art
At Auction June 5
A look inside the highly-anticipated catalogue for our upcoming Illustration Art auction.
Complete Catalogue
Comic Strips
Comics that defined the twentieth century include Peanuts strips by Charles Schulz and an extremely rare early four-panel strip for Blondie, depicting Blondie and Dagwood before they were married, by Chic Young, the creator of the strip, which is continued today by his son, Dean Young.
Lot 183; Charles Schulz, Do you like Beethoven?, pen & ink Peanuts comic strip, signed & inscribed, 1970. Estimate $20,000 to $30,000.
Lot 184: Charles Schulz, I suppose he’s out playing baseball again…, pen & ink Peanuts comic strip, signed, 1992. Estimate $15,000 to $25,000.
Lot 185: Charles Schulz, If You’re Hungry…, pen & ink Peanuts comic strip, 1989. Estimate $8,000 to $12,000.
Lot 187: Chic Young, All aboard who’s going aboard!, pencil & ink early Blondie comic strip, 1932. Estimate $800 to $1,200.
Rick Meyerowitz
Lot 207: Rick Meyerowitz, Digital Deli Map of Personal Computer America, watercolor & colored pencil with collage, 1984. Estimate $3,500 to $5,000.
Lot 18: Rick Meyerowitz, BVD Raid, watercolor & colored pencil, advertisement for BVD: The Great American Underwear Company, 1980. Estimate $1,500 to $2,500.
New Yorker Cartoons & Covers
Covers and cartoons for The New Yorker spanning the lifetime of the publication include a charming view of a Penguin Convention, 1977, by Charles Addams, and Rick Meyerowitz and Maira Kalman’s famous New Yorkistan, the acknowledged first comic relief for the city after September 11, 2001.
Lot 249: Rick Meyerowitz & Maira Kalman, New Yorkistan, pen, ink & watercolor, sketch for The New Yorker cover, with signed poster, 2001. Estimate $10,000 to $15,000.
Lot 233: Charles Addams, Penguin Convention, watercolor, cover for The New Yorker, 1977. Estimate $15,000 to $25,000.
Lot 257: Tom Toro, Fighting supervillains is a cinch, ink & wash, cartoon for The New Yorker, 2015. Estimate $1,500 to $2,500.
Ludwig Bemelmans
Works by the beloved Ludwig Bemelmans, of Madeline fame, include illustrations for various books, including Rosebud and The Donkey Inside, and advertising campaigns.
Lot 63: Ludwig Bemelmans, Plaza Independencia, Quito, watercolor & gouache, for The Donkey Inside, 1941. Estimate $4,000 to $6,000.
Lot 2: Bemelmans, Agreed! No whiskey anywhere is more deluxe than Walker’s DeLuxe, watercolor, gouache, pen & ink, alternative version for a Walker’s DeLuxe ad, 1957. Estimate $10,000 to $15,000.
Lot 25: Bemelmans, Elephant, sketch for Rosebud, ink & watercolor, 1942. Estimate $3,000 to $5,000.
Classic Children’s Book Illustrations
Leading the children’s book section is an original cover for Nancy Drew Mystery Stories: The Secret in the Old Attic by Russell Tandy. In addition to a drawing by Jessie Willcox Smith for the classic 1922 edition of Johanna Spyri’s Heidi, the sale boasts a large selection of works by Edward Gorey.
Lot 45: Russell H. Tandy, The Secret in the Old Attic, watercolor, pencil, ink & gouache, cover of Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #21, 1944. Estimate $15,000 to $25,000.
Lot 42: Jessie Willcox Smith, Touching, watercolor, for The Five Senses by Angela M. Keyes, 1911. Estimate $12,000 to $18,000.
Lot 50: Garth Williams, Dance Party, pen & ink, illustration for The Rescuers by Margery Sharp, 1959. Estimate $2,000 to $3,000.
Theater
The popular theater section offers works by Pavel Tchelitchew and an early set design for Death of a Salesman by Jo Mielziner. There will also be charming costume designs by Motley for the hit musical South Pacific, 1949, and a buoyant design for Doctor Jazz, 1975, by Raoul Pène du Bois.
Lot 156: Al Hirschfeld, Cabin in the Sky, ink & correction fluid, published in The Herald Tribune, 1940. Estimate $5,000 to $7,000.
Lot 161: Jo Mielziner, Death of a Salesman, graphite, ink & wash, 1949. Estimate $4,000 to $6,000.
Lot 165: Raoul Pène du Bois, Doctor Jazz, for the Broadway musical, gouache on board, 1975. Estimate $4,000 to $6,000.
Additional Highlights
Lot 38: Arthur Rackham, Danaë and the Infant Perseus, watercolor & ink, from Hawthorne’s Wonder Book, 1922. Estimate $10,000 to $15,000.
Lot 102: George Wolfe Plank, Christmas Gifts, pen, ink & watercolor, cover for Vogue, 1913. Estimate $4,000 to $6,000.
Complete Catalogue
For more information on the sale, contact a specialist in the Illustration Art Department.
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