Jackson's Indiana Art Auction Results & Prices November 17th, 2013

151 Works of Indiana Art Sold at Auction

Glen Cooper Henshaw
Painting $13,000

November 18th, 2013 – The November Indiana Art Auction contained a wide array of exceptional works of art for the Indiana art collector to choose from. The auction began with a rare large oil painting by artist Glen Cooper Henshaw (b. 08-08-1880 – d. 04-05-1946). Glen was one of the first students of the John Herron School of Art in Indianapolis In. and studied in Munich, Germany, for more than a year. Feeling that his instructors were too structured, he spent the next 10 years in Paris and Italy creating works of art in the Impressionist style. With the imminent threat of World War I, he moved back to the US, setting up a studio in New Your City. After marrying his second wife, he moved to Baltimore, but with the onset of World War II, they became worried about the threat of the east coast being bombed. They decided to move to Nashville, Indiana, where he lived for the remainder of his life. Titled "Boats against the Sunset," the Henshaw painting measured 40x30 and was signed lower left and reached a final bid of $13,000.

Homer G. Davisson

Six paintings from the Fort Wayne Indiana artist Homer G. Davisson (1866-1957) were offered with a 22x28 signed lower right landscape with sheep reaching the highest price of $2,000. Davisson graduated from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, and studied art at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia.  Also, at the Art Students League in New York City, Corcoran School of Arts in Washington, D.C., and in Munich, Germany. In the 1920s, Homer began visiting Brown County to paint and became a charter member of the Brown County Art Gallery. Other paintings of Davisson included a 15x18 Oil on Board titled "Polk St. Station" brought $1,200, and an 18 x 24 watercolor reached a price of $450.

An excellent selection of five paintings from Brown County artist Frederick Rigley (1914 – 2009) crossed the auction block. Rigley studied at the Ringling School of Art in Sarasota, FL. He moved to Brown County, Indiana, from Gloucester, MA, where he owned a shop in Nashville, In that sold art supplies. For 25 years, he taught landscape painting at the Indianapolis Art League and held private classes and workshops in Brown County and throughout the South and Midwest. Of the paintings offered for sale, a painting titled "In Port," Gloucester reached $1,000 but well below the estimate of $1,500 to $3,000. The oil painting measured 25x30 and was signed lower right. Another seaside painting titled "Fogged In" only reached $550 a little over half of the lower estimate of $1,000. A 25x30 Oil on canvas signed lower right reached $550. Perhaps there were no collectors of his work at the auction to drive up the bids to more reasonable prices, or the content and subject matter of the works contributed to the seemingly lower than average price.

Other Indiana Art Auction Prices of the day included:

James Eccles, 8x10, O/B, SLL, Brown County Landscape sold for $300
Frederick Polley, 15x13, Pencil Drawing, SLR, Indianapolis Scene sold for $200
Carl Lotick, 12x14, O/C, SLL, Indiana Landscape sold for $200
Ron Elkins, 12x14, O/B, SLL, "Fall Fence Rows" sold for $175
Al LaTour, 14,20, WC, SLL Covered Bridge sold for $200
Harry Davis, 9x11.5, Pencil Drawing, SLR '44 sold for $700
Ruthven Byrum, 25x30, O/C, SLR, 1942 Hoosier Salon Tag, "Grandfather Mountain" sold for $700

The auction was held by Jackson Auction and Real Estate Company at their location in downtown Indianapolis Indiana with approximately 151 works of art for sale along with art, frames, and art supplies from the Ron Elkins estate.