Los Angeles – On August 4, Bonhams California & Western Art sale achieved a total of $2,168,753, with an impressive 84% sold by lot and 91% sold by value. Five world auction records were also set for artists Robert Eskridge, William Alexander Griffith, John Hayes, Henrietta Berk, and Si Chen Yuan.
The top lot of the sale was the striking Poppies and Lupine by Granville Redmond, which sold for $212,575. Painted in 1914, this work is a prime example of Redmond’s talents as the leader in painting elegant depictions of California wildflowers. Poppies and Lupine is symbolic of the tradition in early California plein air painting and distinguished Granville Redmond as one of the top Impressionist painters. It had been estimated at $100,000-150,000.
Scot Levitt, Bonhams Director of Fine Arts, comments: “We were delighted to have achieved world auction records for Robert Eskridge, William Alexander Griffith, John Hayes, Henrietta Berk, and Si Chen Yuan. Top California plein air artists, continue to demand strong prices, such as Granville Redmond’s Poppies and Lupine and Elmer Wachtel’s The Grandeur that is California. Overall, this sale was a success and the market continues to show strength.”
