Covers/Pages 2-7 - J. Russell Jinishian Gallery

19th, 20th and 21st Century Marine Art
VOLUME 6 NUMBER 8 - 9
PUBLISHED by J. RUSSELL JINISHIAN
© SPRING/SUMMER 2006 / $12.00
Special Double Issue
™
What’s Inside:
• Latest News from Today’s
Premier Marine Artists,
Learn What they’re Working
on in their Studios right now
• Latest Marine Art
Sales & Prices
• Marine Art Exhibitions
Across the Country
• Upcoming Auctions
John Stobart
Oil 22” x 40” $350,000
View of Annapolis from the Statehouse in 1860
Wick Ahrens
Dimetrious Athas
John Atwater
Nick Berger
Anthony Blake
Robert Blazek
Christopher Blossom
Lou Bonamarte
Peter Bowe
Bernd Braatz
Al Bross
James Buttersworth
Marc Castelli
Scott Chambers
Terry Culpan
Steve Cryan
R.B. Dance
William R. Davis
Don Demers
Louis Dodd
William P. Duffy
Willem Eerland
Carl Evers
William Ewen
James Flood
Flick Ford
Paul Garnett
William Gilkerson
James Griffiths
Robert Grimson
Glen Hacker
James Harrington
Cooper Hart
André Harvey
Geoff Hunt
James Iams
Antonio Jacobsen
Michael Keane
Loretta Krupinski
Richard Dana Kuchta
Robert LaGasse
Gerry Levey
Patrick Livingstone
Ian Marshall
Victor Mays
Lloyd McCaffery
Joseph McGurl
John Mecray
Jerry Melton
Stanley Meltzoff
Leonard Mizerek
William G. Muller
Rob Napier
William Oakley Jr.
Julia O’Malley Keyes
Roberto Osti
Yves Parent
Ed Parker
Charles Peterson
James Prosek
Randy Puckett
Keith Reynolds
Marek Sarba
Arthur Shilstone
Kathy Spalding
Robert Sticker
John Stobart
David Thimgan
Tim Thompson
Kent Ullberg
Peter Vincent
William Walsh
Patricia Warfield
Robert Weiss
Bert Wright
J. Russell Jinishian Gallery, Inc.
1657 POST ROAD, FAIRFIELD, CT 06824
(203) 259-8753
2159 RT. 129 SOUTH BRISTOL, ME
Just up the hill from the Swing Bridge towards Christmas Cove.
Look for the leaping fish. August only. 207-644-1102
Specializing in 19th, 20th, and 21st Century Marine and Fishing Art from Europe and America.
Accepting artwork on consignment from collectors throughout the year.
HOURS: Tuesday - Saturday 10-5 p.m. and by appointment.
We invite you to stop by and visit the gallery located just 1 hour from NYC just off I-95 at Exit 21.
Visit our website: www.jrusselljinishiangallery.com
E-mail: [email protected]
• Book
Reviews
Bermuda Race 1923 – The Start
News From the Artists
What would happen if two premier artists were asked to paint their interpretation of the same event? Well take a look below.
2006 is the 100th anniversary of one of the most famous and longest running annual ocean races, the Bermuda Race. These artists have chosen to paint
the start of the first race that pitted the new John Alden designed schooners like Malabar IV and the first Marconi rigged Herreshoff designed New
York 40 Memory, against the traditional fleet of 22 other gaffed rigged yachts. The race began in the relatively light airs off New London, CT. The artists
have chosen different ends of the line to depict, and an entirely different palette. For the record, Malabar IV won on corrected time, although the
Bermuda yawl Dainty gave her a good run by using local knowledge to snake through the treacherous reefs off North Rock Channel to the finish.
