Rago Arts and Auction Center announced its first 20th Century Design auction for the year and it includes some Frank Lloyd Wright-related items—including a set of blueprints for the Sidney Bazett Residence (1939) in Hillsborough, California. Also in the auction is a pair of art glass windows attributed to George Washington Maher (c. 1910). See all the items here.
Images via ragoarts.com
On February 13, 2012, Leslie Hindman Auctioneers will be offering a 17th-century Chinese eight-panel Coromandel floor screen that was once owned by Frank Lloyd Wright and kept at Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin. The screen was apparently given by Olgivanna Wright to her daughter and William Wesley Peters as a wedding gift. The Peters' son, Brandoch, then sold it to architect Daniel J. Libermann (who is now selling it at auction). Because Taliesin is a designated historic landmark, the Chinese screen is the only item from the home known to have been offered publicly. Find out more here.
Image via Leslie Hindman Auctioneers
Karlitos E. send a link to a fascinating work of architecture by Oklahoma modernist, Frank Wallace (known for designing Oral Roberts University). His home (featured in the link) was apparently up for auction in 2010. Learn more and see more here.
Image via mredsauction.com
SOLD! The Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Laurent House has sold today at auction to The Laurent House Foundation. The Rockford Register Star reports that "the house sold for the minimum bid of $480,000 plus a 20 percent buyer’s premium that goes to the auction house, Wright Auction, for a total of $578,500."
This is great news, because it means the home and its integrally-designed furnishings will stay together with their intended environment. We'll keep readers informed as more details emerge of what's next for this wonderful work of architecture.
In the meantime, enjoy this piece from Northern Public Radio's Sue Stephens who captures the essence of the Laurent House's fantastic story, as told by its owners Kenneth and Phyllis. Listen here.
Image via wright20.com
As time ticks down towards the planned auction of the Kenneth Laurent house on December 15, 2011, two recent items in the news will be of interest to those of us interested in the outcome of this story. The first item is an article on the Rockford Register Star website in which the original owners share their memories of their Frank Lloyd Wright home and details of how to help save it. The second item is from mystate.com in which it is reported that the Rockford City Council passed a $75,000 grant to help purchase the Laurent House, with the state agreeing to contribute with a $500,000 match pledge. This is interesting news and a glimmer of hope that the home can be secured and kept intact.
Image via rrstar.com
The December 11, 2011 Los Angeles Modern Auctions features two items of specific interest to "Wrightians", since they hail from extant Frank Lloyd Wright-designed buildings:
• An oddly footed chair from the Robert Winn House in Kalamazoo, MI
• A four-legged version of the famed Johnson Wax Administration Building office chair
PrairieMod readers may remember the controversy that occurred when a similar J-Wax chair was up for auction back in 2008. Not sure if anything similar to those events will happen this time, but we'll keep an eye on things to be sure.
Images via lamodern.auctionserver.net
The Chicago-based auction house, Wright20, recently posted the lots of their December 15, 2011 auction online. Among several items designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, Louis Sullivan and Purcell & Elmslie sits the auction's premier item: The Kenneth Laurent House.
Those of you following the unfolding news of this home's imminent auction will be interested to view the listing for this Usonian gem. Interest among preservationists still exists to try and keep the home and its furnishings intact, but time and the bidding paddle may not be on their side. See the listing here.
Image via Wright20
The John Toomey Gallery's next auction on December 4, 2011 will feature several impressive and important 20th Century items. As I perused the electronic catalog, one offering stuck out on page 68: Lot 350 George W. Maher-designed game table and two chairs from the 1906 Ernest J. Magerstadt House in Chicago's Kenwood neighborhood. Read more after the jump...
Liveauctioneers.com reports that the über-rare Frank Lloyd Wright-designed copper urn for the (demolished) Edward C. Waller house in River Forest, IL, sold for $772,000 at Leslie Hindman Auctioneers. Read more about this and the other Wright items sold at that auction here.
Image via liveauctioneers.com
The current owner of the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Sweeton House (which was just open for tours at the recent Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy 2011 Conference) posted on "Wright Chat" that one of the original desks separated awhile ago from the house was recently up for auction. See images after the jump...
