Featuring property from Heritage Book Shop, Colonial Williamsburg and The Metropolitan Museum of Art
New York, 30 June, 2pm

Bid in person, online or by absentee in our first No Reserve Bibliophile Sale. Click here for the online catalogue: http://emailtransmit.com/util/clickthrough.php?a_i=4795358&t_i=39003&t=o&url=http%3A%2F%2Fny.bloomsburyauctions.com%2F+

The minimum bid is $25 and items must be collected within three business days from the sale date. Please note that we are closed on Friday, July 3rd, in observance of Independence Day.

Exhibition
Monday, 29 June, 10am to 6pm
Tuesday, 30 June, 10am to 1pm

For further information, please contact:jcummins@bloomsburyauctions.com.

Bloomsbury Auctions
6 West 48th Street, New York, NY 10036
t +1 212 719 1000 | f +1 212 719 1400

BLOOMSBURY AUCTIONS NEW YORK BIBLIOPHILE SALE

AUCTION 17 & 18 SEPTEMBER 2008

Bloomsbury Auctions announces the first Bibliophile sale of the fall season including the extraordinary collection of Fred M. Meyer Collection of L. Frank Baum and related Oziana.

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New York, NY – Bloomsbury Auctions New York announces the opening sale of its 2008 fall season. The largest sale to date, this two-day Bibliophile sale will consist of Americana, Maps, Literature , Fine Bindings, Original Art and Art Books, and the remarkable Fred M. Meyer Collection of L. Frank Baum and Related Oziana.The sale will commence on September 17th with the Fred M. Meyer Collection.  As Executive Secretary of The International Wizard of Oz Club, Inc. for nearly forty years, Mr. Meyer amassed a wealth of first editions, manuscripts, printer’s proofs, rare toys and games, and drawings by W. W. Denslow, John R. Neill and others. The day will continue with a fine group of original artworks and art related books. Highlights from this section include a rare, full series of La Gazette du Bon Ton in original wrappers (Estimate $50,000-$70,000). This groundbreaking Parisian fashion periodical contains hundreds of pochoir plates by George Barbier, Raul Dufy, George Lepape, Umberto Brunelleschi, A. E. Marty, Paul Iribe and many other masters of the art-deco age of elegance. The first day of the sale will conclude with the sale of Literature and Fine Bindings.

The second day of the sale highlights Americana, Maps and Travel Literature. Included in this offering is the first American edition of Thomas Jefferson’s Notes on the State of Virginia, printed by Prichard and Hall in 1788, estimated at $3,000-$4,000, as well as Johannes Jansson’s major atlas Le Nouvel Atlas ou Theatre de Monde, auquel represente  la Grande Bretagne. Tome Quatriesme , estimated at $5,000-$8,000.

James Cummins, a Bibliophile specialist, remarked, “We are excited to open this season with the Bibliophile sale. The Bibliophile sale is our chance to offer a full gamut of fine books allowing collectors of all levels to participate.”

Viewings will be held until Tuesday, September 16th from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. The auction will begin promptly at 10:00 am on Wednesday September 17th and September 18th. Please go to www.bloomsburyauctions.com to view the catalogue, auction calendar and sale results.

Bloomsbury Auctions was founded in 1983 as the preeminent auction house for rare books and works on paper and is headquartered in London with salerooms in New York and Rome.

Bloomsbury Auctions’ Magnum Magnum Charity Auction of Iconic Photographs

Bloomsbury Auctions is delighted to announce a Auction of Photographs by some of the world's greatest photographers. The Magnum Magnum Auction will be held in London on Thursday 9th October to launch and raise funds for the Magnum Photos Foundation.

The auction comprises a unique portfolio of photographs created specifically for the prestigious publication MAGNUM MAGNUM  published by Thames & Hudson. The book celebrates the 60^th Anniversary of Magnum Photos and the second edition will be launched at the auction.

Over 300 photographs by the world’s most revered photographers will be for sale, from Eve Arnold, René Burri and Elliot Erwitt to outstanding contemporary photographers such as Martin Parr and Alec Soth. Each lot includes at least six photographs, with estimates from £1000 – £5000.

All proceeds from the auction will go towards supporting the objectives of the Foundation, created to advance public understanding and appreciation of documentary photography and to stimulate the creation of new work. A diverse programme of educational and cultural activities will allow the general public to enjoy access to Magnum’s historical resources and legendary photography. A student award in recognition of outstanding work will be announced on the evening of the auction.

