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October Issue 2007
Second Annual Charleston Art Auction Set for Nov. 3, 2007 in Charleston, SC
The Second Annual Charleston Art Auction will
offer 100 paintings and sculpture by contemporary and deceased
American masters together with over 30 new plein air paintings
created by nationally recognized CFADA gallery artists to benefit
Charleston County High School student art programs on Nov. 3,
2007, at 7:15pm at the Renaissance Hotel on Wentworth Street in
Charleston, SC.
Produced by Morris & Whiteside Galleries, Hilton Head Island,
SC, and The Sylvan Gallery, Charleston, SC, to coincide with CFADA's
(Charleston Fine Art Dealer's Association) Ninth Fine Art Annual,
the auction is expected to attract collectors from throughout
the United States to Charleston for the weekend of activities.
Jack A. Morris, Jr., a veteran organizer of fine art auctions in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and South Carolina over the past twenty-five years, founded Charleston Art Auction to showcase Southern painting and sculpture for an international base of collectors, artists and galleries. He had originally moved his Santa Fe, NM, sale to Hilton Head Island in 2000 where it grew from $850,000 to $2.2 million by 2004. Morris was concerned, however, that the sale was too dependent upon his western art connections and, in 2005, he founded Scottsdale Art Auction with partners Mike Frost of J. N. Bartfield Galleries, New York City and Brad Richardson of Legacy Gallery, Scottsdale, AZ, which produced $7.3 million in its first year and a little over $8 million each in 2006 and 2007.
"This gave me the breathing room needed to stop and plan a sale for the southeast that would generate the same excitement and enthusiasm among collectors that we have experienced in the west," Morris said, "because it is absolutely essential that we create and sustain a healthy secondary market for artists, collectors and galleries in our region." Morris' sales have been listed and monitored by Leonard's Art Index, AskArt and other reporting services that have covered Christies, Sotheby's and other major auction houses, for over twenty years.
Morris' roots in South Carolina stem from his three years as Assistant to the Director of the Columbia (SC) Museum of Art and 15 years as Executive Director of the Greenville County Museum of Art, during which time he also served as Chairman of the South Carolina Arts Commission and was author of Contemporary Artists of South Carolina (1970) and William Halsey: Retrospective (1972).
In assembling a team for Charleston Art Auction, Morris brought in his Morris & Whiteside Galleries associates, J. Ben Whiteside and David Leahy and teamed back up with two of his former employees from Santa Fe, Janie and Joe Sylvan of The Sylvan Gallery in Charleston, all of whom have over ten years of auction experience each with Morris. To complete the group, Morris has retained the noted auctioneer, Gerald Bowie, who has called his sales for over twenty years.
"Our first sales usually only do a few
hundred thousand dollars" Morris said, (Scottsdale being
a notable exception), "and our first sale, last year in Charleston,
reached $525,000."
"Traditionally, the sales will grow each year and we anticipate
reaching the $1 million dollar mark before 2010. We are confident
that we have the necessary professional skills in place,"
Morris said, "and our rate of growth will depend upon the
support of knowledgeable collectors and savvy galleries."
Top lots in last year's sale included Pino's Evening Thoughts (estimated at $45,000 - $55,000) that sold for $72,800 and Jonathan Green's The Powder Room (estimated at $9,000 - $12,000) that hammered down for $23,520. There will be two Pino's and three Jonathan Green's in this year's event. The 2006 sale also set twenty-one new auction records for artists.
"Other nationally recognized artists whose work will be offered this year include Ken Auster, J. Bardin, William Berra, George Botich, Joseph Bowler, Scott Burdick, Elaine Coffee, John Carroll Doyle, Ray Ellis, Ted Ellis, Kim English, West Fraser, C. James Frazier, Dan Gerhartz, Douglas Gifford, Rod Gobel, Glenna Goodacre, Lindsay Goodwin, Russell Gordon, John Gould, Robert Griffing, Emile Gruppe, Charles Gruppe, William Halsey, Michael Harrell, Glen Harrington, Lana Hefner, Colette Heldner, Nancy Horter, Mark Horton, Clark Hulings, Clementine Hunter, Alfred Hutty, Michael Karas, Milt Kobayashi, David Leffel, Jeff Legg, Liz Lesperance, Earl B. Lewis, Marlin Linville, Yingzhao Liu, Joseph Lorusso, Dan McCaw, Danny McCaw, Sherrie McGraw, Dean Mitchell, Marc Moon, C. W. Mundy, Joseph Orr, George Pate, Carew Rice, Jennifer Smith-Rogers, Peter Rolfe, Susan Romaine, Jerry Ruthven, Marylin Simandle, Mian Situ, Eric Sloan, Betty Anglin Smith, Shannon Smith, Loren Speck, Linda St. Clair, Michael Stack, Hugh Tallant, Rhett Thurman, Michelle Torrez, Karen Larson Turner, James G. Tyler, Elizabeth O'Neil Verner, Kent Wallis, Mary Whyte, Mickey Williams, Ellsworth Woodward, Wu Zhaoming, N. C. Wyeth, Stephen Scott Young and Alex Zapata.
All works will be available for preview from 10am to 7pm on Nov. 3 at the Renaissance Hotel.
In addition to the 100 lots to be offered by Charleston Art Auction, approximately 30 paintings, created during the morning of Sat., Nov. 3, as part of the Charleston Fine Art Dealers' Association 9th Fine Art Annual "Painting in the Park". Gallery artists associated with CFADA will assemble and begin work in Washington Park, next to Charleston City Hall, at 9am. Work will continue through early afternoon and the "fresh" works, wet paint and all, will be collected for preview at the Renaissance Hotel on Wentworth Street beginning at 4pm. Preview will continue until 7pm at which time the pieces will be blended into the Charleston Art Auction for live bidding that will commence at 7:15pm. The entire proceeds from works created in the park will be donated to benefit Charleston County High School Student Art Programs. Last year, the "fresh paint" pieces raised just over $31,000.
"The Charleston Fine Art Dealer's Association has made a concerted effort to make Charleston a fine arts destination site," Morris concluded "and we believe Charleston Art Auction has the potential to contribute to that objective."
Reservations at $40 per person, also a tax deductible contribution benefiting Charleston County High School Student Art programs, includes fully illustrated color sale catalogue. You can order an illustrated sale catalogue for $35.00 by calling 843/722-0128 or 843/842-4433 or by going to the auction website at (www.charlestonartauction.com).
For additional information, reservations,
or to make arrangements for Telephone or Absentee Bidding, contact
Charleston Art Auction at 171 King Street, Charleston, SC, telephone
843/722-0128 or 843/842-4433 or visit (www.charlestonartauction.com).
For information about the Fine Art Annual weekend visit (www.cfada.com).
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