Last week we reported on some important Wright-designed objects that will be up for auction October 3, 2011 at Leslie Hindman Auctioneers in Chicago. Turns out, the items are being liquidated from the collection of Ralph Esmerian, the bankrupt jewelry dealer, who was sentenced to six years in prison for massive fraud. Read more about it here.
Image via Leslie Hindman Auctioneers
Some important Frank Lloyd Wright-designed items will be on the auction block October 3, 2011 at Leslie Hindman Auctioneers in Chicago. Included in the list are an original copper urn, an art glass window from the Huertley House and some studies for the unrealized Liberty Magazine covers. While the urn and the magazine studies are not connected to any extant house, it's a shame the window was separated from the still-standing home in Oak Park. See all the items here.
Image via Leslie Hindman Auctioneers
Here's a link to an article in the Ames Tribune about the upcoming auction on July 27, 2011 of the city-owned Mid-century modern Adams House, a Usonian-esque home affectionately referred to as "Prairie Ark" by its original owners. Read more about the sale here and find out details on this house here.
Image via cityofames.org
Sold! Blair Kamin reports from the scene of the auctioning-off of the Chicago Old Motor Club building. It was feared that this little-known Art Deco gem would be demolished to make way for something new. But, as the gavel came down on the winning bid of $9.7 million, it seems that there may be a ray of hope. Read more about it at the Cityscapes blog.
Image via Cityscapes/Antonio Perez
The results are in from the June 9, 2011 Wright20 auction, where furnishings from the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Kenneth Laurent House in Rockford, IL were sold. As usual, Wright furnishings look like they fetched a premium price...not a good sign for those trying to keep integrally-designed furnishings from being stripped out of their intended spaces. See more here.
Image via wright20.com
The Wright Chat message board has been buzzing recently about the upcoming Wright20 auction, which features several furniture pieces from the Kenneth Laurent House in Rockford, IL—apparently consigned by the house's original owner.
The Laurent home has been on the market for some time at a fairly high price (for its area), there have been attempts to turn it into a public house museum and now part of its integrally-designed furnishings have been placed on the auction block. It's news that is most distressing, since separating Wright furniture from a Wright house leaves both the lesser for it.
See all of the Laurent pieces up for auction here (and all the other Frank Lloyd Wright artifacts being auctioned off here.)
Image via Wright20
Mark McDonald, along with his two partners, Ralph Cutler and Mark Isaacson essentially invented the market for collecting Mid-century Modern design at their first gallery, Fifty/50. Mark is now selling his own MCM collection at Sotheby's. Check out this Wall Street Journal article about Mr. Mid-Century Mod here.
Image via the Wall Street Journal
PrairieMod reader, Matt K., sent us a link to a Sotheby's auction on March 10, 2011 which has quite a bit of Frank Lloyd Wright-related items (along with several other pieces by well-known architects and designers). It's another reminder of how unfortunate it is that these pieces no longer reside in their appropriate spaces. See all of the auction pieces here.
Image via Sotheby's
PrairieMod reader, Kevin B., sent us a link to an amazing cache of historical photos up for auction on ebay. The photos are from 1917 and feature Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin I in amazing detail and from vantage points previously unseen. This is a truly amazing and rare find, especially in light of the fact that this year marks the 100th anniversary of Taliesin. The hope is that all of these important images will end-up with an institution that could care for them and make them available for study. See them all after the jump...
Continue reading "An Early Look At Taliesin Up For Auction" »
You wouldn't know there were hard economic times going on by Sotheby's most recent auction results. Their December 14, 2010 20th Century Design sale netted in excess of $19 million, including $314,500 for a rare "Calla Lily" Teco vase—a new auction record for the Prairie School pottery. Read more here.
Image via Sotheby's website
Curbed LA has an update on the distressing ebay auction (now cancelled) of the R.M. Schindler/Gregory Ain-designed Donald Gordon cabin interior. Apparently the whole thing was a misunderstanding and the new owner doesn't want to destroy this architectural gem. Let's hope so. Read more here.
