Property of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco to Benefit the Acquisition Fund of the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts will be offered at Clars Auctions on March 19th, 10 AM PDT. This exceptional offering includes more than 170 works on paper spanning the 1860s through the 1980s.

Clars Auctions is honored to have been selected by the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco to present this distinguished group of works at auction. The relationship between Clars and the Museums is rooted in a shared commitment to connoisseurship, stewardship, and public trust. As one of the West Coast’s leading full-service auction houses, Clars brings decades of expertise in handling significant institutional property and in connecting important works of art with discerning collectors.

Being entrusted with property that benefits the Acquisition Fund of the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts underscores Clars’ reputation for scholarship, market leadership, and integrity. Proceeds from the March 19th auction will directly support future acquisitions, strengthening the Foundation’s ability to expand and preserve its renowned collection of works on paper for generations to come.

“This sale represents a meaningful collaboration between our institution and one of the country’s most respected museums,” said Rick Unruh, CEO and President of Clars Auctions.

“We are proud to play a role in furthering the Achenbach Foundation’s mission while offering collectors an extraordinary opportunity to own works that embody the rich artistic legacy of California.”

Providing a compelling glimpse into San Francisco’s cultural and civic history, the collection features rare 19th-century portraiture depicting prominent politicians, influential businessmen, and notable figures of the Old California era. Historically significant Northern California landscapes, seascapes, and early San Francisco street scenes will also be presented.

Collectors of modern and contemporary art will find works by important late 20th-century West Coast artists, including Ed Ruscha, Nathan Oliveira, William T. Wiley, Robert Bechtle, and Beth Van Hoesen.

The auction will take place live on Thursday, March 19th, with bidding available in person, by phone, absentee, and online.

Incredible prices are being achieved at auction—if you’ve ever considered selling, now is the time. Clars Auctions is currently seeking quality consignments for its upcoming monthly auctions.

To learn more about consigning in our Fine Art department, email: Senior Specialist, Erin Cabral.

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To learn more about consigning in our Fine Jewelry & Watches department, email: Specialist, Campbell Unruh.

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To learn more about consigning in our Furniture & Decorative Arts department, email: Senior Specialist, Suzy Pai.

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To learn more about consigning in our Asian Art department, email: Director, Harry Huang.

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Clars Auctions is pleased to announce highlights of its Important Fine Art Auction taking place on February 19th, featuring a dynamic selection of postwar, modern, and contemporary works alongside important American prints.

Highlights include a monumental mixed-media canvas by Abstract Expressionist Conrad Marca- Relli, Untitled (circa 1970s), estimated at $15,000–$20,000; Richard Diebenkorn’s vibrant aquatint with drypoint, Folsom Street Variations III (Primaries) (1986), estimated at $12,000–$18,000; and Richard Pettibone’s incisive Pop Art reinterpretation, Andy Warhol Brillo Box (1964) (1967), also estimated at $12,000–$18,000. Additional highlights include California Impressionist works by Granville Redmond and Charles P. Reiffel, as well as notable works by Ellsworth Kelly, Victor Vasarely, Edward S. Curtis, Anthony Quinn, and John James Audubon. Together, these works underscore the breadth and quality of the auction, offering collectors opportunities across multiple movements, media, and price points.

Featured in the auction is Richard Pettibone (American, 1938–2024), a pivotal conceptual Pop artist known for re-creating iconic works of his contemporaries in miniature. Drawing from the Dada tradition of Marcel Duchamp, Pettibone appropriated widely recognized images — such as Andy Warhol’s Marilyn screenprints and Roy Lichtenstein’s comic-strip paintings — in works he described as both homage and critique. His Andy Warhol Brillo Box (1964), created in 1967 after Warhol’s famed facsimile boxes, exemplifies Pettibone’s recursive approach to mass-produced imagery, raising enduring questions about authorship, value, and consumer culture in postwar American art.

Another major focus of the auction is an extensive group of paintings by Margaret Keane (American, 1927–2022), spanning the early 1960s. Keane is internationally renowned for her iconic depictions of wide-eyed figures and for her remarkable personal and artistic story. During her marriage, her former husband Walter Keane falsely claimed authorship of her work, a claim later disproven in a landmark courtroom “paint-off” following their divorce. Keane was ultimately recognized as the true creator of the famed “Big Eyes” paintings. Her influence extends across fine art and popular culture, and her life inspired the 2014 film Big Eyes, directed by Tim Burton and starring Amy Adams. Four paintings by Keane are offered in the February auction, with estimates ranging from $6,000–$9,000 to $10,000–$15,000.

Clars’ Important Holiday Fine Art Auction on December 18th presents an exceptional selection of artworks by celebrated artists working across a wide range of periods and styles.

