2022: Year in Review

2022 was a historic year for Swann in more ways than one. The house celebrated its 80th year of auctions, bringing with it the 70th anniversary of the first photography auction to be held, not only at Swann, but in the United States; the top-grossing season in the house’s history for the spring of 2022; a selection private collections were offered, including the complete collection of bibliophile Ken Rapoport and special collections of Edward Hopper and MC Escher; and a farewell to Christine von der Linn, who paved the way for Swann’s Illustration Art department among other exciting moments.

Here we look back at our record-filled sales.


Visual Art at Swann
African American Art, Contemporary Art, Modern & Post-War, Photography, and Prints & Drawings


Winfred Rembert, Winfred Rembert and Class of 1959, dye on carved and tooled leather, 1999. Sold October 6, 2022, for $233,000.

Fine Photographs: Celebrating 70 Years of Photographs at Swann

February marked the 70th anniversary of dedicated fine art photography auctions in the United States. The first auction was held at Swann on Valentine’s Day 1952.


Left: Lisette Model, Woman at Coney Island, New York from the portfolio Twelve Photographs, silver prints, 1937-46, printed 1977. Sold February 10, 2022 for $32,500.



Books & Manuscripts


Fine Books & Autographs




Early Printed Books

This year the Early Printed Books sales featured the complete collection of noted bibliophile Ken Rapoport bringing the collection to auction in two parts in both May and October.


Left: Geoffrey Chaucer, The Workes of Geffray Chaucer Newlye Printed, London, 1542. Sold October 13, 2022, for $106,250.



Maps & Atlases


Henry Popple, A Map of the British Empire in America, with the French and Spanish Settlements Adjacent Thereto, London, 1733. Sold December 8, 2022, for $60,000.

Printed & Manuscript Americana


Gideon Welles, Extensive archive of personal and family papers of Lincoln’s Secretary of the Navy, 1791-1914. Sold September 29, 2022, for $281,000.

Focus On Women


Louisa May Alcott, Autograph Letter Signed, written in response to a fan letter praising Little Women, post-1868. Sold June 2, 2022, for $23,750.

Illustration Art


The December 15, 2022, sale of Illustration Art marked nearly 10 years of dedicated sales to the genre, and served as a farewell to department director, Christine von der Linn, who pioneered the category at Swann.


LGBTQ+ Art, Material Culture & History



Vintage Posters


Paul George Lawler, Fly to South Sea Isles / Via Pan American, circa 1938. Sold November 10, 2022, for $40,000.

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