Don Demers
MEMORY
BLACKHAWK
Oil 24” x 36” $40,000
A
s usual, this has been a busy quarter in the
marine art world, with exhibitions, projects
by, and articles about, marine artists all
across the country and around the globe. So
let’s get right to the news. We’ll begin with the
American Society of Marine Artists (ASMA),
which is now in its 30th year. It has cemented its
position as an important national cultural resource
by officially entering into a relationship with
the world’s largest museum, the Smithsonian
in Washington, D.C. One of it’s 20 branches,
the Smithsonian American Art Museum and
National Portrait Gallery Library, which has
over 100,000 books, catalogs and periodicals relating
to the lives of American artists
and American art, has agreed to
add to its collection all of ASMA’s
previous exhibition catalogs and
newsletters. They’ll further be
drawing from Charles Raskob
Robinson’s (who spearheaded
this project with the Smithsonian)
regular column in the ASMA News,
“Notes from Brush Hill” in which
he profiles two or three artist
members of the Society in detail.
The Smithsonian is using these
to create a “vertical file”—in
essence a biographical file—for
each of the individual artists that
Robinson has profiled in the past,
or will in the future. Given the
important role marine artists have
played in the development of the
arts in America, it’s more than
fitting that their current contributions are being embraced by our Tim Thompson
chief national cultural institution.
If you’re visiting Washington and
want to see these firsthand, pay a visit to the
National Historical Landmarks Building which
houses them, and which has just reopened after
extensive renovation. Even if you are not planning
to visit the nation’s capital you’ll soon be able to
access this information online at www.si.edu.
The Society as an organization regularly reaches
out to promote marine art through a series of
regional exhibitions and workshops. This quarter
the exhibition was held at the Cold Spring
Harbor Whaling Museum, which was hosted
by the Art League of Long Island. It featured 52
works of art by 32 ASMA members, augmented by
various artifacts from the museum, including a
15 ft. Whitehall skiff loaned by singer Billy Joel
which had been built especially for him by the
International Yacht Restoration School in
Newport, Rhode Island, and a presentation
entitled “The Nautical Mission” by artist
Michael Killea.
Anthony Blake
MALABAR IV
MEMORY
Oil 24” x 38” $37,500
Information on purchasing the Artwork pictured in the MARINE ART QUARTERLY may be obtained
by contacting the Publisher, J. Russell Jinishian at (203) 259-8753 or [email protected]
June found artist Don Stone and Len Tantillo
leading separate art workshops at the Maine
College of Art in Portland, Maine, and the
Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts in Lyme,
Connecticut respectively. From September 30th to
October 1st Christopher Blossom, past president of the Society, will lead a workshop on
studio and plein air marine painting at the Lyme
Academy. (lymeacademy.edu) From October 6-7
Ian Marshall will lead a watercolor workshop at
the Maine College of Art. (meca.edu) In addition
to these activities, the members of the Society
gather once a year to talk shop and share ideas
and information. They’re planning their annual
weekend this year to be from November 2-5 in
Cape May, New Jersey. For more information
on that, or joining or supporting the Society visit
americansocietyofmarineartists.com. You can
also read about the Society in the July issue of
American Art Collector, which contains a lavishly
illustrated article on ASMA.
Hanson recounted his voyage to Antarctica and
Tasmania using his illustrated logbook that he
made at sea while underway. More information on
this Society and upcoming exhibitions can be found
at mosman.nsw.gov.au/recreation/artgallery.html and
marineartistsaustralia.com.au.
From down under we heard from Tony Geddes
of the Mosman Art Gallery, which hosted an
exhibition of 81 paintings, drawings, models
and photographs by members of the Australian
Society of Marine Artists. The exhibition was
opened by the governor of New South Whales,
her Excellency Professor Marie Beshir, A.C., and
featured a number of events, including a talk by
Warwick Webb on the great ocean liners from a
marine artist’s perspective, a model making demonstration by Richard Keyes and a watercolor
demonstration by Christine Hill. Painter Ian
the protagonist Kydd’s first command, the brig
Teaser. Geoff’s other recent paintings have included Nelson’s fleet returning to the Mediterranean,
and the British aircraft carrier Glory in 1946 with
the troops aboard, including his wife Trudy’s
father. Over the past few years Geoff has also been
researching and painting scenes of the American
Revolutionary War at sea. Many of these are reproduced as prints by Mystic Seaport Museum His
newest painting features the incredible story of
the aggressive Revolutionary War Captain Biddle
who in command of the frigate Randolph took on
From England the president of the Royal Society
of Marine Artists, Geoff Hunt, tells us that they
are in the midst of planning for their 60th anniversary exhibition this fall, from October 18-29 (see
our exhibition page). In fact they are calling this
whole 60th anniversary year “Celebrating the Sea.”
