Clars is excited to present our Important Summer Fine Art Sale on June 20th, commencing at 10 AM PDT. The sale is bursting with exceptional artwork from iconic creators such as Salvador Dalí, Roy Lichtenstein and Aaron Douglas.
One of the most exciting pieces in this month’s Important Summer Fine Art Sale is a never-before-sold oil on canvas painting by world-renowned Spanish Surrealist, Salvador Dalí. Over the course of the early to mid-twentieth century, Dalí established himself as perhaps the most celebrated of the Surrealist painters, famous for both his instantly recognizable visual style and for his eccentric personality and antics. The painting in this month’s sale, titled Portrait of Mrs. Luther Greene, is an oil on canvas that was commissioned by the sitter’s husband in New York City in 1942 — the year of the artist’s first retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art.
![Salvador Dalí (Spanish, 1904–1989), Portrait of Mrs. Luther Greene, 1942, oil on canvas, signed and dated right center, 24″ x 20″ (61 x 50.8 cm). Accompanied by preliminary study sketches of Mrs. Greene by Dalí from 1942 (charcoal/ink on paper). Provenance: Private collection (by descent); Mrs. Luther Greene (Ellen Chamberlain), New York. Catalog reference: Fundació Gala - Salvador Dalí: Catalogue Raisonné of Paintings by Salvador Dalí (cat. no. P 565). © Fundació Gala - Salvador Dalí](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/33993-1_ea-1.jpg)
Estimate: $700,000–$1,000,000
The portrait depicts the patron seated in the foreground, wrapped in a red robe. Behind her is a classic, Dalíesque desert landscape with two figures standing in the distance. An amorphous hill on the far right is dotted with buildings — resembling a forgotten ghost town — and a small boat sits beached by the shore on the far left. This exemplary piece is accompanied by the preliminary sketches done by the artist in preparation for the painting.
![Roy Lichtenstein (American, 1923–1997), Reverie, from 11 Pop Artists, Volume II, 1965, screenprint in colors, 27″ x 23″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/33830-25_1.jpg)
Estimate: $70,000–$100,000
Another noteworthy piece in the sale is a serigraph by American Pop art pioneer, Roy Lichtenstein. Lichtenstein was one of the most prominent figures to come out of the Pop Art movement and is most known for his comic strip-inspired paintings, prints, and sculptures. The print featured in the June sale is titled Reverie and dates to 1965. Pictured is a young woman with blonde hair and a melancholy expression, holding a microphone while a speech bubble over her head reads the lyrics, “The melody haunts my reverie.” This lyric — taken from the song Stardust by Tin Pan Alley musicians Hoagy Carmichael and Mitchell Parish — was written in 1927 and popularized during the 1930s big band era. The retro feel of the imagery is characteristic of Lichtenstein’s work, as is the comic-style dot work, bold color, and thick, black lines. Reverie was created for a portfolio, titled 11 Pop Artists published by Original Editions, that included 2 other prints by the artist as well as prints by Andy Warhol, Tom Wesselman, and other major names in the Pop Art movement.
![Aaron Douglas (American, 1899–1979), Untitled, circa 1955, oil on canvas, signed lower left, 22″ x 44″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/34005-1_1.jpg)
Estimate: $10,000–$20,000
A third striking highlight in our sale is an oil on canvas painting by key Harlem Renaissance figure, Aaron Douglas. Douglas is widely known for the murals he was commissioned to paint in several high-profile locations. These locations included several Historically Black Colleges and Universities, the Harlem YMCA, and one of his most acclaimed works, Aspects of Negro Life, at the New York Public Library in Harlem. Douglas worked with writers Alain Locke and W.E.B. Du Bois, and had illustrations included in publications like Vanity Fair, the NAACP journal The Crisis, and Opportunity: A Journal of Negro Life among others. Douglas developed a distinctive, graphic style that combined the aesthetic exploration of modernism with more traditional African subject matter. He often used bold color and evocative light sources with leafy foliage and human figures in silhouette. These figures are at times depicted in an African village or tribal setting, dancing, holding spears, or traversing a jungle-like landscape.
In other instances, figures are shown in American cityscapes, holding industrial tools with skyscrapers looming in the distance, or playing brass instruments in bands. The work in our June sale shows three silhouetted human figures holding spears and chasing five bison-like animals through an abstracted environment that uses the interplay between color and light to mimic an earthly landscape while remaining nonobjective. Douglas’s approach marries the celebratory aspects of Harlem Renaissance figuration with an Orphism-inspired understanding of color theory that creates a composition in which movement and light become as intrinsic to the material as paint and canvas.
In addition to the aforementioned works, we are also pleased to offer abstract sculptures by Claire Falkenstein, a life-size bronze gown by Karen LaMonte, a suite of six bullfighting paintings by LeRoy Neiman, an abstract expressionist oil by Tancredi Parmeggiani, and much more in our Important Summer Fine Art Sale on June 20th.
![Fern Isabel Kuns Coppedge (American, 1883–1951), August Reflections, oil on canvas, signed, gallery title label (Newman Galleries, Philadelphia) affixed verso, 20″ x 24″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/30141-166_1.jpg)
Estimate: $30,000–$50,000
![Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973), <em>Homme Barbu Couronne de Feuillage</em>, 1962, linocut, 13.5″ x 10.5″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/34039-1.jpg)
Estimate: $25,000–$35,000
![(lot of 6) LeRoy Neiman (American, 1921–2012), <em>The Red Corrida</em>, oils on panels, largest: 7.75″ x 11.75″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/33882-145_1-LP-scaled.jpg)
Estimate: $20,000–$30,000
![(lot of 4) Claire Falkenstein (American, 1908–1998), Untitleds, set of four mixed media (glass and metal) sculptures, overall each: 3″h x 3″w x 3″d (red), 1.5″h x 2.75″w x 2.75″d (blue), 1.25″h x 3″w x 2″d (orange/red), 2″h x 4″d x 2.75″d (clear/green). Provenance: Estate of Richard D. Lowell (Fresno, California).](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/June-banner-art.jpg)
Estimate: $20,000–$25,000
![Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881–1973), <em>Plat à la Tête de Faune</em>, 1948, partially engraved white earthenware ceramic plate with colored engobe and glaze, 12.5″ x 15.5″ x 2″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/32958-15.jpg)
Estimate: $10,000–$15,000
![Tancredi Parmeggiani (Italian, 1927–1964), Untitled, oil on board, 16″ x 26″. Provenance: Private Collection, Auburn, CA, thence by descent to the present owner.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/33805-4_1-1.jpg)
Estimate: $8,000–$12,000
![John Marin (American, 1870–1953), <em>Flatiron Building, NYC</em>, 1911, watercolor, 12″ x 15.75″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/30141-165_1.jpg)
Estimate: $8,000–$12,000
![Roy Lichtenstein (American, 1923–1997), Modern Head #5, 1970, embossed graphite with Strathmore die-cut paper overlay, 20.25″ x 11.25″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/34003-1.jpg)
Estimate: $8,000–$12,000
![Jacqueline Gilmore (American, 21st century), <em>Ashes to Ashes</em>, 2016, oil on canvas, 90″ x 180″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/34000-2-scaled.jpg)
Estimate: $8,000–$12,000
![Oscar Deveza Zalameda (Philippines, 1930–2010), Fish Market, oil on canvas, 30″ x 36″.](https://clars.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/34007-1_1.jpg)
Estimate: $8,000–$12,000