AN AIPAD THANK YOU!

Thank you to all of the extraordinary photographers who we are so privileged to represent - you made us look good at the 2012 AIPAD Photography Show! And thank you to all of our clients, collectors, friends, and new acquaintances for making this show so very memorable. We hope you may have an opportunity to visit us in Santa Fe before next year's AIPAD Show!

SOTHEBY'S PHOTO AUCTION UPDATE

Via I Like To Watch

Auction Hero: Calhoun Daguerreotype Sells for $338,500

John C. Calhoun by Mathew Brady, 1849

 

I don't get to do much breaking news here, but this morning I attended the morning session of Sotheby's spring photography auction in New York, where a 1849 daguerreotype of the great American politician John C. Calhoun sold for $338,000.


If you believe--as I sort of do--that art sales results reflect the overall state of the economy, then the morning session today indicates that we are well underway with recovery from the financial perils of 2008. Buyers seem to be sticking with the classics, though, just in case the rug gets pulled out again: A circa-1960s print of Ansel Adams's "Mount Williamson, Sierra Nevada, From Manzanar, California," sold for $182,500, and Edward Weston's "Dunes, Oceano," shot in 1936 and printed in the 1940s, went for $158,500.

"Mount Williamson, Sierra Nevada, From Manzanar, California," by Ansel Adams

"Dunes, Oceano," by Edward Weston

As is typical these days, the auction gallery at Sotheby's was sparsely populated--perhaps 50 to 75 bidders on hand. (My friend Stephen Perloff, who edits The Photograph Collector newsletter, likens auctions these days to a Mets game in September.) But there was plenty--plenty--of auction action phone bidders. Denise Bethel, head of Sotheby's photography department, handled it all with aplomb from her podium, her voice sometimes sounding like one of those police dispatchers in old movies (Lot 41...Timothy O'Sullivan...Canyon de Chelle...thank you...over and out...").

The big dag of the day was made by Mathew Brady in 1849. The image became one of his most famous portraits, noted for the way it captured Calhoun's penetrating gaze (or as my son Henry would say, his "crazy-ass eyes.") It was widely printed and was used as the basis of a painting by Henry Darby that is now owned by the U.S. Senate. The actual object for sale here--the daguerreotype--was only recently rediscovered, according to Sotheby's.

High prices at auction often simply reflect the competition between two motivated bidders, and that seemed to be the case with this lot. But objects like this, in their rarity, have intrinsic historical value. Calhoun was a giant of American politics, a cngressman, senator, secretary of war under James Madison and vice president under both John Quincy Adams and Adams's archrival Andrew Jackson. He was a great orator in an era of oratorical greatness, parrying with Daniel Webster and Henry Clay. He was a champion for his state, South Carolina, which at the time was pushing the idea of nullification--whereby states could ignore federal laws they didn't like. Jackson killed that effort, saving the union for another 30 or so years.

All in all, an interesting morning.

Increased Attendance, Strong Sales Reported at the AIPAD Photography Show New York

Via artdaily.org

NEW YORK, N.Y.- Attendance was up at The AIPAD Photography Show New York at the Park Avenue Armory, which closed on Sunday, March 20, with strong sales and rave reviews. The Show, presented by The Association of International Photography Art Dealers (AIPAD), was held on four sunny days from Thursday, March 17, through Sunday, March 20, 2011. More than 10,000 visitors (up from 8,300 last year) viewed work -including contemporary, modern and 19th century photographs, as well as photo-based art, video and new media -- from 79 of the world’s leading fine art photography galleries.


The 31st edition of The AIPAD Photography Show New York opened with a well- attended Gala Preview on Wednesday, March 16 to benefit the John Szarkowski Fund, an endowment for photography acquisitions at The Museum of Modern Art in New York City. The Gala and the Show drew a glittering crowd that included celebrities, major art collectors and leaders from the worlds of art, business, entertainment, fashion, and the media.

Among the notable attendees of the show were Jessica Lange, Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan, Matt Dillon, Fisher Stevens, Anderson Cooper, Joel Coen, Vicente Wolf, Alec Soth, George Tice, Meghan Boody, Shirin Neshat, Larry Fink, Elliot Erwitt, Brian Wallis, Simon Baker, Roxana Marcoci, Britt Salvesen, Matthew S. Witkovsky, Christiane Fischer, Marie Brenner, Anthony Haden-Guest, Bruce Davidson, Beth DeWoody, Anthony d'Offay, Dan Greenberg, Richard Prince, Gerhard Steidl, Edward Robinson, Mark Seliger, Bill Cunningham, Vicki Goldberg, Sondra Gilman and Celso Gonzales-Falla,Robert and Richard Menschel, and Larry Gagosian.

In addition to The Museum of Modern Art, New York, many other major institutions were represented among those attending including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; International Center for Photography, New York; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; The Art Institute of Chicago; George Eastman House, Rochester, NY; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Rhode Island School of Design Museum of Art, Providence; Milwaukee Art Museum; Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City; Saint Louis Art Museum; Minneapolis Institute of Art; Corcoran Gallery of Art and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; National Gallery of Canada, Ontario; and Tate, London.