Image via ebay
If you look hard enough, you can come across some pretty bizarre things for sale on ebay. However, a recent auction was found for the entire interior contents of the R.M Schindler/Gregory Ain-designed Donald Gordon cabin in Los Angeles, CA. The preservation community raised an alarm and the auction appears to have been ended, but no one yet knows the result. Another example of architectural plunder for profit. Read more about the situation here.
Image via eBay
Frank Lloyd Wright did not design houses. He designed total works of art. This often meant he considered everything inside and outside the building—from art glass windows, sconces, mailboxes, furniture and more. So when pieces of these total architectural works of art appear on the auction block—stripped from their original and inteded context—it diminishes the importance and impact of Wright's artistic endeavor. This month, Wright-designed furniture is appearing at two major Chicago auction houses: The John Toomey Gallery and Wright auction house, and it signals the troubling trend of strip mining important architecture for cash. It's hoped that with enough education the sale of items that belong with their buildings will cease.
Image via Wright20.com
Eric Jackson-Forsberg, Curator for the Martin House Restoration Corporation, has weighed-in on the questions surrounding the Upstate New York art glass window being auctioned off as a Frank Lloyd Wright attributed design. His expert opinion? Find out here.
Image via the Weekly Wright-up blog
Artdaily.org reports on an art glass window from a residence in upstate New York attributed to Frank Lloyd Wright and being sold in the December 10-11, 2010 auction at Dan Morphy Auctions. Thing is—it looks like it could be related to the D.D. Martin House windows (of which there are a lot) but something about it doesn't seem quite Wright. Anyone have any insight on whether this is really "Wright" and which house it belongs to? Read more here.
Image via Art daily.org
Christie's will be auctioning off a very rare Frank Lloyd Wright-designed copper urn in an upcoming auction of renowned New York gallerist Anthony DeLorenzo on December 14-15, 2010. The urn is expected to go for between $800,000—$1,200,000 and was originally from the Dana House in Springfield, IL. Read more about the sale here.
Image via artdaily.org
Sloans & Kenyon Auctioneers and Appraisers will be offering a complete set of eight architectural renderings depicting Frank Lloyd Wright’s Key Project for Ellis Island, New York (1959) in their November 14, 2010 auction. More details here.
Image via artfixdaily.com
Looking for an extremely unique Wright-related item to add to your collection? Then plan on attending The Wright Affair gala hosted by Wright on the Park Inc. at 6 p.m. Sept. 11 at the Mason City Country Club. A full-sized reproduction of the “Spirit of Mercury” statue designed by Richard Bock will be auctioned as part of the fundraising efforts for the restoration and ongoing maintenance of Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Historic Park Inn Hotel. More details here.
Image via globegazette.com
The J.J. Walser, Jr. House, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1903 has had a rough life. Built on the West side of Chicago near to Oak Park and River Forest, the Prairie Style home (and its neighborhood) has not fared as well. Originally stripped of most of its art glass decades ago, some examples have recently turned up on eBay. Its another example of architectural speculators trying to make a buck off of an unfortunate situation. It would be great if the home could some day be restored and its glass returned to where it belongs. See the listings here and here.
Antiques and Arts Online reports that two Wright-related lots at the June 23, 2010 Bonhams auction saw much interest and sold for hefty sums. An archive relating
to the Hartford, Conn., "New Theatre" project, including a number of
letters between Wright and actor/director Paton Price, brought $27,450.
Additionally, a group of 13 original blueprints from Wright's
"Fallingwater" project more than doubled its estimate of $4/6,000,
realizing a final price of $12,200. Hopefully they went to a place where they can be accessed by scholars and the public. Read more about it here.
Image via Bonham's/Antiques and Arts Online
New York City officials have sued Christie's Auction house over the sale of some 19th Century architectural drawings they feel rightly belong to the city. The drawings are by Jacob Wrey Mould, a British architect who came to New York in 1853 to
design a Unitarian church on Fourth Avenue and 20th Street. Read more about it here.
Hot on the heels of the previous group of significant Frank Lloyd Wright-related materials that were auctioned-off at Bonhams comes another lot of Wright items including: 13 original blueprints for Fallingwater, many with pencil calculations, diagrams
and notations and an archive relating to efforts by actor, director, acting coach and
conscientious objector Paton Price to construct a "New Theatre" designed
by Frank Lloyd Wright in Hartford, CT. Hopfully they will end up in as good a home as the previous materials. See more details of the June 23, 2010 Bonhams auction here.
