Bidding On Agnes: A Newbie Goes to An Art Auction
This article was first posted on California Desert Art by Ann Japenga on April 25, 2014
I fell in love with Agnes Pelton’s paintings when I attended the Channeling Agnes Pelton: Portraits, Landscapes and Readings exhibition at City Hall in Cathedral City last year. Ever since, I’ve been on a search to acquire one of her paintings. They aren’t easy to find.
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Record Auction Price for Paul Grimm Painting: “California Clouds”
With nine paintings for auction at the John Moran California & American Fine Art Auction of March 25, 2014, Paul Grimm was, by far, the most represented California painter. Many of Grimm’s preferred subject themes were available, including rolling California hills, desert landscapes, eucalyptus tree groves and a very interesting Eastern street scene entitled, “New York, East Side”.
One of the stars of the show, however, was Grimm’s “California Clouds”. From a private collection in Orange County, the 28″ x 36″ painting sold for a record auction price of $25,000 – far above the suggested price range of $7,000 – $9,000.
The bidding for “California Clouds” was an exciting few minutes during the auction evening. It was obvious that many people in the audience were familiar with Grimm’s paintings. As the bid amounts climbed quickly, the audience came to life with someone yelling, “That’s a record!” when the hammer came down at $25,000.