Show Highlights

“The attendance was off the charts and the sales were great,” raved Robert Mann, Robert Mann Gallery, New York. “I think it’s the best show I ever had,” noted Keith de Lellis, Keith de Lellis Gallery, New York, echoing a number of other dealers. “The quality of the fair is up because people are taking it more seriously,” explained Michael Hoppen, Michael Hoppen Gallery, London.

Bryce Wolkowitz, Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery, New York, noted that AIPAD was “over the top. We did even better than we did at the pier show the week before last. We met new European and international collectors, and sold 12 works including a new media work by Jim Campbell for $75,000, and “lighting books” by Airan Kang for $5,000.” HackelBury Fine Art Limited, London, sold multiple works by Doug and Mike Starn in the $20,000 to $80,000 range.

Robert Klein, Robert Klein Gallery, Boston, said, “It was the best ever. There was a good balanced cross section of curators, old collectors and new buyers.” He sold silver prints by Irving Penn for $95,000 and Francesca Woodman for $50,000. “We did better than ever,” noted Roland Baron, Gallery 19/21, Guilford, CT. “Collectors were much more open to buying. Either the crisis is over are people are saying the heck with the crisis. We sold works by Mario Giacomello, of which we’re known to have a large stock.” Monroe Gallery of Photography, Santa Fe, sold a number of silver prints by Bill Eppridge and others top photographers depicting civil rights issues. The gallery also found success with photographs by Stephen Wilkes for $16,500 to $18,500.

“It was an incredible show,” said Bruce Silverstein, Bruce Silverstein Gallery, New York. “We are thrilled. We sold work by Frederick Sommer, Man Ray, Henry Moore, and Diane Arbus.” Weinstein Gallery, Minneapolis, reported that it was an excellent show and that their one-person exhibition of work by Alec Soth did very well. Richard Moore, Richard Moore Photographs, Oakland, CA, said it was a great show and sold more than 14 works ranging from $1,800 to $7,500, including a Walker Evans to an institution.

Galerie Priska Pasquer, Cologne, Germany, reported interest from museums and sold more than 10 works by Japanese artists including two prints by Lieko Shiga, of which 100 percent of the profits will be donated to a Japanese charity to aid victims of the earthquake and tsunami.

Deborah Bell, Deborah Bell Photographs, New York, felt AIPAD presented the best- looking show in memory and sold work by Andy Warhol, Marcel Broodthaers, and G. P. Fieret, ranging from $6,000 to $15,000. “There were serious collectors who have been active since the 1970s, as well as museum curators, consultants and new clients in their 30s and 40s.”

“We’re pleased with the buying atmosphere in New York,” noted Missy Finger from PDNB Gallery, Dallas. “It seems the city is out of the recession.” The gallery sold work by Esteban Pastorino Diaz, Peter Brown and John Albok. Verve Gallery of Photography, Santa Fe, noted that collectors were “knowledgeable and well rounded,” and sold more than 35 photographs. Winter Works on Paper, Brooklyn, sold nearly 70 works ranging from $100 to $2,500, including work to five museums.

“Exhibitors had high expectations for the AIPAD Show this year, which were all met,” noted Stephen Bulger, Stephen Bulger, President, AIPAD, and President, Stephen Bulger Gallery, Toronto. “It was one of the largest and most enthusiastic gatherings of serious photography collectors in recent memory. Attendance was particularly strong with first time buyers, as well as established collectors. People are already buzzing with anticipation for 2012.”

THE AIPAD PHOTOGRAPHY SHOW OPENS TONIGHT

The sun has broken through the clouds, just in time for this evening's 2011 AIPAD Photography Show. Exhibitors started setting up yesterday.

Monroe Gallery of Photography is located in booth #417. This is how it looked yesterday:

And, with some work, this afternoon:



The AIPAD Photography Show runs through Sunday, March 20. We hope to see you!

PHOTOGRAPHY MARKET 2011



We received a New Year's email from Penelope Dixon and Associates announcing the relocation of their headquarters to New York City. The newsletter also offered a review of the state of the photography market as we enter 2011.

"We also thought we would take the opportunity to share a brief synopsis of our market analysis for 2010 as follows:


Although the broader art market saw a decline in value throughout 2009, photography remained relatively stable in 2010 with auction values throughout the year that were close to 2008 levels. In addition to sales at auction, photographs offered at shows such as AIPAD (Association of International Photography Art Dealers) and Art Basel Miami Beach have been realistically priced which has helped to spur sales for galleries and dealers.

In the first half of 2010, the photography market continued to show signs of stability and growth with a notable sale of Irving Penn works at Christie’s, New York in April where every photograph sold, many for considerably more than the estimates. In addition, were the sale of the Polaroid Collection at Sotheby’s in June and the Avedon sale at Christie’s in November, both of which saw new auction records for several artists. An analysis of auction sales over the past year indicates that that global photography sales have returned to levels seen just prior to the peak of the market. This trend will hopefully continue throughout 2011, providing further new growth in the photography market."