Auction Highlights: Contemporary Art — November 16, 2023

Swann’s Contemporary Art auction on November 16 spans the last fifty-plus years of artistic creativity, encompassing mid-century Abstract Expressionism to the present day, with compelling examples in all media, including painting, sculpture, drawing and prints.

Abstract Expressionism

The auction begins with a strong selection of Abstract Expressionist works by artists including Adolph Gottlieb, Willem de Kooning, Helen Frankenthaler, Lee Krasner, Louise Nevelson and others.  

European Artists

Left: Lot 99: Stephen Antonakos, Untitled Construction, found metal and wood elements, dowels, paint and sewn fabric, 1961. Estimate $7,000 to $10,000.

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The sale continues with a wide variety of works by European artists such as Jean Dubuffet and Pierre Soulages, as well as American artists including Leon Golub and Philip Guston, and Op Art and color theory works by Bridget Riley, Josef Albers, and Yves Klein.  There is also a fine run of limited editions by Alexander Calder.

Pop Art

The ever-popular section of Pop Art and related works includes drawings by Andy Warhol, multiple editions by Roy Lichtenstein spanning the length of his storied career, and colorful works by James Rosenquist, Robert Indiana, Ed Ruscha, and Keith Haring.

Color Field Artists

A strong selection of abstract, minimalist and Color Field artists follows, including signature examples by Frank Stella, Ellsworth Kelly, Brice Marden, Agnes Martin and Kenneth Noland.

Works from the 1980s

Right: Lot 245: Richard Hambleton, Kaerhmu (Shadowman), acrylic on canvas, 1982. Estimate $30,000 to $50,000.

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Moving into the 1980s and the next two decades there are works by artists including Alex Katz, Martin Kippenberger, Barbara Kruger, Eric Fischl and Jennifer Bartlett, as well as an early “Shadowman” oil on canvas by Richard Hambleton.

The auction concludes with an array of paintings, sculpture and limited editions from the past two decades by a bevy of international artists including Cecily Brown, Peter Doig, Kehinde Wiley, Shepard Fairey, Damien Hirst and others.

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