December 23, 2020Kelsie JankowskiSwann 2020: Year in Review Read more about 2020: Year in Review In a year that was unlike any in our lifetimes, Swann’s specialists and staff proved to be as resilient and innovative as ever, bringing forward new and safe ways to…
Read more about Seven Artists Records for Fall 2020 Travel Posters at Swann October 20, 2020 Vintage Posters Seven Artists Records for Fall 2020 Travel Posters at Swann Auction Discoveries: Frank Lemen and Anthony Hansen “With over an over 80% sell-through rate, and with 16 of the top 17 lots selling to collectors, our Thursday, October 15, 2020,…
Read more about Collector’s Guide: Railway Posters October 12, 2020 Vintage Posters Collector’s Guide: Railway Posters Nicholas D. Lowry Picks His Top Locomotive Travel Posters Among the earliest European travel posters were produced by the railway companies to sell tickets on their new trains crisscrossing the…
Read more about The Excitement of Discovering “Previously Unrecorded” Travel Posters October 1, 2020 Vintage Posters The Excitement of Discovering “Previously Unrecorded” Travel Posters …and what we mean when we say something is “Rare.” Just when you think you have seen it all… I am always amazed when I realize how much more there…
Read more about Fall 2020 Preview: Rare & Important Travel Posters September 8, 2020 Vintage Posters Fall 2020 Preview: Rare & Important Travel Posters In an era in which armchair traveling has become the new normal, it has never been more engaging to stay at home and travel the world virtually through the glorious designs of historical travel posters.
Read more about The Sutro Baths: Relics of San Francisco’s Famous Attraction August 18, 2020 Vintage Posters The Sutro Baths: Relics of San Francisco’s Famous Attraction Swann’s 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…
Read more about Vintage Posters: At Auction August 27, 2020 August 4, 2020 Vintage Posters Vintage Posters: At Auction August 27, 2020 During a summer of containment and people staying close to their personal bubbles, this auction’s assortment of beach and summer resort posters (see below) seems especially poignant, as for many…
Read more about Interview: On the Guerrilla Girls June 15, 2020 Vintage Posters Interview: On the Guerrilla Girls Donna Kaz is a writer, director, choreographer and activist, who has led the theatre troupe, “Guerrilla Girls on Tour” for the past two decades. A Guerrilla Girl herself, who has written a memoir entitled UN/MASKED, Memoirs of a Guerrilla Girl On Tour, Lauren Goldberg, our vintage poster specialist, asked Donna to unmask yet again and share some insight into her own experiences with the movement.
Read more about Photomontage & Photography in Vintage Posters June 9, 2020 Vintage Posters Photomontage & Photography in Vintage Posters The June 18, 202 Graphic Design auction featured an array of rare and influential examples of photography in posters. While the popularization of photography and the tradition of printing posters…
Read more about Graphic Design: Featuring Modernist Posters from the Vienna Secession to 1990s Political Images May 25, 2020 Vintage Posters Graphic Design: Featuring Modernist Posters from the Vienna Secession to 1990s Political Images This year’s Graphic Design auction presents exciting posters and materials ranging from the Vienna Secession to political posters of the 1990s. At the heart of the auction are posters from two exceptional private estates: stunning European Avant-garde design from the estate of Alexander Kaplen, and unparalleled Art Deco works from the estate of Jeffrey Aminoff and Kathleen Faccini, a collection that was assembled in the 1980s and 90s.
Read more about Swann Ushers in a New Era of Live Online Sales with Printed & Manuscript African Americana May 20, 2020 Printed & Manuscript African Americana Swann Ushers in a New Era of Live Online Sales with Printed & Manuscript African Americana Our Thursday, May 7, 2020 sale of Printed & Manuscript African Americana was held live online and was conducted remotely. “This was a strong auction regardless of the circumstances. The…
Read more about What You Should Know About Collecting Exhibition Posters April 8, 2020 Vintage Posters What You Should Know About Collecting Exhibition Posters Lauren Goldberg, our vintage poster specialist, takes us through the ins-and-outs of what to look for when collecting an exhibition poster.