This year’s exhibition will be opened by the chairman of the Port of the London
Authority, Simon Sherrerd. Geoff
says the port has been particularly
busy recently with ships already
arriving with building materials for new construction for the
2012 Olympics in London. Mr.
Sherrerd is also a member of
Trinity House, which is roughly
the British equivalent of our U.S.
Coast Guard. Trinity House is
responsible for maintaining navigational aids like lighthouses, etc.
Artist membership in the Royal
Society is not given easily. In fact,
its charter limits the number of
members. Geoff says as president his aim as been to recruit
new supporting members. They
call them “lay members,” which
he says may soon be changed
to “close friends” of the Royal
Society of Artists. These “friends”
HMS AMERICA Shortening Sail c. 1781
Oil 30” x 40” $65,000 are very active themselves. In fact,
one of them, Brian Aldredge has
Of course, the U.S.A. is not the only place with an formed his own group of painters from among the
organization devoted especially to marine art and current group.
its artists. There are active societies in England,
Germany, Italy, France, and Holland to name a The Society also held an exhibition earlier this
few countries. We recently heard from Betty Ann year at the Welsh National Concert Hall, which
Anderson, executive secretary of the Canadian was a great success. Later this summer eight
Society of Marine Artists, who announced that artists have been invited by the commanding
they’ve moved their headquarters from the West officer in charge of all naval bases to create
coast of Canada to Lake Ontario—Picton, Ontario paintings based on Royal Naval vessels berthed in
to be exact—where this year they held their 23rd Plymouth, England.
annual exhibition, which featured a presentation Geoff, of course, is well known as the artist
by Peter Rindlisbacher on the art of the War of whose paintings are featured on the covers of
1812 on the Great Lakes, which Peter has painted the Patrick O’Brian novels. Since the death of
extensively, and whose recreations of naval actions Mr. O’Brian a couple of years ago, Geoff has now
in full period dress he has participated in actively been producing paintings for the Napoleonic era
over the years. More information on this Society sea novels of Julien Stockwin whose latest is
can be found at www.ultramarine.ca.
entitled Command, which features the story of
3
Continued on page 4
a conference like this every other year. For more
information on this fascinating collectible world
visit www.steelnavy.com/1250home.htm.
The gold standard, of course, for scratch built
extreme miniature ship models are the models
of Lloyd McCaffery, whose models can be found
in collections of the Columbia River Maritime
Museum in Astoria, Oregon , Japan-America
Amity Hall, Kushimoto, Japan, Mystic Seaport
Museum, Mystic, Connecticut, Toy Miniature
Museum, Kansas City, Missouri, Oregon
Historical Society, Portland, Oregon and The
International Yacht Restoration School in
Newport, Rhode Island among others. Lloyd’s
models are different from the cast models in that
he manufactures every piece of the model himself,
and literally builds a model step by step just like
the vessel itself was built. Building models of 18th
and 19th century ships demand, in addition to critical miniature construction skills, exceptional ability to carve wood on a miniature scale. After thirty
years, Lloyd has perfected carving on a miniature
scale, and recently wrote about it in an article
entitled “Miniature Carving on a Grand Scale” for
Woodcarving Illustrated magazine, spring issue
2006. Among other things, Lloyd tells us that he
buys commercial jeweler’s files and then grinds
them down to make miniature chisels to carve
Don Demers
Louis Dodd
The River Thames at Greenwich –showing the American Frigate ST. LAWRENCE bringing exhibits for London’s Great Exhibition, 1851
Oil 24” x 36” $48,000
Continued from page 3
the 70-gun British ship HMS Yarmouth. It was
an act of real bravado. Tragically after about 15
minutes the Randolph simply blew up—a grenade
or shot had reached her magazine. Geoff said that
this all occurred in three-quarter moonlight off
Bermuda, which for an artist presented an intriguing challenge. The incredible part of the story is
that the Yarmouth itself was pretty beat up, both
by the Randolph attack and also by the concussion
from the explosion. After she sailed away from the
scene, four days later she found herself sailing
right back through the scene of the battle, and
there on two pieces of wreckage were the four
survivors from the Randolph, still alive!
