Curated Selection
A strong segment of early Texas art will highlight Heritage Auctions’ May 12 sale.
Born in Carmona, Spain, in 1858, artist José Arpa y Perea became known for his work of three specific places: Spain, Mexico and Texas. During Heritage Auctions’ Texas Art Signature Auction on May 12, collectors will have the chance to purchase works from each of those distinct periods in the artist’s career. “There is one work [from each place] to represent his career as a whole,” says Heritage Auctions’ Texas Art director Atlee Phillips. “It has a nice symmetry about it to learn more about the artist and for his collectors as well.”
From 1893 is Arpa’s Spanish work Baptizmo del Infante Don Juan en Sevilla (est. $40/50,000), while the 1902 Mexico scene is Cupulus de Iglesia Entre El Follaje Mexico (est. $10/15,000). His Texas painting, Breckenridge Park, San Antonio, Texas (est. $60/80,000), is a well-known park scene with St. Mary’s in the background.
Dawson Dawson-watson, an early Texas impressionist known for his paintings of the flora of the Southwest, studied in England and spent time in Giverny. Winter in the Meadow (est. $15/25,000) is a rare snow-filled work that highlights the artist’s style and colors. Phillips elaborates, “He’s known for his pastel palette, which is showing up really well in this snow scene.”
Several Texas landscapes by Robert William Wood will cross the block, including Golden Hours (est. $15/25,000), Texas Bluebonnets (est. $10/15,000) and The Mystic Hour (est. $10/15,000). Of the bluebonnets painting, Phillips says, “This is a really nice [piece] from the 1940s. You want the 1930s to early 1940s, as those are the best dates for him.” She adds that the painting depicts a quintessential Texas landscape.
Cowboy painter Fred Darge is represented
by Joining the Posse, Palo Duro Canyon (est. $4/6,000), a painting that highlights his knowledge of the subject matter and his knife work. “He was a ranch hand and his visions of the West are things he saw and lived,” adds Phillips.
Recently Phillips has been encouraged by the younger generation of collectors finding their way in the Texas art market by often beginning with prints and working their way to paintings. She says, “Midrange, solid Texas artists, artworks by Wood and Fred Darge [and] contemporary art are attracting demand from a lot of younger collectors.”
Also in the auction of approximately 80 lots will be works by sculptor James Surls, Kelly Fearing, Porfirio Salinas and Bror Utter.