A first-place finish of $22,800 in the Fine Art auction was in order for “The Land of Nod” by Charles Sims, R.A., R.W.S. (British, 1873-1928), 1906, oil on canvas, 51 by 61½ inches in a House of Heydenryk frame, which had extensive provenance and exhibition history.

Review by Kiersten Busch

HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. — On September 10, Leland Little conducted a Fine Art Auction with a Decorative Art Auction following two days later.

Fine Art

The intimate, 109-lot Fine Art Auction closed at $316,440, with a 97 percent sell-through rate; only three lots did not sell during the sale. “We were pleased with the active engagement of bidders during the live auction,” explained Claire Fraser, the firm’s vice president of Estates & Consignments and Fine Art director. “There were over 1,600 registered bidders through our in-house platform and through LiveAuctioneers. We continue to see strength and stability in our company’s decision to not publish presale estimates.”

In terms of the bidding pool for the Fine Art Auction, Fraser reported, “We continue to see great capacity and interest among collectors in North Carolina. Fifty-two percent of the lots were bought by North Carolina collectors.”

“The Land of Nod,” an oil on canvas by Charles Sims, R.A., R.W.S., earned top lot status in the Fine Art Auction. Painted during the First World War, the work portrayed a group of children drifting into the world of sleep. With extensively documented provenance and exhibition history — including an exhibition label on its stretcher for the American Art Association / Anderson Galleries Inc. — the painting had sweet dreams at the sale-high price of $22,800.

It was clear skies only for “Passing Storm,” an oil on canvas by William Louis Sonntag, Sr (American, 1822-1900), 42 by 48 inches framed, which was bid to $17,400.

Landscapes populated the highest selling lots, with William Louis Sonntag, Sr’s, “Passing Storm” securing a second-place finish at $17,400. Auction catalog notes explained that Sonntag was known for his landscape paintings “focused on scenes from the Appalachian Mountains, New England, the Adirondacks and the Hudson River Valley.” This example, done in oil on canvas, was presented in a period frame with a gallery plaque, and had provenance to a private collection in Edenton, N.C.

Two contemporary landscapes also finished well: “Shark Island’s Tropical Nature” by Jack Saylor ($9,600) and “Wilson Creek” by James P. Kerr ($9,000). The former, an oil on canvas done in 2018 by North Carolina native Saylor, had provenance to City Art Gallery (Greenville, N.C.) and a private collection, also in Saylor’s home state. The latter, done by Kerr, who resides in Delray Beach, Fla., was an oil on linen depicting a river in North Carolina, near where Kerr maintained a studio in Banner Elk.

Another North Carolinian, the self-taught African American artist Minnie Evans, was represented by two works in the sale. Earning $10,200 was Untitled (Faces and Foliage), an oil crayon and graphite work dated 1957 in its lower right corner. The similarly labeled Untitled (Face and Foliage) was made a few years earlier, in 1940, and closed for $6,000.

“La Plage, Les Régates” by André Hambourg (French, 1909-1999), 1952, oil on canvas, signed lower right, 29 by 38 inches in its original Louis XIV-style frame, sold for $12,600.

A few beach-themed works celebrated summer’s close, including “La Plage, Les Régates” by French artist André Hambourg, who also served as a journalist and draughtsman for the French army during the Second World War. Done in oil on canvas in 1952, “La Plage, Les Régates” was inscribed verso and housed in its original Louis XIV-style frame; it made $12,600.

Also feeling beachy was Gene Pelham’s circa 1940s oil on canvas “Rainy Beach Day,” created as an entry for a cover of a summer issue of The Saturday Evening Post. Pelham was a close friend and collaborator of Norman Rockwell, appearing in several of Rockwell’s Saturday Evening Post covers, such as 1947’s “First Flower” and 1951’s “Plumbers.” His association with the famous artist may have helped boost the work to its $12,600 finish.

Portraits were led by a Nineteenth Century oil on canvas “Portrait of George Washington” after Charles Willson Peale (American, 1741-1827). It was presented in a Nineteenth Century gilt oval frame and was accompanied by a typed letter signed by the consultant for the Rembrandt Peale Catalogue Raisonné, Carol E. Hevner, which dated to June 12, 1989, and “lists a possible attribution to Sarah Miriam Peale.” Consigned from the Pinehurst, N.C., collection of Josephine Chapman Borthwick, with additional provenance to Madeline Colburn Sprankle (Philadelphia) and Annette Sprankle Chapman (Radnor, Penn.), the painting rose to $7,800.

Decorative Art

Straight from the historic collection of Limestone University was this late Eighteenth Century Charleston, S.C., inlaid mahogany serpentine secretary with bookcase, 103¾ inches tall, which earned the highest price of the Decorative Art Auction — and a new in-house furniture record — at $336,000.