Many readers and fans of the Napoleonic era are
also fans of the novels of Alexander Kent, but
may not be familiar with the artist whose paintings appear on the covers of those books. It’s
Englishman Geoffrey Huband. There are six
prints available from the covers of Kent’s “Bolitho”
series, all published in signed, limited editions of
300, measuring 14½” x 20” image size that sell
for $125. They are: With All Dispatch, Passage
to Mutiny, Sloop of War, Form Line of Battle, To
Glory We Steer and Avenger. They’re available from
Bowsprit Press at 317-465-3142.
There are certain stories that never get old in the
retelling. The mutiny aboard the HMS Bounty is
one such compelling human drama. A new boxed
DVD set for Warner Home Video has been
produced by Boothbay Harbor Productions, for
which the shipwright aboard the replica for the
MGM movie Mutiny on the Bounty Paul Garnett
was interviewed, and photographs were used of his
14-foot model of the HMS Bounty which he built,
and is now featured at the Fall River Museum in
Fall River, Massachusetts. Paul’s painting of the
“Battle of Valcour Island” has also been selected to
be included in the Revolutionary War Almanac, a
research book destined for every major research
library in the United States.
Speaking of large models of that period, model
builders in Havana, Cuba are about to begin the
construction of 1:25 scale model of the Santisima
Trinidad, the largest ship built in the 18th century,
which was launched in Havana in 1769 and figured prominently in a battle of Trafalgar, in 1805.
She carried a crew of over 1,000, sailing under the
Spanish flag. Canadian yacht designer Stephen
Killing was able to obtain drawings, documentation from the Naval Museum in Madrid and drew
a complete set of plans which will be used to built
the model, which will measure over 14ft. long. The
model itself will actually be built within the walls
of the Castillo de la Fuerza, the oldest colonial
fortress in the Americas. For more information
visit friendsofsantisimatrinidad.org.
On the other end of the scale, collectors, builders and vendors of the extremely miniature ship
model, scale 1:1250/1:1200, met for their Third
Annual Meeting at the University of New York
College of Maritime Industry Museum during Fleet Week in late May. Nearly 100 participants from two continents spent three days
discussing various aspects of naval history, ship
model collecting and maritime history, including Dr. Rudolph and Egbert Kraus from the
Navis-Neptun Modell, Germany; Bill Gilpin,
4
Clydeside Models, Scotland; Paul Jacobs,
Saratoga Model Ships, Parrot, California; and
modelers John Youngerman, California, and
Alain Pioceut, Quadrant Models, France. What
is amazing is that at this truly miniature scale a
model of 100 ft. ship, for example, would measure
only 1 inch. The events chairman Rick Rudosski
reports that in this scale model collections up to
2,000 to 5,000 models are not uncommon, “The
Tamm Collection in Hamburg, Germany, which
is considered the largest collection in the world,
is estimated at between 20- and 30,000 models.”
Rick tells us that building models at this scale
really began in World War I. In England they were
used by the Royal Navy as identification models
of enemy ships and their own ships for that matter.
Not surprisingly the English and the Americans
adapted 1:1200 scale, while the Germans adapted
1:1250. There were literally hundreds of thousands
of these models used for various navies around the
world, last produced in about 1950. Models from
that period actually come in boxes marked “US
Navy” or “Nippon Navy”, stamped “Top Secret.”