Image via Bonhams
An unidentified buyer purchased the Frank Lloyd Wright-related documents associated with the Marin County Civic Center that were recently auctioned and plans on making sure they stay in Marin County. Read more here.
Image via liveauctioneers.com
The Frank Lloyd Wright-designed rug up for auction at LAMA on Sunday May 23, 2010 fetched only $16,000—a far cry from the $40,000 to $60,000 estimate. Wonder where it went to. Details here.
Image via LAMA
Los Angeles Modern Auctions is set to auction off the Frank Lloyd Wright designed rug for the David Wright House on May 23rd. The estimate is set at $40,000 to $60,000 and the rug could potentially command much more. Hopefully a reputable public institution will be able to acquire it, preserve it and display it for public enjoyment and study. Read more about the rug here and see the auction listing here.
Image via LAMA
Looks like the Eames Archive that was originally to be put on the block at Wright20 was yanked due to a lawsuit filed by one of the Eames heirs. Read about it here.
Image via Wright20.com
Southern Californian designers and historians, John and Marilyn Neuhart, have amassed quite a collection of Charles and Ray Eames materials. They have recently consigned it to an all-Eames sale on April 8th at Wright auction house in Chicago. Read about it here and see what's for sale here.
Image via Wright20.com
The trend of selling-off integrally-designed items from Frank Lloyd Wright buildings continues with the sale of two custom daybeds from the Gerald Tonkens House in Cincinnati, OH. When will the strip-mining stop? See the details here.
Image via Wright20.com
Blair Kamin posted an excellent article that sheds more light on Frank Lloyd Wright's Bradley House in Kankakee, IL (which recently had its leaded glass buffet doors sold at auction...again). Read all about it here.
Image copyright Blair Kamin
Two original leaded glass windows from the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed B. Harley Bradley House in Kankakee, IL were auctioned-off for $15,000 yesterday at Christie's. These windows have made the auction block rounds before and have passed from one collector to another. It would be nice if they could find their way back to their original intended site in the Bradley House, which is currently undergoing a full restoration and will hopefully be open to the public in the near future. Read more about the sale here and read Blair Kamin's blog post on the sale and house here.
Image via Christie's
More details are coming out that help tell the story of how the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, working together with the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy, secured the massive collection of Wright-related materials that were recently on the Bonhams auction block. Read more after the jump...
Good news comes out of the recent Bonhams & Butterfields auction of rare Frank Lloyd Wright materials associated with the author Henry Russel Hitchcock. The LA Times reports that the winning bid was put-in by the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation—the very place these materials originated and belong. Read more about this story here.
Image via Bonhams & Butterfields
A very rare early presentation drawing for
the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Francis Apartments (1895, demolished in 1971) will be for sale in the John Toomey Gallery's March 7, 2010 auction. Read more after the jump...
A pair of beautiful leaded-glass windows from the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Bradley House in Kankakee, IL are being auctioned-off at Christie's in March. The windows have made the auction house rounds in the past, but it is still a shame they were ever removed from their original home. Maybe someday they can make their way back to where they belong. Read more about this sale here.
Image via Christie's
A PrairieMod reader sent a heads-up to the fact that the famous Frank Lloyd Wright-designed rug for the (recently sold) David Wright House in Arcadia, AZ is to be auctioned off at Los Angeles Modern Auctions this spring. Read more after the jump...
The very Mod Gobbler Supper Club of Johnson Creek, WI and designed by architect Helmut Ajango in 1966 is scheduled to be sold at an
auction at the property on Saturday, Dec. 12, at 10 a.m. Read all about it here.
Image via Wisconsinosity
The Kenilworth Club's art glass windows that were put up for sale at Christie's December 8, 2009 auction have apparently been withdrawn (they no longer appear on Christie's website). I have not received any explanation for this turn of events, but I would guess it is most likely due to the fact that the windows did turn out to be original historic building fabric and selling them would conflict with the structure's preservation easement. Follow the link to catch-up on the story from the beginning. If anyone has more info, please feel free to share.
Image via Christies
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