The remarkable selection of highly collectable photographs will be on view at Bloomsbury Auctions in London from Saturday 4^th – Thursday 9^th October 2008. The auction will be held on Thursday 9^th October at a lively champagne reception at 6pm.

A donation of £25 will reserve a ticket to attend the evening, places are limited.  To purchase tickets please contact Richard Caton at Bloomsbury Auctions on +44 (0) 20 7495 9494 or richard.caton@bloomsburyauctions.com. Alternatively you may send a cheque made payable to Bloomsbury Auctions to: Bloomsbury Auctions, 24 Maddox Street, London, W1S 1PP.

As telephone bidding will not be possible on the evening, you are encouraged to place commission bids the day before the auction if you are unable to attend. Please contact the Photography Department for further information. Our website provides further information on buying at auction: www.bloomsburyauctions.com

September 2008 at Bloomsbury Auction

A warm welcome from Bloomsbury in London to everyone who has been away for the summer. Below is our schedule for September, simply click on the link to view the fully illustrated sale online.

Bibliophile Sale

4^th September

Including Continental Literature & History, Bindings and Fore-edge Paintings, Modern First Editions, Art Reference and Sports & Pastimes

Maps & Atlases

11^th September

An extremely large selection of works concerning Atlases and Cartographic References, Foreign and British Maps

20^th Century Prints, Paintings & Works on Paper

18^th September

Incorporating sections of Modern British, Continental, Contemporary and Urban Art. Also including Books on Modern Art from the property of the late Ronald Alley, first keeper of the Modern Collection at the Tate Modern

Architecture, Travel & Topography, Hunting & Shooting

25/26 September

Beginning with the sale of the working architectural library of the late Sir Howard Colvin, the sale covers Britain and British Topography, Travel, Exploration, Big Game Hunting and Shooting

Bloomsbury Auctions Sees An Increase Of 35% In Sales So Far This Year

Results Benefit From Expansion Of New Departments And The Value Of Lots Offered

 

London, July 7^th 2008 – Bloomsbury Auctions, the world’s leading auction house for books and works on paper, today reported an impressive 35% increase over the same period as last year. The increased number of sales and the opening of new departments have both contributed, while the market for books and works on paper continues to be buoyant despite the adverse economic climate.

“These impressive results show that Bloomsbury Auctions has correctly chosen to specialise in books and works on paper that perform well even during an economic downturn,” said Tommaso Zanzotto, chairman of the group. He went on to say, “The offer, the demand, and the affordable prices underline the resilience of books as their cultural, social, and visual content continue to be prized by the collector and the general public”.

During the past six months Bloomsbury Auctions celebrated its 25^th anniversary, marking the occasion with a special Anniversary Sale that saw an Einstein letter make a world record £202,000 while the sale as a whole realized over £1.4 million, a record for the London auction house.  This year has also seen successful inaugural sales for three new departments: Modern Prints in New York and Photographs and Old Master Paintings in Rome.

Rupert Powell, Managing Director, remarked: “During the next six months we will be offering a very exciting and extensive auction programme including the Jay T. Snider Collection and a landmark Russian Book sale in New York; Important Books, Modern Prints and Photographs in London; and Old Masters in addition to Books and Photographs in Rome.  We expect to see our growth continuing for the forseeable future, thanks to the very encouraging response from vendors and buyers alike.”

Bloomsbury Auctions was founded in 1983 and operates from salerooms in London, New York, and Rome.

For further information please telephone:  Richard Caton   020 7495 9494

or email caton@bloomsburyauctions.com

Bloomsbury Auctions‘ thriving 20^th Century Prints sales have become part of the fabric of London’s summer Modern and Contemporary Prints sales.  On  2^nd and 3rd July the expert in charge and head of department, Alexander Hayter has put together a stimulating and diverse 635 lot sale;  it encompasses fresh to the market and privately owned works by key figures such as Edward Munch and Max Beckmann, as well as cutting edge pieces by contemporary Chinese artists whose work is so much in demand today.

A highlight of the sale is a unique lithograph by the greatest Norwegian artists of all time, Edvard Munch (1863-1944).  The Woman at the Urn  is a lithograph of 1898, the period which is regarded as the artist’s most creative.  Depicting a naked young girl with long hair peering into a steaming cauldron with an old man’s bearded face on it, this linear nightmarish image is unique, there was no edition, it was hand-printed by the artist on buff wove paper and signed in pencil.  Discovered in a private collection in Canada, this extraordinary piece is estimated to fetch £30,000-50,000.