Today manufacturers around the world continue
building them as collectibles, mostly out of cast
metal, sometimes just one of a kind sometimes in
editions of 50 to 60. One of the largest manufacturers, Navis-Neptun outside of Munich, has a line of
warships of the navies of the world that numbers
approximately 1,000 different models. Today, liners, tugboats and other modern day vessels are
also being modeled on a regular basis. Rick tells
us that there is a large meeting held every second
year in Kassel, Germany, next one June 2, 2007. So
the plans for the New York group include holding
wood. He also makes his own “micro scalpels”
using thin wedges off the edge of single edge razor
blades. The final finish on his work is done by old
fashioned scraping and sanding, but nothing like
those of us who have refinished a boat are familiar
with. To finish he says, “I tear off small pieces of
400-600 grit paper, grip them in tweezers and rub
away for weeks—at least it seems like to takes
that long to get a smooth finish.” But it is exactly
that kind of dedication and devotion to even the
smallest details that sets Lloyd’s work apart, and
in fact that attention to every single detail is what
also separates the work of the very top painters
and sculptors from the rest of the field.
Speaking of the world’s finest marine artists, let’s
check in with a few of them. It’s not often you get
a chance to see a painting in progress, but John
Mecray affords just that opportunity by posting on
his Web site (mecray.com) once a week a step from
a painting that he’s working on, accompanied by a
musical sound track. He’s just completed “Flying
Home” which depicts Columbia during her 1899
trials to defend the America’s Cup running downwind against former Cup winner Defender. This will
also be the subject of John’s newest limited edition
giclée print. This painting is a little bit different
than most that John has done in the past, where
he has become well known—to the consternation
Schooner Yacht ATLANTIC Sets the Transatlantic Record, 1905
of some—for cutting off the top of the sail to
allow us to get close into the action. But in “Flying
Home,” John informs me that he’s “included 99%
of the sail plan.” John spoke about his work, and
showed another painting in progress this winter
at Essex Town Hall on behalf of the Connecticut
River Museum. Readers of Sea History magazine
will have seen this painting “Fetching the Mark,”
showing the yacht Westward crossing tacks with
King George V’s Britannia in the 1920s on the cover
of its Summer 2006 issue. Reproductions of two
other of John’s paintings “Gloriana and Wasp” and
“Schooner Yacht Atlantic” were used to illustrate
an article entitled “The Rediscovery of the Sea”
by John Rousmaniere, the author of some 12
books on boating and yachting history. Two were
just published this year: In a Class by Herself - The
Yawl Bolero and the Passion for Craftsmanship and
A Berth to Bermuda: 100 Years of the World’s Classic
Ocean Race. (See Book Page.)
The yacht Bolero in fact set the Newport to
Bermuda record in 1954 when she was owned by
John Nicholas Brown. Today she can still be
seen on the classic yacht racing circuit under the
ownership of Edward Kane, who recently commissioned Don Demers to paint a portrait of her
as she appeared off of St. David’s Light, Bermuda.
Don has really been spreading his wings this year.
Continued on page 14
Oil 36” x 48” $60,000
INTERESTING NEWS FROM THE
always do this. If the seller won’t provide one,
but still offers a certificate of authenticity you
should do your art shopping elsewhere.” If you
think you’ve been a victim of the Dali scam you
can call Hochman directly at 800-275-3254, or
visit www.daligallery.com.
ART WORLD AT LARGE
T
he world art scene is a dynamic marketplace,
containing all sorts of interesting goings on
throughout the year. Some of these have
a direct impact on the marine art market, and
others just shed light for us on various aspects of
the art business at large. When we want to gauge
the state of the market, we first take a look at the
sales results at the two major auction houses,
Sotheby’s and Christies, which just recently
reported their final figures for the year 2005, both
registering record years.
