AUCTION REPORT
Bob Kuhn (1920-2007), High Plains Lothario, oil on board, 18 x 24” Estimate: $70/90,000 SOLD: $68,750
Hitting Milestones Hindman’s recent Arts of the American West auction set a world record and several other milestones for the department.
H
indman hosted its fall Arts of the American West auction on November 7 to much fanfare, achieving more than $1.5 million in sales. Highlights ranged from Western paintings to historic and contemporary Native American artwork that included sculpture, jewelry, beadwork and more. “We are thrilled with the results of the sale,” says
Katherine Hlavin, the auction house’s Director of Business Development, West. “Active bidding in the room, over the phone and online drove strong results, setting a record sale total for the Arts of the American West department.” The top lot of the sale was the wildlife painting High Plains Lothario, by one of the masters of the genre, Bob Kuhn, which sold
Ed Mell, Cloud Progression, oil on canvas, 24 x 62” Estimate: $12/18,000 SOLD: $27,500
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for $68,750. Coming in second was Vance Kirkland’s Explosions on 20 Billion Years Ago, which shattered expectations when it sold for $67,500 against a presale estimate of $7,000 to $9,000. The work became a new auction record for the artist. Other Western paintings that achieved solid results were Ed Mell’s Cloud Progression (est. $12/18,000) and Emil Bisttram’s
Emil Bisttram (1895-1976), Taos Mountain, 1960, oil on canvas, 32 x 36” Estimate: $18/24,000 SOLD: $27,500