2012 Scottsdale Art Auction Results

2012 Scottsdale Art Auction-Legacy Gallery

It was a gorgeous weekend in Scottsdale, AZ this past weekend where the 2012 Scottsdale Art Auction took place.  I was playing the TPC Champions course, and the entire round was one private jet after another coming in for a landing overhead.  I'm sure as they were landing, they were captivated by my long drives down the middle of the fairway and the darts I was throwing at the greens with my irons.  Okay, I wasn't actually hitting the ball like that, but apparently, they weren't coming in to purchase the 30" x 40" Ernest Blumenschein either.  They were in town to purchase some earlier works by Howard Terpning.  It just goes to show what I know.  I thought the gentlemen from the Scottsdale Art Auction would rake in just over $2,000,000 for all the Terpnings, and after it was all said and done, a new world record for Terpning's work was set, twice, and the total for the seven Terpnings in the sale was a whopping $4,981,250 including the buyer's premium.  Wow.  It's unbelievable the prices that Terpning's work realizes at auction or anywhere for that matter.  These weren't even Terpning's best works by a long shot.  Terpning's major painting he does annually for the Masters of the American West Show held at the Autry National Center brings either just over a million dollars or just under.  I suspect we will see more Terpnings come to the market, because it always happens when there are a string of great prices realized at auction.  The total for the sale hasn't been officially announced for some reason, but I've heard rumors of $15 million to $16 million in total sales.  While the Blumenschein, Charles Russell's Mexican Buffalo Hunters, and Bringin' the Stolen Herd Home bought-in, there were plenty of highlights of the sale.  Overall, the partners of the Scottsdale Art Auction have to be pleased, and everyone in the Western art world has to be upbeat about the overall strong prices.  The mood was upbeat, and collectors didn't seem hesitant on pulling the trigger if they really liked a piece.

Kyle Polzin A Cowboy Legacy

O.C. Seltzer Indian in Loon Headdress

Tom Lovell Marking the Crossing

Andy Thomas Saloon Shootout

Herman Herzog In the Yosemite Valley

Here's a new spot I like to call "Goin' to the Craps Table/Goin' to the ATM."  When you sell a painting at auction, you're essentially gambling that there are at least two people who want your painting and will bid up the sales price.  It's a bundle of fun when you sell a painting and it goes through the roof, but not so much when your painting comes up and people can't seem to find their bidder paddles.  I chose the title Goin' to the Craps Table/Goin' to the ATM because I knew someone who had one of those rare experiences where his painting skyrocketed past the high estimate, and following the auction, he proceeded to the craps table with a grin from ear to ear.  When he ran out of poker chips, the table started chanting "A-T-M! A-T-M!"  Needless to say, when your painting sells well, you want to go celebrate, but when your painting tanks, you have to go to the ATM.  Here are some of the notable results from the 2012 Scottsdale Art Auction.

Goin' to the Craps Table

• Herman Herzog's In the Yosemite Valley; 62" x 50" oil, estimate: $40,000-$60,000.
• Sold: $207,000
• William Gollings' A Good Place to Camp; 14" x 10" oil, estimate: $60,000-$90,000.
• Sold: $115,000
• Olaf Seltzer's Crow Indian in Loon Headdress, 1908; 12" x 9" oil, estimate: $25,000-$50,000
• Sold: $103,500
• Charles Russell's Indian Scout on Horseback; 18" x 24" oil, estimate: $400,000-$500,000
• Sold: $690,000
• Martin Grelle's Helping Hands; 14" x 18" oil, estimate: $12,000-$18,000
• Sold: $19,550
• Nick Eggenhofer's Scout Party; 7" x 10" mixed media, estimate: $4,500-$6,500
• Sold: $13,800
• Z.S. Liang's Twilight Over the Big Horn Mountains; 30" x 46" oil, estimate: $30,000-$45,000
• Sold: $69,000
• Kyle Polzin's A Cowboy Legacy; 34" x 42" oil, estimate: $18,000-$24,000
• Sold: $54,625
• Tom Lovell's Marking the Crossing; 24" x 36" oil, estimate: $125,000-$200,000
• Sold: $402,500
• Andy Thomas' Saloon Shootout; 24" x 36" oil, estimate: $30,000-$40,000
• Sold: $69,000
• Howard Terpning's Captured Ponies; 30" x 38" oil, estimate: $400,000-$600,000
• Sold: $1,904,000
• Howard Terpning's Spoils of War; 14" x 18" oil, estimate: $40,000-$60,000
• Sold: $138,000
• Howard Terpning Mystic Power of the War Shield; 40" x 52" oil, estimate: $600,000-$900,000
• Sold: $1,680,000

Goin' to the ATM

• Ernest Blumenschein's Homeward Bound; 30" x 40" oil, estimate: $2,000,000-$3,000,000
• Sold: Bought in
• Bert Geer Phillips' Winter Night Song; 25" x 30" oil, estimate: $150,000-$250,000
• Sold: Bought in
• Charles Russell's Mexican Buffalo Hunters; 13" x 18" w/c, estimate: $600,000-$750,000
• Sold: Bought in
• Charles Russell's Bringing the Stolen Herd Home; 16" x 22" w/c, estimate: $200,000-$400,000
• Sold: Bought in
• Frank Tenney Johnson's Tienda Afuera; 24" x 18" oil, estimate: $100,000-$200,000
• Sold: Bought in
• Adolph Weinman's Chief Black Bird, Ogalalla Sioux; 17" bronze, estimate: $70,000-$100,000
• Sold: Bought in
• E.M. Hennings' More Sage; 25" x 30" oil, estimate: $100,000-$150,000
• Sold: Bought in
• William Leigh's The Great Spirit; 37" x 50" oil, estimate: $800,000-$1,200,000
• Sold: $862,500

That concludes our first edition of Goin' to the Craps Table/Goin' to the ATM.  Again, if you have some clever names for this portion of my auction reviews, please post them in the comments section.  Also, if you have any questions regarding buying or selling at auction or privately, that's what I'm here for.  If I don't know the answer, we'll find it together.

left to right: William 'Tylee' Abbott, Peter Reiss, Ron Nicklas, Buddy Le