William Ansley Contemporary Art Glass Collection to be Auctioned
INDIANAPOLIS, IN.- An advanced but intentionally low-key collector, the late William D. “Bill” Ansley amassed a select private collection of contemporary art glass over a 40-year period, and in so doing, created a panoramic three-dimensional history of Murano production. To the amazement of his fellow collectors, Ansley accomplished this feat almost entirely from his home base of Topeka, Kansas, said Dan Ripley, whose Antique Helper Galleries will auction the collection in its entirety in a single-consignor sale on Dec. 19, 2009. “In cataloging the collection, I got the feeling that Mr. Ansley probably bought most of the glass in the Midwest,” said Ripley. “There are pieces in his collection that we’ve identified in catalogs from early-1990s auctions in St. Louis…Dealers knew what he was looking for, and he would have been the first phone call when a special piece of glass became availabl
Museo del Prado Focuses New Temporary Exhibition on Dutch Painting
MADRID.- Through the generosity of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, from 3 December the Prado will be displaying a masterpiece by the Dutch painter Frans Hals, Company of Captain Reijnier Reael and Lieutenant Cornelis Michielsz Blaeuw (1633-1637), which was completed by his fellow-countryman Pieter Codde. This magnificent work by one of the most important Dutch painters of the 17th century is to be seen at the Museum as part of its “Invited Work” programme. In 1885 Van Gogh said of it: “Just to see that painting would make the journey to
Scene Stealer
The Winter 2010 issue of MODERN features a story on the two monumental sculptures-cum-buildings that André Bloc, an artist, architect, and magazine editor, built in the 1960s in the garden of his home in the Parisian suburb of Meudon. As breathtaking …
Pirate Exhibit in Norfolk Taps into Pirate Craze
NORFOLK, VA (AP).- Growing up on Cape Cod, explorer Barry Clifford was fascinated by the romantic tale of “Black Sam” Bellamy. Sailing to Massachusetts to rendezvous with his mistress, the pirate encountered a nor’easter that sent him, most of his crew, and tons of gold, silver and jewels to the ocean’s bottom. The lore launched Clifford on a life of treasure-hunting — including the discovery in 1984 of the Whydah, Bellamy’s treasure-laden three-master, which sank off of Wellfleet, Mass., on April 26, 1717. “I was looking for treasure, and I found it,” Clifford, 64, said. “More treasure than I could have ever imagined. The whole bottom was layered with it.” A sliver of Clifford’s discovery is on display through April 4, 2010, at Nauticus, a marine science museum perched on the Norfolk waterfront. “Real Pirates: The Untold Story of the Whydah from Slave Ship to Pirate Ship,” organized by National Geographic, includes thousands of gold and silver coins and hundreds of other d
Museu d’Art de Catalunya Celebrates 75th Anniversary with Exhibition
BARCELONA.- It is now 75 years since the inauguration of the Museu d’Art de Catalunya, and the MNAC is celebrating it by bringing together 75 masterpieces of Catalan art belonging to private collections, Catalan, European and American museums, and ecclesiastic patrimony.
Sotheby’s Week of Russian Art Sales Totals $31.9 Million
LONDON.- This afternoon, Sotheby’s Russian Art Sales Series concluded bringing a total of £19.3/$31.9 million – near the high estimate (£14,882,080-21,246,220) – and established a healthy sell-through-rate of 74% overall. Highlights of the sales series include: • ‘Romanov Heirlooms’ Sale realises £7 million, seven-times the high estimate of £900,000. The auction was 100% sold by value and with every lot finding a buyer the sale became the first Russian Art Auction at Sotheby’s to become
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Awards the Frick Collection a $1 Million Grant
NEW YORK, NY.- The Frick Collection announced that it has been awarded a $1 million challenge grant by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. When matched over the next four years with $3 million in contributions from other sources, the grant will create a $4 million endowment for the position of Chief Conservator, also providing, in perpetuity, funds for research, professional development, and related expenses. Comments Frick Collection Board Chairman Margot Bogert, “Change happens in perhaps less obvious ways at the Frick than elsewhere,
Sotheby’s London Sale Of Rediscovered Fabergé Totals $11.6 Million
From a busy saleroom opened to capacity, with two banks of 60 telephone lines reserved to execute bids on behalf of potential buyers, clients enthusiastically competed to acquire a piece of Russian Imperial history in Sotheby’s Sale of ‘Romanov Heirlooms: The Lost Inheritance of the Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna’
Max Ernst Museum Presents 150 Works of Art by US Filmmaker David Lynch
“A cult film director from Los Angeles presenting his fine art works for the first time in a German museum. You cannot miss that!”, emphasizes Dr. Achim Sommer, director of the museum and co-curator of the exhibition “David Lynch – Dark Splendor”. Until 21st March 2010 the Max Ernst Museum Bruehl of the LVR presents a selection of 150 art works of the American film maker David Lynch
Sotheby’s Sale to Feature Rare Group Of Medieval Gargoyles
Sotheby’s sale of Old Master Sculpture and Works Of Art in London on Tuesday, December 8, 2009 will open with an unusual collection of stone architectural carvings brought together over a period of 17 years by collector and enthusiast Richard Wiseman…