Christies reported its 2005 sales totaled $3.2
billion, representing a 30% increase over the
year 2004. They held 633 sales in 16 locations
around the world, and in those 340 works of art
sold for more than $1 million each, including two
world record prices. A Yuan Dynasty porcelain jar
sold for $27.7 million and a Constantin Brancusi
sculpture which sold for $27.5 million. Christies
has been very aggressive in expanding its market
reach. Last year they opened an office in Dubai as
well as in Mumbai, India, and held their first sale
in conjunction with the Chinese auction house,
Forever, in Beijing. Conducted in Mandarin,
that sale garnered a total of $12.1 million. And as
we reported in the last issue, Christies, Sotheby’s
and every other western business that we know of,
which has the wherewithal, is gearing up to take
full advantage of the growing Chinese economy in
the years ahead.
Sotheby’s for its’ part recorded their highest revenues ever, $513.5 million. They attributed part of
their success to increased commission margins, in
particular, increased buyer premiums rates which
went into effect January 2005, and their results in
both China and Russia. Their major sales of the
year included a Caneletto painting of Venice for
$32.5 million, and David Smith’s abstract sculpture for $23.8 million. They’ve already kicked off
2006 with a monster sale of a Picasso painting
of Dora Maar, which brought $95.2 million. So if
you want to know how the art world is doing in
this economy, and use the auction houses as a
barometer, the fact is, it’s performing astoundingly
well. Why this is, is open to speculation. Is it that
the businesses are being run more efficiently,
and more creatively, or that new methods of communication are bringing more artwork and collectors into the mix and opening world markets in a
new way, or are more people are perceiving value
in works of art and artifacts as opposed to other
interests? Whatever the answer is, the results are
very encouraging.
One interesting development in the auction houses in England has been the implementation of a
new levy imposed by the United Kingdom as of
February 14 on the resale of artwork by contemporary artists. A new European Union rule that says
that on any resale a royalty based on a hammer
price must be paid to the artist when the artwork
is sold. There’s a cap on the royalty of $14,904,
and an exemption for any works sold for less
than $1,200. Christies says that this additional
charge will come on top of the buyer’s premium.
It’s reported that both auction houses believe that
this may drive more buyers and sellers to other
locations, specifically New York where the resale
levies are not imposed.
This royalty on resale, has been mastered of
course by ASCAP in the music business, where for
every time a song is played almost anywhere in
public, the writer receives a royalty. As we noted in
a previous issue, California has passed a similar
bill, but enforcing of it (particularly for sales taking place privately, as opposed to a public auction
forum)has proven virtually impossible.
As in any marketplace, new business models are
being tried on a regular basis. One such model is
iGavel which three years ago began an auction
site for online collectibles sales, primarily for dealers and auction houses with products that don’t
naturally fit into their mainstream. iGavel has
actually found a showroom space at 229 E. 120th St.
near 2nd Avenue in New York City. Clark Mason,
the founder, said they are now setting up to accommodate consigners with as few as a half a dozen
items to collections of any size. They’ve set up drop
off centers in Cincinnati, Detroit, Minneapolis,
Litchfield, Sarasota, Miami, Savannah,
Philadelphia, Ashville, Sacramento, Long
Island and now New York City. They’re banking
on people’s continued comfort with the use of
technology to buy and sell items. Their site can be
found at www.igavel.com.
Of course, with increased success and value come
the associated problems of fraud and deceit. One
such case came to national attention recently
involving the sale and purchase of Salvador Dali
prints over television’s shopping channels on
Direct TV. Bruce Hochman, author of the official
catalogue of the Graphic Works of Salvador Dali,
assembled by Albert Field, says, “Art fraud is
traditionally committed in all kinds of respectable
places, from hotel bar rooms and cruise ships to
trendy galleries. But now that people are buying
art via the Internet and television it is easier than
ever for unscrupulous sellers to peddle fakes.”
