Jackson's Indiana Art Auction Results & Prices March 27th, 2011

T. C. Steele "0'l Saint Nick painting sells for $75,000 at auction

The March 27th, 2011 auction in Indianapolis marked the 30th anniversary of Jackson selling art in Indiana. The first auction was held by Jackson in Anderson, Indiana, and he has been bringing quality Indiana art to collectors for the last 30 years. A large crowd was in attendance to view an excellent selection of art for sale and join in the celebration with cake and other refreshments provided by Jackson.

T. C. Steele
O'l Saint Nick

Art collectors were provided the opportunity to view a Theodore Clement Steele (1847 to 1926) painting titled “Ol’ Saint Nick that for many years hung in the Indianapolis Children’s museum. Dated 1870, the painting was an early work by Steele, who was the most famous of the Hoosier Group and Brown County artists. Estimated to sell between $50,000 and $100,000, Steele’s oil on canvas measured 27 x 20, signed verso, and was first on the auction block, reaching a final bid of $75,000.

Four other Hoosier group artists were represented at the auction, a 24x30, oil on board, signed lower right, and a Hoosier salon entry by artist William Forsythe (1854 to 1935). The painting was titled “By the Side of the Road,” and was the last Hoosier Salon entry by the well-known artist. The painting brought active participation by bidders with the final selling price at $24,000. Oil on canvas winter landscape by artist John Ottis Adams (1851 to 1927), who painted with T.C Steele at the Hermitage in Brookville, In, sold for $16,000. The painting measured 16x22 and was signed lower left but did not reach the auction estimate of $20,000 to $30,000. A lucky bidder took home a very nice and possibly underpriced Richard Buckner Gruelle (1851 to 1914) watercolor for $1,200. A serene landscape of a sunrise over a lake measured 10x14 and was signed lower right. The final Hoosier Group painter was Otto Stark (1859 to 1926). Stark opened a studio in Indianapolis in 1894 and taught at Manual High School and at the Herron School of Art from 1905 to 1919. The 8x3.5 Gouache depicting a little girl with a rabbit brought $250.

John Elwood Bundy (1853 – 1933), the well known Richmond Group artist, head of the Earlham College Art Department, is always well received, as evidenced by the intense bidding among the collectors interested in his work. The oil painting titled “The Artist Retreat” measured 22x30 and was signed lower left 1917, was a nicely done landscape, brought $8,000.

Paul T. Sargent
"Hilltop Beaches"

Paul Turner Sargent - "Hill Top Beeches" Two paintings by the Illinois and Brown County artist, Paul Turner Sargent (1880 to 1946), were available to bidders. An 11x14 Oil on Board and signed lower right 1926, titled “Hill Top Beeches,” sold for $1,300. Paul met Adolph Shulz in Brown County, Indiana, in 1920, where he joined the Brown County Art Colony. One of his best-known paintings was the “Water Boy,” which was bought by the Marshall Field Company to use on a Calendar. The other painting at the auction was titled “Pasture Grove,” signed lower right, 1944, and sold for $1,250.



Other Indiana Art Auction Prices of the day included:

Arnold Turtle, 16x20, O/B., SLL, New Orleans Street Scene sold for $6,500
Arnold Turtle, 16x18, O/B, SLR, Harbor Scene sold for $1,500
Harry Davis, 12x16, O/B, SLR, “The Picnic” sold for $3,500
Edgar Forkner, 18x24, O/B, SLR, “The Edge of Night” sold for $8,000
Reynolds Selfridge, 26x32, O/C, SLR, Landscape sold for $1,000
W.A. Eyden 22x28, O/C, SLR, “Venetian Cove,” $800