New York – Christie’s announces Americana Week 2020, a series of auctions, viewings and events, to be held January 11-24. The week of sales is comprised of Outsider Art on January 17, Chinese Export Art Featuring the Tibor Collection, Part II on January 23, and Important American Furniture, Folk Art and Silver on January 24.

Object highlights across the week include a majestic composition by Edward Hicks Peaceable Kingdom ($1,500,000-3,500,000), The Gould Family Queen Anne Carved Walnut High Chest-of-Drawers, Newport, 1750-1770 ($300,000-400,000), Bill Traylor’s Man on White, Woman on Red / Man with Black Dog (double-sided) ($200,000-400,000) from the Collection of Alice Walker, a double-sided work by Henry Darger Untitled (188/189), double sided ($400,000-600,000) and notable Outsider Art works from The William Louis-Dreyfus Foundation. Works of rarity and fine craftsmanship include a pair of Chinese Export Porcelain ‘Soldier’ Vases and Covers, early Qianlong Period, circa 1740 ($100,000-150,000) and an Important American Silver, Gold and Enamel Vase by Louis Comfort Tiffany in 1915 ($100,000-150,000).

Americana Week 2020 will offer over a curation of more than 560 lots across the three live auctions. Viewings begin with the Outsider Art sale opening on 11 January at our Rockefeller Center galleries with the remaining two auctions, Chinese Export Art and Important American Furniture, Folk Art and Silver, opening on 15 January. In conjunction with the sales, Christie’s will host the annual Eric M. Wunsch Award for Excellence in the American Arts on Wednesday, January 22 at 6pm honoring Laura Beach, Lita Solis-Cohen, and Mira Nakashima, as well as a Christie’s Lates event on Wednesday, January 15 combining a preview of the auctions, music and specialist talks.

Americana week 2020 | Overview of sales

OUTSIDER ART | JANUARY 17 | 10AM

On January 17 Christie’s will offer 130 lots of Outsider Art featuring rare and important masterpieces from the category’s top artists, including Bill Traylor, William Edmonson, Henry Darger, Thornton Dial and Martin Ramirez, among others.

The sale presents a strong selection of 8 works by Bill Traylor, including Man on White, Woman on Red / Man with Black Dog (double-sided) 1939-1942 ($200,000-400,000), a double-sided work gifted from filmmaker Steven Spielberg to writer Alice Walker after the conclusion of filming The Color Purple, and Red Man on Blue Horse with Dog from The Louis-Dreyfus Family Collections ($150,000-250,000). A large scale watercolor and carbon transfer narrative work by Henry Darger, Untitled (188,189), double sided ($400,000-600,000), a minimalist and modern sculpture by William Edmondson, Figural Birdbath, 1930s ($250,000-500,000), and Augustin Lesage’s highly detailed and colorful Untitled, 1945 ($100,000-150,000) are among the additional top lots in the sale.

The sale features a strong selection of works by European and Asian artists, such as Adolf Wolfli, Guo Fengyi, and Hiroyuki Doi, as well as remarkable pieces by American artists including William Hawkins, AG Rizzoli, and Judith Scott. The auction includes important selection of works from The William Louis-Dreyfus Foundation, sold to benefit the Harlem Children’s Zone and the Foundation.

CHINESE EXPORT ART FEATURING THE TIBOR COLLECTION, PART II | JANUARY 23 | 10AM

Chinese Export Art Featuring the Tibor Collection, Part II, taking place in New York on January 24^th, presents 166 lots of porcelain and paintings made for the great commerce between China and the West in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. The variety on offer includes blue and white, famille verte, famille rose, armorial pieces and rare European subjects. 

The sale is led by a rich assortment from the Tibor Collection, which encompasses every category of Chinese export porcelain – from small, charming teawares to massive pairs of important jars – gathered from Latin America, Europe and the U.S. The collector was drawn to figure and animal models, including lifelike Chinese porcelain birds, pairs of pups to mythical beasts and amusing packs of blanc de chine foo lions. Leading the offerings from the Tibor Collection is a pair of Famille Rose Soldier Vases and Covers, Qianlong Period (1736-1795) ($100,000-150,000).

Other private collections represented are the well-known Eckenhoff Collection of mugs and a private New York collection of ‘Pronk’ porcelain. China Trade paintings include a group of charming reverse-paintings on mirror and a rare pair of oil portraits of Commissioner Qiying and his consort.

IMPORTANT AMERICAN FURNITURE, FOLK ART AND SILVER | JANUARY 24 | 10AM

The Important American Furniture, Folk Art and Silver sale on January 24 includes an exceptional selection of 267 lots. The top lot of American Week is a magnificent Peaceable Kingdom by Edward Hicks ($1,500,000 – 3,500,000), a “Late Kingdom” masterpiece made at the height of the artist’s career, and one of the most successful examples of his famous subject. This example differs in minor details to an example now at Colonial Williamsburg and was described by Hicks as “one of the best I ever done.” The significant selection of Folk Art includes a pair of vividly colored and exquisitely detailed paintings by Joshua Johnson, A Pair of Portraits: Boy with Squirrel and Girl with Dog ($100,000 – 150,000); an exquisite painting of two steamers by James Bard, The San Rafael ($50,000 – 80,000); and an iconic portrait of George Washington by Gilbert Stuart ($200,000-300,000). A group of 11 cigar store figures from the Collection of Gary Herman Dubnoff is led by a carved and polychrome paint-decorated Cigar Store Figure Of 'Punch' possibly from the workshop of Samuel Anderson Robb (1851-1928), New York, Late 19th Century ($70,000-90,000).

Important furniture highlights from distinguished collections include the Gould Family Queen Anne Carved Walnut Chest-of Drawers, Newport, 1750-1770, from The Wunsch Americana Foundation, Inc. ($300,000-400,000); and from The Collection of Ralph E. Carpenter, Jr. is a Queen Anne Walnut Tall-Case Clock, circa 1740, with a dial signed by William Claggett ($30,000 – 50,000), and the Tillinghast Family Pair of Queen Anne Walnut Side Chairs, possibly by John Goddard, Newport, 1760-1770 (two pairs presented in two lots, each estimated at $15,000-$25,000).

The sale features an impressive group of American silver with early works by Paul Revere II and iconic creations by Tiffany & Co. including a Silver, Gold and Enamel Vase by Louis Comfort Tiffany which was exhibited at the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco ($100,000-150,000), and Parcel-Gilt Silver and Enamel Musical Carousel designed by Gene Moore, circa 1990 ($50,000-80,000). Additional highlights include a pair of Martele Silver Vases by Gorham Mfg. Co. for the 1900 Paris Exposition Universelle ($10,000-15,000), and An Important Silver Caudle Cup, by Jurian Blanck Jr., New York, circa 1680 ($20,000-30,000).