Among the premier highlights is an oil on canvas by Bay Area favorite, Raimonds Staprans (American/Latvian, b. 1926), an artist with whom Clars has consistently achieved strong results. Staprans is renowned for his vivid palette and distinctive use of line — qualities that are fully evident in Still Life with the Ugly Hockney Vase #2. The off-white vase rests on a similarly colored surface set against a striking red ground, while delicate lines in orange, violet, and sky blue trace the object’s edges and heighten its dimensionality. Selected for the cover of the 2006 exhibition catalog for Staprans’ retrospective at the Latvian National Museum, the painting exemplifies the artist’s ability to reinvigorate traditional still-life subjects through bold color and decisive brushwork. This work is estimated at $150,000–$200,000.

Another major feature of the December sale is a mixed-media work on canvas by Los Angeles based artist Mark Bradford (American, b. 1961). Bradford’s practice is deeply informed by his upbringing in South Los Angeles and by his explorations of race, gender, and identity — as well as the influence of his mother’s hair salon — where he worked after high school. Many of his materials originate in that environment, including hair dye and the end papers used in perm treatments. The December offering, painted in soft green hues, is layered with sheets of end paper in various states of translucency, some singed to a deep brown. The staggered layers create surprising depth and texture across the surface. Bradford’s work is widely admired and held in prominent collections, and he has received national recognition, including his inclusion in Time Magazine’s 2021 list of the most influential people and the National Medal of Arts in 2023. This untitled piece carries an estimate of $20,000–$30,000.

A further highlight is a ceramic plate by Spanish modernist Pablo Picasso (1881–1973), titled Visage de Femme and dating to 1953 during his collaboration with the Madoura Pottery studio in Vallauris, France. Picasso’s ceramics remain highly desirable as accessible, yet significant examples of his contributions to twentieth-century art. This piece features the Cubist depiction of a woman’s face, rendered in white, cyan, and blue on a black ground, with a bold white line forming the nose above a slight smile and a beaded necklace. The plate is estimated at $15,000–$20,000.

These marquee offerings are joined by additional works from artists such as Granville Redmond, Wayne Thiebaud, Jules Tavernier, Maynard Dixon, Thomas Hart Benton, and many more.

On September 18th, Clars is pleased to present a special selection of outstanding fine art that will appeal to each and every collector in our Important Fine Art Auction.

First in our series of highlights is a ceramic and polystyrene sculptural vase by French modernist, Niki de Saint Phalle (1930–2002). Saint Phalle is best known for her large-scale Nana series of sculptures, which depicts voluptuous and colorfully painted women in a variety of poses. Her color-block painting technique is displayed in Serpent Vase (1986), which is formed by a coiled snake around a bowl. The piece is from an edition of seven and is estimated at $20,000–$25,000.

Also featured in the auction are two oils on canvas by Sri Lankan artist, Senaka Senanayake (b. 1951) — Untitled, estimated at $15,000–$25,000, and The Devotees, estimated at $10,000–$15,000. Both paintings date to the late 1960s and are exemplary of his work during this period, depicting figural groups in an Abstract Expressionist manner with emotive smears of rich color and thick, black linework.

The auction will also include two significant works on paper by the iconic modernist Marc Chagall (Belarusian/French, 1887–1985), celebrated for his dreamlike imagery and poetic use of color. Known for bridging Cubism, Symbolism, and Fauvism with a deeply personal visual language, Chagall’s work continues to resonate with collectors worldwide. Featured is Plate 1, from Four Tales from the Arabian Nights (1948), a vivid color lithograph that exemplifies Chagall’s fascination with folklore and fantasy. Signed and annotated “Pl. 1” in pencil, the work is numbered 65/90 and was published by Pantheon Books, New York. It carries an estimate of $15,000–$20,000. Also on offer is Daphnis and Chloe (1961), a lyrical lithograph in colors on Arches paper. Signed in pencil and numbered 26/60, this work (Mourlot 311) stems from Chagall’s celebrated suite inspired by the ancient Greek love story. With its fluid composition and romantic palette, it is similarly estimated at $15,000–$20,000.

Another highlight in the September Important Fine Art Auction is a large, mixed media piece by Italian-American modernist, Enrico Donati (1909–2008). Donati began his artistic career in the early 1940s after meeting with André Breton and other European Surrealists who were active in New York City during the period. Estimated at $8,000–$12,000 and one of four works to be offered, Donati’s Coptic Wall II (1978) is one such work that epitomizes his use of textured canvases.

In addition to the above highlighted works, we are offering paintings by Ira Yeager and Bibi Zogbe, prints by Wayne Thiebaud and Franz Marc, and a wealth of other exceptional pieces.