LaStaff Reports | Community Updates
The 21st biannual Larsen Art Auction generated a record $3.6 million in sales on Oct. 17, fueled by strong international participation and a series of headline-making results that shattered artist auction records.
More than 6,000 online bidders from 70 countries and nearly every U.S. state participated in the Old Town Scottsdale auction. Collectors bidding in person and by telephone also drove many of the day’s highest sales.
One of the auction’s biggest surprises came from Emily Mason’s 2008 oil on canvas, Starboard, which sold for $384,000. The work carried a pre-sale estimate of $60,000 to $90,000 and surpassed the artist’s previous auction record of $101,000 by a wide margin.
The auction’s top lot was Olga de Amaral’s 1988 work Moon Basket 15, which sold for $510,000. The mixed-media piece, featuring acrylic, gold leaf and gesso on silk and linen, came from a private Paradise Valley collection and had been estimated at $400,000 to $600,000.
Works by Ed Mell also attracted aggressive bidding. His 1998 oil on canvas Victorian Rose sold for $170,800, while August Clouds, Lake Powell from 1993 realized $134,200. Both works exceeded their pre-sale estimates of $60,000 to $90,000 and eclipsed Mr. Mell’s previous auction record of $132,000. A third Mell painting sold for $122,000 after entering the auction with an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000.
“The Emily Mason painting alone would have made this a memorable auction, but there was a lot more history happening,” said Scott Larsen, owner of Larsen Gallery. “Collectors showed a lot of interest in the Latin American works, but there was plenty of competition for Ed Mell’s paintings and the Native American art, too. It’s exciting to see that level of enthusiasm for so many different artists and mediums.”
Latin American artists performed particularly well throughout the auction. Jesús Rafael Soto’s 1998 three-dimensional work Variantes Vertical sold for $144,000, while Roberto Matta’s 1995 Untitled brought $91,500. A work by Ángel Botello sold for $60,000 against a pre-sale estimate of $20,000 to $40,000.
Additional standout results included a work by Jacques Le Bescond, which sold for $42,000, nearly triple its high estimate of $15,000.
Native American art also generated significant interest, with every jewelry lot selling and most textile and blanket offerings finding buyers.
The Oct. 17 sale featured contemporary, modern, Southwestern, Native American and Latin American art. Prior to the event, Larsen Gallery had generated more than $25 million in lifetime auction sales. The record-setting fall auction further cemented the Scottsdale gallery’s reputation as one of the Southwest’s leading fine art auction houses.
