Over the years, I’ve amassed a sweet collection of African American art purchased at auction. It’s not a major collection worth gobs of money, but it’s a pretty good array of both local and national artists.
So, I often go to the African American art auction at Swann Auction Galleries in New York to see if any of my artists’ works are up for sale and how much they sell for. Each time, something turns up – either an Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence or Romare Bearden print that sells for a lot more than I paid for it.
Catlett’s “Survivor,” a linocut print that I purchased a few years ago at a ridiculously low price, came up twice this year – once in April and again in October. The print pulled in $2,000 more in April. I suspect that someone saw the first auction and figured their Catlett would generate the same amount.
It doesn’t necessarily work that way. The bid price of a work of art depends on many factors, one of which is how many people want it at a given time and how bad they want it. It may sell for one price one month and another price – higher or lower – at another time.
When I attend Swann’s auctions, I also look for other works by the artists I’ve collected, and again, I find plenty of them. Since 2007, Swann has positioned itself as the go-to auction house for the sale of African American art, although there are several such places across the country that also specialize in it.
Freeman’s Auction in Philadelphia, the country’s oldest auction house, sells its share and, according to its website, has African American art specialists on staff. The works are sold in its Modern & Contemporary auctions in May and November. Another is Leslie Hindman Auctioneers, based in Chicago. Other auction houses around the country also sell African American art as part of their repertoire.
For those of us who can’t afford to pay five or six figures for a painting, there are usually plenty of affordable prints as well as lower-priced original paintings for sale at auction. The best place to find the bargains are at local mom-and-pop auction houses. Just remember, though, that African American art sells well these days and the bidding, especially by dealers, can run high.
At Swann’s most recent auction, original paintings by several artists whose prints I own were sold. Here’s a sampling:
Walter Williams, “Untitled (Seated Man with Bowed Head),” 1951, $72,500 (with buyer’s premium). I have a print of a little girl with butterflies. There are several of these prints of a boy and girl separately and together with butterflies, rooster, bird and sunflowers.
Eldzier Cortor, “Sea of Time,” 1945, $245,000 (with buyer’s premium). I picked up two prints created by Cortor in the 1970s. I went to the auction to buy one of them, but the other was going so cheaply that I bought it, too. A similar piece sold at auction in 2009.
Charles White, “Nobody Knows My Name #1,” 1965, $485,000 (with buyer’s premium). Unfortunately, I can’t touch a Charles White original, but I can enjoy his prints. I have one titled “Champion” that I purchased years ago. It came up for sale under another title at Swann in April as part of a pair of etchings. I also have an incomplete set of reproductions of several of White’s original drawings.
Elizabeth Catlett, “Cosechadora de Algodón (Sharecropper),” 1952, $27,500 (with buyer’s premium). This is an iconic print by Catlett, its price showing that some prints can be valuable.
Jacob Lawrence, “General Toussaint L’Ouverture,” 1986, $20,800 (with buyer’s premium). This is a screenprint by Lawrence, from a series of 41 paintings created in 1938. This print of the leader of the Haitian Revolution is the most sought-after work from the series, according to the Swann catalog.
Columbus Knox, “Haitian Dock Scene,” circa 1995-97, $11,875 (with buyer’s premium). I bought my first Columbus Knox painting from the artist himself at the annual Rittenhouse Fine Art Show in Philadelphia, where he was a fixture each summer. Later, I bought another watercolor at auction.
Jacob Lawrence, “Schomburg Library,” 1986, $6,000 (with buyer’s premium). As a child, the artist spent a lot of time at this library in Harlem. I have a copy of this print, purchased from a friend’s art gallery.
Elizabeth Catlett, “Survivor,” 1983, $4,500 (with buyer’s premium). This print by Catlett sold for $6,500 in April. Since 2010, it has ranged from $1,375 to $6,500.