Read more about Tadanori Yokoo: Pop Visionary April 6, 2020 Vintage Posters Tadanori Yokoo: Pop Visionary Internationally-renowned graphic artist and designer Tadanori Yokoo, who has been called “the grandmaster of Japanese pop-psych art,” got his start as a stage designer for avant garde theatre in Tokyo. It is no wonder why his eventual foray into poster design resulted in graphics that are unfailingly theatrical and dramatic—drawing on Psychedelia, mysticism, Pop culture and Japanese imagery.
Read more about WPA Posters: Favorites from a Vintage Posters Specialist April 2, 2020 The Artists of the WPA WPA Posters: Favorites from a Vintage Posters Specialist In addition to the many murals, sculptures, paintings and photos commissioned by the Works Progress Administration during the 1930s and forties, graphic artists designed hundreds upon hundreds of posters for the agency, of which about two million copies were printed and only a fraction survived.
Read more about Puerto Rican Poster Archive Shines in Winter-Spring 2020 Sale of Vintage Posters February 18, 2020 Vintage Posters Puerto Rican Poster Archive Shines in Winter-Spring 2020 Sale of Vintage Posters Our sale of Vintage Posters on Thursday, February 13 was the house’s most successful February poster offering in over 10 years.
Read more about A Puerto Rican Archive of Graphic Design February 6, 2020 Vintage Posters A Puerto Rican Archive of Graphic Design Our winter-spring 2020 sale of Vintage Posters on February 13 is set to feature an extensive archive of over 350 posters by Puerto Rico’s most renowned painters, designers and graphic artists. Here Nicholas D. Lowry, the house’s vintage posters director, touches on the featured artists and the movement that brought these works to light.
Read more about 2010-19: The Decade in Review January 13, 2020 Swann 2010-19: The Decade in Review The 2010s brought Swann a number of notable moments including memorable sales, the establishment of two new departments, and the celebration of the 75th anniversary of our first sale. Here we take a look at some of favorite highlights from the last ten years.
Read more about Vintage Posters: Winter-Spring 2020 Highlights December 10, 2019 Vintage Posters Vintage Posters: Winter-Spring 2020 Highlights Ski poster enthusiasts always find something appealing in our winter Vintage Posters auction, but most exciting is the section of rare and important Art Nouveau posters
Read more about 20 Years of Travel Posters Pays Off with 10 New Records November 20, 2019 Vintage Posters 20 Years of Travel Posters Pays Off with 10 New Records “After twenty years of conducting auctions of Rare and Important Travel Posters it was validating to see the sale turn in the best results in the last three years,” noted Nicholas D. Lowry, Swann Galleries’ President and Director of Vintage Posters. The Thursday, November 14 auction saw a 75% sell-through rate, an “industry-leading number as no other poster sales come close to this level of success,” continued Lowry, as well as bringing ten new records for artists and images alike.
Read more about 20 Years of Rare & Important Travel Posters at Swann November 7, 2019 Vintage Posters 20 Years of Rare & Important Travel Posters at Swann Swann Galleries’ November 14 sale of Rare & Important Travel Posters marks the house’s twentieth annual sale in the category. Here we share Nicholas D. Lowry’s entry to the catalogue, in which he reflects on the history and impact of the sale.
Read more about Fall 2019: Rare & Important Travel Posters October 11, 2019 Vintage Posters Fall 2019: Rare & Important Travel Posters Our twentieth anniversary Travel Poster sale can be summed up in one powerful, romantic word: trains. An extraordinary private collection of American railway posters, the best we’ve ever seen, includes a virtual history from the early years of the New York Central Lines to the Streamliner trains of the 1930s and 40s.
Read more about Record Prices and Market Debuts Abound in Summer 2019 Sale of Vintage Posters August 14, 2019 Vintage Posters Record Prices and Market Debuts Abound in Summer 2019 Sale of Vintage Posters Our summer sale of Vintage Posters on August 7, 2019, was a lively event with active bidding across all platforms bringing six record prices and a number of posters to market for the first time.
Read more about On Buying a Vintage Poster: What You Need to Know July 29, 2019 Auctions 101 On Buying a Vintage Poster: What You Need to Know So you’ve fallen in love with a vintage poster. What’s next? Here are some of the most important things to consider when looking to buy a vintage poster.