The case of the Dali prints is one that’s been in
and out of the news since Salvador Dali’s death
in 1989 when the art world was flooded with
fake reproductions, with non-authentic signatures
published by unscrupulous dealers. It actually
became a large mail fraud case and the U.S. Postal
Service ended up with a tremendous cache of
Dali fakes, which they resold clearly marked as
counterfeits. (Who knows how those trickled down
through the market.) In the case of Dali there are
certain giveaways to the fakes. Such as, after 1980
the company that manufactured the paper that
Dali himself used actually changed its mark on
the paper, so that any print that is reported to be
post 1980 with the traditional watermark is known
to be a forgery. Of course, the forgers aren’t dumb
either. Some of them simply cut the watermark off.
Bruce Hochman’s solution to this is fairly simple.
“Whether it’s a work by Dali, or any other artist,
the buyer should only work with sellers who offer
a return guarantee in the event that the piece
turns out to be counterfeit. Legitimate sellers will
In fact, for some talented artists, perhaps long on
greed and short on imagination, forging another
artist’s work can prove to be a career path. Here’s
a story that has all the twists of a romance novel.
As reported in the New York Times in April of
this year, it started in Massachusetts at the home
of Don Trachte, who was known as the cartoonist
who took over the comic strip Henry in the 1940s.
He counted a number of prominent New England
artists among his friends, including Grandma
Moses and Norman Rockwell. Over time, he
bought eight paintings from some of them,
including a painting entitled “Breaking Home
Ties” from Norman Rockwell for $900. In 1973 Mr.
Trachte and his wife Elizabeth were divorced. Mrs.
Trachte took seven paintings to her new home in
Vermont, and Mr. Trachte was allowed to keep the
Rockwell painting, hanging over his piano because
of his affection for it. In 2002 Mr. Trachte moved
to an assisted living facility and his kids sent the
Rockwell painting to the Rockwell Museum in
Stockbridge, Massachusetts for safe keeping.
The curators there cleaned the painting because
the surface was grimy after years of being in a
room with a wood stove. They noticed that the
coloration and facial expression on the boys face
was slightly different from what they knew from
the painting which had been used as a cover for
the Saturday Evening Post. They put it down to age,
effects of the environment, etc. Mr. Trachte died in
2005, and as the kids were going through boxes of
photographs, cleaning out his house, they found
a photograph which appeared to be two views of
the same painting. They couldn’t quite figure it
out. But as they further searched the house, they
actually found a gap in the paneling along one
wall, and just like out of movie, when they gave
it a shove the panel slid back and behind it was
the original Rockwell painting! It turns out that
Trachte had made a copy of it and all the other
paintings, and kept the originals for himself,
hidden away. They must have been pretty good
copies. It’s estimated that the original “Breaking
Home Ties” painting, which Trachte paid that
$900 for is worth somewhere in the neighborhood
of $5,000,000 today. According to the New York
Times, Trachte’s ex-wife, who is now 98 years
old, was given the news by her eldest son. Her
response was, “It doesn’t surprise me.”
What a find for museum people! Laura Norton
Moffet, director of the Norman Rockwell Museum,
said they plan to be exhibiting 8 original paintings
along with their copies side by side. So now you
know the story. If you’re in Stockbridge this year,
it might be fun place to stop.
Montague Dawson
The Action Between H.M.S. SHANNON and the U.S.S. CHESAPEAKE, 1st June 1813
Sold for a world record $486,400 at Christies, New York
6
Oil 40” x 50”
Of course for a museum, balancing the needs of
preserving art while providing opportunities for
the public to view it can be tricky. But here’s an
interesting case of 435 watercolor paintings by
John James Audubon, which were sold after his
death by his widow Lucy Bakewell Audubon to
the New York Historical Society in 1863. Due
to the light sensitivity of these paintings, each
painting is only able to be exhibited for a six week
period once every ten years. You can do the math.
If you wanted to see the
entire collection you
would have to be around
a long time.
