Women’s History Month, which is celebrated in March in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom, had its origins in a small-town school event in California that evolved gradually into Women’s History Week. Then, through the Congressional National Women’s History Project (Pub. L. 100-9) in 1987, it continued its growth into the month-long national annual celebration of women’s contributions to history, culture and society.
In celebration of Women’s History Month this March 2019, Heritage Auctions is awarding special focus to the work of woman painters, printmakers and sculptors represented in our March 8-10 Fine and Decorative Arts Auction.
Spanning nationalities, genres and media, the woman artists represented in the auction range chronologically from the late 18th century to the present day, and the catalog highlights their artistic contributions through individual biographical notes. The sheer diversity of their work underscores the creative drive women have always had, within every culture, regardless of whether or not their gender blocked access to professional training in the period before the modern era.
Notable works by women in our upcoming auction include:
Two paintings by the self-taught African-American artist, Sister Gertrude Morgan, which were acquired by Rod McKuen and Edward Habib directly from the artist.
Everlasting Gospel Ship
Mixed media on paper
Estimate: $4,000 – $6,000
Several landscapes of the Pacific Northwest by Eliza Barchus, who supported her family with her brush following her husband’s untimely death.
Yosemite from Artist Point
Oil on canvas
Estimate: $1,000 – $1,500
Barbara Takenaga’s swirling, dot-based abstraction that recalls cosmic and cellular imagery;
White Trail (blue), 2008
Acrylic on panel
Estimate: $700 – $1,000
Two still lifes of Native American artifacts by Arizona painter Sue Krzyston;
Enduring Qualities, 2007
Oil on canvas
Estimate: $1,000 – $2,000.
A vivid abstraction by Sophie Matisse, the great-granddaughter of iconic French artist Henri Matisse
Fahrenheit, 2008
Oil, acrylic, and gouache on canvas
Estimate: $2,000 – $3,000.
A big-eyed girl in Young Girl as Clown by Margaret Keane, a painter who had to go to court to prove that she (and not her ex-husband) created her body of work for which he was taking credit.
Young Girl as Clown
Oil on canvas
Estimate: $3,000 – $5,000.
