New York–Swann
Galleries’ March 5 auction boasts property from the Ismar Littmann Family Collection, a 160-lot offering of German
Expressionism and European Avant-Garde. The afternoon session of 19th & 20th Century Prints &
Drawings features an array of works from notable Modern, nineteenth-century
and American artists.
Compiled in a separate catalogue, the Littmann offering
celebrates a singular collector. Ismar Littmann began collecting in the 1910s,
and his habits and tastes were individual and contemporary to the time–a
parallel to the independent spirit of the Breslau art scene. The personal
relationships he held with the artists, particularly Otto Mueller, had a deep
influence on him and resulted in a collection with depth and insight,
consisting of not only works of art, but correspondence between the collector
and artists. By the end of the 1920s Littmann had acquired more than 6,000
works. The Nazis’ rise to power put a strain on the collector’s livelihood as
well as art patronage, and much of the collection was lost or destroyed.
Littmann’s combined financial and personal losses, as well as the overwhelming
persecution of his faith and culture, led him to commit suicide in September of
1934. Littmann’s eldest son was able to immigrate to the United States with a
portion of the family collection that same year. These works, along with
additional pieces sent later, have since remained with the family. Swann
Galleries is very pleased and honored to have been trusted with the historic
offering.
Lot 393:
Sonia Delaunay, La Prose du Transsibérien
et de la petite Jehanne de France by Blaise Cendrars, color pochoir with
watercolor on four joined sheets, 1913. Estimate $70,000 to $100,000.
Lot 17:
Lesser Ury, Allee im Tiergarten, Berlin,
color pastels, circa 1920. From the Ismar Littmann Family Collection. Estimate
$50,000 to $80,000.
Lot 112:
Otto Mueller, Lagernde Zigeunerfamilie
mit Ziege, color lithograph, 1926-27. From the Ismar Littmann Family
Collection. Estimate $30,000 to $50,000.
Notable lots include Otto Mueller’s color lithographs from 1926-27, Zwei Zigeunerinnen (Zigeunermutter mit Tochter) and Lagernde Zigeunerfamilie mit Ziege which
are expected to bring $25,000 to $35,000 and $30,000 to $50,000, respectively. Max
Pechstein’s portfolio of 50 lithographs, Reisebilder:
Italien–Sudsee, 1919, depicting scenes from Italy and Germany (Estimate:
$25,000-35,000), as well as the watercolor Russisches
Ballet, 1912, and a woodcut, Sommer I,
1912, are among the highlights ($15,000-20,000 and $10,000-15,000,
respectively). Further works include Allee
im Tiergarten, Berlin, circa 1920, a color pastel depiction of an urban
landscape by Lesser Ury, and a
Nicolas Ghika oil on canvas, Intérieur
avec chevalet d’artiste, circa 1920s, that portrays the artist’s studio. Both
are estimated at $50,000 to $80,000.
The
afternoon session following the Littmann Collection offers a broad selection of
high-end prints and drawings. The top lot is Edvard Munch’s Kyss IV, 1902–a first-state woodblock
print based on the artist’s oil painting of the same title. Only six other
impressions of Kyss IV have come to
auction in the past 30 years ($150,000-250,000).
Additional works by Modern masters include Sonia Delaunay’s color pochoir and watercolor illustration of Blaise Cendrars’ poem La Prose du Transsibérien et de la petite Jehanne de France, 1913, which explored the frustrated yet wonderous experience of living through a period of ever-accelerating modernity ($70,000-100,000); Natura Morta con Cinque Oggetti, 1956, a still-life etching by Giorgio Morandi ($30,000-50,000); and Joan Miró’s La Permissionaire, 1974, ($40,000-60,000).
Additional works by Modern masters include Sonia Delaunay’s color pochoir and watercolor illustration of Blaise Cendrars’ poem La Prose du Transsibérien et de la petite Jehanne de France, 1913, which explored the frustrated yet wonderous experience of living through a period of ever-accelerating modernity ($70,000-100,000); Natura Morta con Cinque Oggetti, 1956, a still-life etching by Giorgio Morandi ($30,000-50,000); and Joan Miró’s La Permissionaire, 1974, ($40,000-60,000).
Nineteenth-century stalwarts include artist-friends (and
rivals) Paul Gaugin and Vincent van Gogh, with remarkable works on paper: Noa Noa, 1893-94, a superb color woodcut by Gaugin, is estimated at $40,000 to
$60,000, and Van Gogh’s Homme à la Pipe:
Portrait du Docteur Gachet, 1890, the artist’s only known etching, comes
across the block at $80,000 to $120,000. William Blake’s Illustrations of the Book of Job, 1826, complete with 22 engravings,
is expected to bring $30,000 to $50,000.
Highlights from the American section
include Winslow Homer’s Mending the Tears,
1888–a line-based etching of rural women darning a fishing net
($10,000-15,000). Martin Lewis’s quintessential New York drypoint Rain on Murray Hill, 1928, displays the
artist’s mastery of depicting nocturnal and atmospheric conditions
($15,000-20,000). Works by Thomas Hart Benton, Childe Hassam, and Joseph
Pennell ensure a standout selection.
Thomas Hart Benton: https://catalogue.swanngalleries.com/asp/searchresults.asp?keywords_value=thomas+hart+benton&home_page_search=true&viewing_option=2&st=u&sale_no=2500
Exhibition opening in New York City
February 28. The complete catalogue and bidding information is available at www.swanngalleries.com and on the Swann Galleries’ App.
We ask that all images be credited, wherever used, as Courtesy of Swann Auction Galleries.
Auction
date: Tuesday, March 5, at 10:30 am