Read more about Sergio Trujillo Magnenat: A Pioneer in Colombian Graphic Design July 24, 2019 Vintage Posters Sergio Trujillo Magnenat: A Pioneer in Colombian Graphic Design Featured in our August 7 sale of Vintage Posters is a rare selection of four advertisements for the first Bolivarian Games by Sergio Trujillo Magnenat. The images are characterized by…
Read more about Swann in Profile: Lauren Goldberg July 22, 2019 Vintage Posters Swann in Profile: Lauren Goldberg With the newly opened Poster House museum as a backdrop, we spoke with Specialist Lauren Goldberg in our Vintage Posters Department about, well, what else—posters! You’ve been at…
Read more about 2019 Spring Season in Review July 1, 2019 Swann 2019 Spring Season in Review A season of firsts. The 2019 spring auction season at Swann Galleries delivered an impressive range of sales, rife with auction premiers and record prices. We started our season off…
Read more about Records & Results: Graphic Design June 5, 2019 Vintage Posters Records & Results: Graphic Design Charles Loupot Reaches New Heights in Swann Graphic Design Auction debuts for Tadanori Yokoo Our auction of Graphic Design on May 23 offered a selection of vintage posters by…
Read more about Upcoming Highlights: Vintage Posters June 4, 2019 Vintage Posters Upcoming Highlights: Vintage Posters At Auction August 7 Complete Catalogue For over 15 years our summer Vintage Posters auction has brought wonderful examples of beach and summer resort posters to market. The tradition continues…
Read more about Graphic Design March 1, 2019 Vintage Posters Graphic Design At Auction May 23 Complete Catalogue Graphic Design continues to be a favorite among our poster auctions, with work by important designers like A.M. Cassandre, Charles Loupot, Ludwig Hohlwein, Jean…
Read more about Records & Results: Vintage Posters February 13, 2019 Vintage Posters Records & Results: Vintage Posters Alphonse Mucha & Art Nouveau Lead Vintage Posters at Swann Our February 7 sale of Vintage Posters saw numerous firsts and records. Nicholas D. Lowry, Swann President, noted: “Lively bidding for ski posters and Art Nouveau images set…
Read more about The Posters on Your Shelf: Scarce Books & Portfolios January 31, 2019 Vintage Posters The Posters on Your Shelf: Scarce Books & Portfolios At the end of the nineteenth century, the craze of poster collecting was at an all-time high. As a result, publishers formed subscription services in limited runs so that the…
Read more about 2018: Year in Review December 21, 2018 Swann 2018: Year in Review A year of records, debuts and rediscovered works. As we reflect on 2018, we look back at an excellent year of auctions. In April we held our highest-grossing African-American Fine Art…
Read more about A Look Inside the Catalogue: Rare & Important Travel Posters August 31, 2018 Vintage Posters A Look Inside the Catalogue: Rare & Important Travel Posters At Auction October 25 Complete Catalogue A breathtaking presentation of rare and unexpectedly beautiful images from around the world, this sale features numerous destinations and locales. Trains, planes, automobiles…
Read more about Records & Results: Vintage Posters August 7, 2018 Vintage Posters Records & Results: Vintage Posters Poster Passion Leads to a Successful Auction Our August 1 Vintage Poster sale set at least six auction records, including a new high price for Sutro Baths. The exhibition for…
Read more about Keep It Under Your Stetson July 30, 2018 Vintage Posters Keep It Under Your Stetson Wartime propaganda can serve a variety of purposes, from recruitment and morale-building to conservation. During World War II all of these played a role in the Office of War Information’s…
Read more about Thirsty? Wine & Liquor Posters May Satisfy July 27, 2018 Vintage Posters Thirsty? Wine & Liquor Posters May Satisfy We may be at the height of the craft beer renaissance, but the history of alcoholic beverages goes way back. Humans have proven, over millennia, that we like a good…
Read more about The Hot Bid Interviews Nicho on Cassandre’s “Best Way” July 10, 2018 Vintage Posters The Hot Bid Interviews Nicho on Cassandre’s “Best Way” Sheila Gibson Stoodley, author of The Hot Bid, interviewed our President & Principal Auctioneer Nicholas D. Lowry about the most expensive travel poster ever sold. Sheila’s blog, The Hot Bid showcases…
