Friday at Auction Finds is readers’ questions day. I try to guide readers to resources to help them determine the value of their items. I’m not able to appraise their treasures, but I can do some preliminary research to get them started. So, these are market values based on prices I find on the web, not appraisal for insurance purposes that I suggest for items that have been determined to be of great value.
Today’s question is about a portfolio of reproduction prints signed by African American sculptor Richmond Barthè.
Question:
I am the executive director of a nonprofit in North Carolina and while looking through our vintage book section at our thrift shop, I found three sets of the above-mentioned “Sculpture by Richmond Barthè.” The first print in each of the packets is actually signed by Richmond Barthè himself. I am trying to figure out a value on these packets. Can you provide any assistance?
Answer:
The reader had come across a blog post I wrote five years ago about a portfolio of prints of sculptures by the acclaimed African American artist Richmond Barthè. The prints – packaged in an envelope – were produced around 1942 by the Harmon Foundation, a benefactor of black artists that held exhibits of their works (producing a film of its March 1933 exhibition.
The reader’s portfolio was different because the prints were inscribed on a sheet bearing Barthè’s photograph: “With best wishes, Sincerely, Richmond Barthè.” The signature looked authentic.
The portfolio was remarkable because it offered a photographic history of the works of Barthè: a solo exhibit (Arden Galleries, NY, 1939); Barthè sculpting (in a demonstration at a school in New Rochelle, NY), his subjects (history in the bust of Abraham Lincoln; the theater, “John Gielgud as Hamlet”; homosexuality, “African Boy Dancing” and “Feral Benga”; religion, “John the Baptist” and “Mary,” and his own people, “Blackberry Woman” and “The Negro Looks Ahead”).
While most of his works were sculptures, Barthè also did woodcuts and drawings – “Untitled (Portrait of a Young Man)” and “Untitled (Man Playing a Mandolin).” He began as a painter and switched to sculpture while at the Art Institute of Chicago.
When I got the reader’s inquiry, my first thought was that these were reproductions of actual sculptures, not original prints from a painting, which sometimes in themselves can be valuable. Even with Barthè’s signature, I wasn’t sure if these would be. I learned that these were collotype plates, a type of photographic printing that was new to me.
I wasn’t sure if these portfolios would be considered art or manuscripts so I contacted Nigel Freeman who coordinates the twice-yearly sale of African American art at Swann Auction Galleries in New York. The auction house has made a name for itself as a seller of fine art by and manuscripts pertaining to blacks. After viewing the prints, he suggested that their value was “more historical – as a document of his 1942 Harmon exhibition – rather than as an autographed print/reproduction.” With that, I would suggest that the reader contact Swann’s African American manuscript department for assistance.
Googling, I found that the Newark Museum of Art and the Library of Congress both have the portfolios. As for the value, I located a set that sold at auction in 2013, and two that were up for sale on bookseller sites.
An unsigned set sold for $450 (minus the buyer’s premium) at auction in 2013, along with early photos by Harlem twin-brother photographers Morgan and Marvin Smith. Another was selling on abebooks.com (for a Connecticut bookseller) for $550. A third was selling for 611 euros (around $674) on a European website.
Based on the asking price at the retail sites, the value of the prints is at least $450, but as I often say, value depends on who wants what – and how bad – at any given time. I would think that Barthè’s signature would make a difference.
I’d suggest that the reader check auctionzip.com to find auction houses in his area that have sold or specialize in African American art and/or manuscripts. He should especially check the auction-house websites to see if they offer free or complimentary appraisals on certain days.
I found two major auction houses in North Carolina: Leland Little Auctions, which has contact info for consignments, and Brunk Auctions, which has an evaluation form on its website.
The reader could also contact auction houses outside his state that have sold Barthè’s works, including Freeman’s in Philadelphia; Thelma Harris Art Gallery in Oakland, CA; Cowan’s Auctions in Cincinnati, OH, and the website 1stdibs.com, which has photographs for sale of Barthè sculptures captured by the Smith brothers. He can find others on the web.
I sometimes suggest that buyers try to sell their items on eBay, which has a worldwide clientele. Searching eBay’s Completed Listings, I did not find the Barthè portfolio, but I did find a 1931 Harmon Foundation NY Exhibition of Negro Artists catalog that sold for $114.50 (unsigned). In this case, I would recommend this route only as a last resort for the reader.