On September 12, the firm conducted its Decorative Art Auction, hammering down 127 lots for a total of $657,780, with only one lot going unsold. “Overall, the auction performed very well, exceeding expectations for several lots, meeting expectations on others, and with strong results across several categories, including American and Continental furniture, sculpture, porcelains, musical instruments and other decorative arts categories,” shared Brian Kuebler, the director of decorative arts, sculpture and ceramics. He continued, “Bidder registration and inquiries regarding the selection of material was very active, with a large majority of bidding happening during the live sale.”

Of the Decorative Art bidding pool, Kuebler added, “Participation was noted from regional, domestic and international bidders. Additionally, bidding was strong during the live sale, with bidders joining from overseas, domestic and regionally, particularly with Southern collector interest. We noted 372 total active bidders, 97 of those were winning bidders. Over 10 percent were first-time bidders with our company, and half of the first-time bidders secured a successful winning bid.”

“Our strongest lot in the sale was an exceedingly rare Charleston, S.C., secretary with bookcase that captivated our attention during the live sale, with the majority of bidding occurring during the live portion,” reported Kuebler. “It shows that the market is still strong for period Southern antique furniture, especially this rare example from the South Carolina Lowcountry.” The ouece hailed from the historic collection of Limestone University (Gaffney, S.C.) and secured top-lot status at $336,000, setting an auction house record in the process. Included with the piece of furniture was a signed essay from the director of research emeritus at the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts, Robert L. Rauschenberg. It also had publication history, appearing in Rauschenberg’s and John Bivins, Jr’s, The Furniture of Charleston 1680-1820, Volume II: Neoclassical Furniture.

This Aeolian-Skinner Organ Company, Inc., Opus 1087 pipe organ made in 1947 was made under the direction of G. Donald Harrison and was previously installed in Limestone University’s Fullerton Auditorium; it played a winning chord for $30,000.

Another lot consigned from Limestone University’s collection happened to earn the second-highest price of the day: an Opus 1087 American classical pipe organ made by the Aeolian-Skinner Organ Company, Inc., of Boston in 1947 under the direction of G. Donald Harrison, which played a tune to $30,000. The organ was installed in the university’s Fullerton Auditorium and comprised a classical-style mahogany-veneered player console with three manuals (or keyboards), 38 stops and couplers and 40 ranks (or groups of pipes); the organ totaled 2,459 pipes.

Musical instruments continued to attract bidder attention, as a Steinway & Sons Model D concert grand piano finished right behind the organ at $26,400. Made in New York circa 1969, the piano included a bench, piano cover and piano dolly. Three more Steinways found new musicians, including a 7-foot-6-inch Grand ($13,750), a Grand Model B ($12,500) and a Grand Model S ($2,875).

Sculpture performed well, with five separate works earning some of the highest prices of the day. Leading the selection was New Mexican artist Steve Kestrel’s “Messenger,” a 42-inch-tall dark patinated bronze model of a raven, which was signed “S. Kestrel” to its plinth and was numbered “9/15.” The lot also included an ink signed and dedicated copy of Kestrel’s self-titled monograph catalog, which was published in 2007 by Gerald Peter’s Gallery. With provenance to a private Edenton, N.C., collection, the sculpture flew to $15,600.

“Messenger” by Steve Kestrel (American, b 1947), dark patinated bronze, 42 inches by 17½ inches by 23 inches, numbered “9/15,” flew to new heights at $15,600.

French sculptor Georges Gardet was represented by two wild cat statues, “Couple de Tigres” and “Lion et Lionne,” which realized $13,200 and $7,500, respectively. Both patinated bronze sculptures were signed “G. Gardet,” had “Siot Decauville” foundry marks and included copies of their purchase receipts from Galerie Nicolas Bourriad, Paris. “Lion et Lionne,” at 20 inches high by 28½ inches long by 16 inches deep, may be, according to catalog notes, “the largest [casting of the sculpture] to come to the auction market.”

Turning away from animal forms and towards the figural, “Blind Faith (Viktor Kee), Third Life” by Richard MacDonald was bid to $9,000. The 2008 bronze with applied patina was from the contemporary artist’s “Cirque Series” and was mounted atop a tiered white stone base and was accompanied by gallery purchase records, artist brochures and catalogs. A pair of Meissen allegorical figures of Europe and North America after those made by Johann Joachim Kaendler in 1745 also made noise, earning $8,400.

Leland Little’s next Fine Art Auction will take place on December 10, with a Decorative Art Auction to follow on December 12. Prices quoted include buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. For information, 919-644-1243 or www.lelandlittle.com.