“Soleil Couchant” a lithograph after Marc Chagall (American/French, 1887-1985) by Charles Sorlier, 29¼ by 20¾ inches, numbered “87/150,” signed in pencil lower right, was secured for $7,073, the highest price of the sale ($5/8,000).
Review by Kiersten Busch
ST PETERSBURG, FLA. — On July 21, Burchard Galleries conducted its Estate Antiques, Fine Art and Jewelry Auction, which offered 517 unique lots, including a partial selection of the lifelong collection of Charles and Sylvie Lightfoot. The Lightfoots are hoteliers who have lived in more than 20 different countries in their lifetimes. “The sale went pretty good,” reported Adam Shown, Burchard’s online auction coordinator. “We had an air conditioning unit that was not working, but a lot of our buyers are loyal enough that they came and pushed through it.”
“There was a good mix of online, absentee, phone and in-person bidders,” said Shown. Around 50 buyers came to bid in person, while Burchard reported around 50 bidders spread throughout phone, absentee and online bidding as well.
All of the top-selling lots were very different, providing a diverse spread of offerings for bidders. Leading the sale was “Soliel Couchant,” a lithograph after Marc Chagall. The lithograph, an interpretive work based on one of Chagall’s paintings, was done by his trusted friend, Charles Sorlier. According to the auction catalog, “These so-called afterworks are currently some of the most valuable and sought-after works of Chagall’s entire artistic oeuvre.” The print was signed lower right and numbered “87/150” lower left. It crossed the block for $7,073, within estimate. It was “a neat little Chagall piece that is not quite entirely Chagall, but a little bit of someone else too,” Shown explained.
Headed to Miami, Fla., was this set of five antique oil on canvas paintings of the four cardinal virtues and a shepherd. They were removed from a Parisian train station during renovation and ranged in height from 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet 10 inches. The set sold for $6,150 ($8/12,000).
A set of five antique oil on canvas paintings from a Paris, France, train station made $6,150. Described as “quite the conversation starter” in the auction catalog, four of the five works depicted the four cardinal virtues: prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance, while the fifth painting depicted a shepherd. “These came out of a particular high-end estate that we are handling… they were apparently in train station somewhere in Paris, then taken off the walls while the station was being renovated and sold to collector,” said Shown, who shared his enthusiasm for the pieces, adding, “They are very neat.” The set of five were sold from Paris to a New York jeweler and eventually came to reside in a Naples, Fla., mansion before being consigned. They will stay in Florida with their new buyer, but are traveling to a new city, Miami.
Despite some hairline cracks and previous repairs, bidders raised a Rookwood Pottery vase designed by founder Maria Longworth Nichols to $6,150. Categorized as “rare” in the auction catalog, the vase had impressed geometric designs on its rim and foot and featured a “whimsical” hand-painted tug-of-war scene with octopi, frogs and crabs on its body. On the underside, it was signed “M.L.N.” and stamped “Rookwood, 1882.”
This vase with a tug-of-war scene between octopi, frogs and crabs was made by Maria Longworth Nichols (American, 1849-1932), the founder of Rookwood Pottery in Cincinnati, Ohio. It measured 11 inches high by 7½ inches at its widest point and hopped its way to a $6,150 finish ($8/12,000).
“We usually try to get at least two or three complete, or mostly complete, silverware sets in every auction,” said Shown, when asked about the 53-piece sterling silver Tiffany & Co., flatware service in the San Lorenzo pattern, which landed at the high end of its $3/5,000 estimate. “This [set] wasn’t loose, it had the original case and was in very good condition. It was going to go to a good home with a private buyer.” In total, the set weighed approximately 70 troy ounces and included dinner and luncheon knives, dinner forks, soup spoons, teaspoons, large serving spoons, sold handled butter knives, a cream spoon and a pickle fork. It closed the lid for $4,920.
Burchard Galleries’ next sale will take place on August 17.
Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. For information, www.burchardgalleries.com or 727-821-1167.