Read more about 2017-18 Year in Review June 25, 2018 Swann 2017-18 Year in Review The 2017-18 auction season at Swann Galleries was replete with record prices and rediscovered paintings, offering works created as early as the fifteenth century and as recently as last year.…
Read more about A Look Inside the Catalogue: Vintage Posters May 11, 2018 Vintage Posters A Look Inside the Catalogue: Vintage Posters At Auction August 1 Complete Catalogue Wine & Liquor Advertisements Numerous posters by Leonetto Cappiello and Luciano Achille Mauzan, including rarely-seen works, capture the essence of their styles.…
Read more about Records & Results: Graphic Design May 9, 2018 Vintage Posters Records & Results: Graphic Design Our auction of Graphic Design on May 3 offered vintage posters that defined the styles of the twentieth century. In a highly-curated selection of just over 250 lots, the highlight…
Read more about How Car Posters Drove Graphic Design April 25, 2018 Vintage Posters How Car Posters Drove Graphic Design In the dawn of the motor car, most automobile purveyors relied on a “keeping up with the Joneses” mentality, touting ever-evolving technology and styles to drive car sales. A selection…
Read more about A Look Inside the Catalogue: Graphic Design March 30, 2018 Vintage Posters A Look Inside the Catalogue: Graphic Design At Auction May 3 Graphic Design This auction celebrates innovation in the field of graphic design, with a colorful offering of vintage posters, along with a coterie of fine…
Read more about Huey Newton’s Portraits & The Founding of the Black Panthers March 23, 2018 Printed & Manuscript African Americana Huey Newton’s Portraits & The Founding of the Black Panthers New findings in our March 29 auction of Printed & Manuscript African-Americana clarify information behind iconic portraits of Black Panthers co-founder Huey P. Newton. Ensconced in a wicker…
Read more about Records & Results: Vintage Posters Featuring Highlights from the Gail Chisholm Collection March 9, 2018 Vintage Posters Records & Results: Vintage Posters Featuring Highlights from the Gail Chisholm Collection Vintage Posters Featuring Highlights from the Gail Chisholm Collection offered premier examples of advertising and propaganda from around the world, and broke several auction records. Nicholas D. Lowry, President of…
Read more about Erik Nitsche’s Modernist Vision February 23, 2018 Vintage Posters Erik Nitsche’s Modernist Vision One of many highlights in our March 1 sale of Vintage Posters is a run of posters designed by Erik Nitsche in a series of campaigns for General Dynamics. Nitsche’s…
Read more about Gail Chisholm: A Life in Posters February 16, 2018 Vintage Posters Gail Chisholm: A Life in Posters Nearly a quarter of our March 1 auction of Vintage Posters was devoted to highlights from the collection of renowned poster dealer and aficionado Gail Chisholm. The sale opened with more…
Read more about Vintage Posters 101 January 23, 2018 Vintage Posters Vintage Posters 101 So you’ve fallen in love with a vintage poster. What next? Here are some of the most important things to consider when talking about, looking for, and decorating with vintage…
Read more about Records & Results: Rare & Important Travel Posters October 30, 2017 Vintage Posters Records & Results: Rare & Important Travel Posters Our annual auctions of Rare & Important Travel Posters are destinations in and of themselves. On October 26, we offered more spectacular examples that embodied a century’s worth of technological development.…
Read more about Marvel at Early Aviation Posters from 1910 October 25, 2017 Vintage Posters Marvel at Early Aviation Posters from 1910 The development of manned flight from hot air balloon to heavier-than-air machines was recorded and disseminated to the public via promotional posters. Some of the most influential works from this…
Read more about Records & Results: Vintage Posters August 4, 2017 Vintage Posters Records & Results: Vintage Posters More than 600 colorful advertisements and announcements crossed the block at our sale of Vintage Posters on Wednesday, August 2. The encyclopedic selection represented a century’s worth of development in…