UPCOMIN G AUCTION S
July 24
September 12
The solution for this for
Midsummer Auction
Marine Pictures
the New York Historical
Some Americana/Maritime
Bonhams
Society was to partner
Bonhams
New Bond St., London
San Francisco
44-(0)207-468-8211
with Oppenheimer
415-861-7500
Editions. They’ve entered
September 14
bonhams.com
into a licensing agreeTravel & Vintage Posters
ment to recreate 50 of
July 27
Christies
the paintings as limited
5th Annual Maritime
South Kensington
edition prints. Their
Summer Auction
44 (0) 20-7930-6074
Christies
plan is to make 200 sets
September 27
Rockefeller Center
of each of the 50, sell
Polar Exploration & Travel
212-636-2000
100 as complete sets
Chrities
only, and 100 as
July 28
King St.
individual prints. They’ve
Marine & Oriental Export Art
44 (0) 20-7839-9060
printed them on acid
Eldreds
September 27
East Dennis, MA
free archrival paper, very
Weapons & Historical
508-385-3116
similar to the original
Souvenirs
eldreds.com
watercolor
paper
Tajan
Audubon used, and
August 3-4
Drouot
using water based dyes
Americana
Paris, France
that they say virtually
Eldreds
33-1-53-30-30-26
East Dennis, MA
tajan.com
match the original. It
took 12 months to
August 3-26
October 5
complete printing. They
The Mountains, Sky & Sea
Scientific Instruments
began selling them even
Heffel
Christies
before
they
were
Online Auction
Rockefeller Center
published for $35,000
heffel.com
October 13
per set, and $2,500 for
August 4-6
Fishing & Angling Art
each individual print.
Americana
Bonhams
They’re now $37,500 a
Northeast Auctions
Honiton, UK
set and between $2,500
Manchester, NH
44 (0) 1404-418-72
and $4,500 per print.
603-627-6200
October 30
They are clearly stamped,
northeastauctions.com
Marine Paintings
embossed
with
August 9
Sothebyʼs
Oppenheimer Editions
Cape Cod & Other
Bond Street, London
mark and the New York
Contemporary Paintings
44-20-7293-5000
Historical Society stamp.
Eldreds
sothebys.com
The back will be signed
East Dennis, MA
November 8
and numbered by Louise
August 19-20
Marine & Scientific
Mirrer, President and
Marine Art & China Trade
Instruments
CEO of the New York
Northeast Auctions
Bonhams
Historical Society. In
Portsmouth, NH
Knightsbridge, London
addition to their stated
603-433-8400
44 (0) 20-7393-3900
intention of helping to
September 7-30
November 13
make these images more
Northwest Coast
Channel Isle Sale
widely accessible and
First Nations Art
Bonhams
enjoyable, this is also a
Heffel
Jersey, UK
pretty good opportunity
Online Auction
44 (0) 1534-722441
for a new source of
heffel.com
November 18
revenue for the Historical
September 7-30
Americana
Society. How does their
Important Inuit Art
Freeman
pricing line up with
Heffel
Philadelphia, PA
actual Audubon original
Online Auction
215-563-9275
works? Well, the best we
heffel.com
freemanauctions.com
can compare it with is
lithographs made during
Audubon’s time. One, of
a Brown Pelican, sold just recently for $95,000. For The Metropolitan Museum has probably been
more information contact nyhistory.org or www. the most successful at that. But as you can see
elsewhere in this volume they actually engaged
oppenheimereditions.com. Or 866-333-4846.
in an interesting project in 1941, reprinting an
This, of course, isn’t the first time by a long
etching from Homer’s original plate in their
shot that museums have tried to utilize their collection and offering it for sale. While museums
collections to create revenue streams. There are there to preserve our cultural heritage, they
certainly isn’t a museum anywhere, large or small, are also businesses too. And it’s an ongoing debate
that isn’t selling reproductions of items in their in the museum community as to where the line is
collections. These range from note cards to jewelry, to be drawn.
Continued on page 22
to pieces of furniture, sculpture, you name it.
7