Coast to Coast
Western works from around the country land at Leslie Hindman’s Arts of the American West sale in Denver.
Leslie Hindman Auctioneers now has eight locations around the country, including offices in Denver and Scottsdale, Arizona. “You’d think all of our Western consigners would come from those offices,” says the auction houses’ Maron Hindman, “but they come from all of our regional offices. Western art is everywhere.” One Allan Houser stone piece is coming from Europe, she adds.
Hindman, the managing director of Southwest materials for Leslie Hindman Auctioneers, says that this year’s Arts of the American West sale, to be held on April 21 in Denver, comes on the heels of several successful auctions. “We had a big November sale so we’re excited to ride this momentum into April as we prepare this auction,” she says, adding that as many as 400 lots will be offered on April 21. “The market seems very enthusiastic about selling, and that’s what our clients are telling us. No one is complaining about the market or the economy, which is always good.”
Roughly a third of the April sale will be devoted to Western artworks, while the remaining lots will be divided almost evenly between Native American art and Native jewelry. “We don’t intend on those equal thirds, but it almost always pans out that way, even when it looks like a sale is leaning one way or another,” Hindman says.
Western lots being offered include Charles M. Russell’s oil Black Tail, Buffalo Days, a wildlife image of several deer on a tall bluff that overlooks a large valley. The work is expected to fetch $100,000 to $200,000. The work is coming from a Midwest collection. Another top artist is Oscar E. Berninghaus, whose 1951 piece Wandering Home Seeker will be available with pre-sale estimates of $20,000 to $40,000. Another historic work in the sale is William de la Montagne Cary’s sporting scene of two fishermen, possibly a father and a son, titled Fly Fishing in the Adirondacks, estimated at $10,000 to $15,000. Additionally, works by Nick Eggenhofer and William R. Leigh will be available.
The sale will also feature works by living artists including a dramatic horse scene by Dan Mieduch, Rompin’ Through the Hassayampa (est. $8/12,000), and a stunning Wyoming landscape by Michael Coleman, Cliffs of the Green River (est. $2/3,000).
Native American lots include the Houser stone work Mescalero Mother (est. $10/15,000), Kevin Red Star’s oil Intertribal Dancers (est. $4/6,000) and a number of jewelry pieces by Hopi jeweler Charles Loloma.
“It really is a great mixture of works from all over the country,” Hindman says. “There should be something for everyone.”