Regarded as one of the greatest figure painters of the 20^th century, Max Beckmann‘s work mirrored pre war German society and the rise of Nazism.  Bloomsbury is delighted to be offering a very rare and important set of extensively hand-coloured, signed drypoints illustrating the adventures of art collector, ‘Ebbi‘ Kautsch from his staid  middle class home to the excitement and profanity of Berlin .  Hand-coloured prints by Beckmann are extremely rare and they were usually given by the artist to his friends and family.  This 1924work given by the artist to a relation of his wife and is the only known hand coloured copy of Ebbi, Komodie; it was recently exhibited in a retrospective of the artist organised by the Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt and the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao.  These witty and brilliantly coloured drawings are expected to fetch £30,000-50,000.

An astonishing wave of creativity and liberalism has characterised Chinese arts since the fall of Mao and especially since the 1980s. Chinese avant garde is extremely fashionable at the moment and this is the first time such a large group of contemporary ‘cutting edge’ Chinese prints has been offered at auction.  Appealing particularly to young, wealthy Chinese educated abroad these prints have become not only a status symbol but also represent Chinese ‘forward thinking.’   Many are concerned with western consumerism such the lithographs printed in colours by Wang Guangyi, whose seemingly traditional messages of the Cultural Revolution, are in fact promoting Chanel No 19 or Gillette (estimates range from £600-8,000).  Other sought after Chinese artists in Bloomsbury‘s sale include the troubling images of Yue Minjun such as Noah’s Ark (estimated £2000-3000) or the series of family portraits by the popular Zhang Xiaogang (estimates from £2000-5500).

No sale of 20^th Century Prints is complete without examples of  Matisse, Picasso,  Pasmore, Warhol, Bacon, Hirst and Banksy to name but a few and Bloomsbury‘s summer bonanza includes them all.

Arman, Balkenhol, Banksy, Banner, Baselitz, Basquiat, Calder, Carnegie, Condo, Creed, Dali, Dalwood, Deacon, de Chirico, Dzama, Emin, Faile, Fairhurst, Fontana, Gilbert & George, Hirst, Immendorf, Islam, Lanskoy, Laurencin, Leger, Longo, Magritte, Meese, Oursler, Picasso, Turk, Warhol, amongst others.

Bloomsbury Auctions is pleased to present its annual flagship sale of Modern & Contemporary Art, comprising some 95 lots and estimated at £1.5 – £2 million, presenting works by masters of the 20th Century alongside their contemporary counterparts. View the catalogue on-line.

Coinciding with the major retrospective at the Fondation Beyeler of the highly influential French Cubist Fernard Léger, Bloomsbury is offering a privately owned gouache, Nature Morte of 1940 (lot 5). The artist’s auction record was newly established this May, when an important early Cubist work fetched almost $40 million; the present work is offered at £60,000-£80,000.

Due Cavalli (lot is a late piece by the Italian Surrealist ‘par excellence’, Giorgio De Chirico; it was purchased by the grandparents of the current owner directly from the artist, it has never been on the market before and it is estimated £40,000-£60,000.

No Modern and Contemporary Art sale is complete without Pablo Picasso, whose extraordinary inventiveness, dexterity and masterly handling of a wide variety of techniques, continues to influence new generations of artists. Bloomsbury presents two works on paper (lots 11 and 12), both from private collections, which display all that he is famous for. Their reasonable estimates of only £120,000-£180,000 and £100,000-£150,000 respectively, ensure that they will be snapped up by discerning buyers.

Many regard Lucio Fontana as standing head and shoulders above all Italian artists of the post-war era, not only influencing the Arte Povera movement of the 1960s but also the American Minimalists. Renowned for his slashed, monochrome canvases, the scarlet Concetto Spaziale, 1960 (lot 22), consists of thick, heavily impastoed oil paint on canvas with 29 slashes and incisions. A new auction record of just over £10 million was established in February this year; this work is offered at £250,000-£350,000.

An extensive collection of works by Andy Warhol is included in the sale, nearly all from a single private west coast collection, that traces the artist’s career from his naïve style of the 1950s, the iconic images of the 60s to his death in 1987. Alongside a group of preparatory drawings for published prints (particularly interesting is a 1975 portrait of Mick Jagger, lot 34), there is a rare collaborative work on canvas with fellow New York artists Jean-Michel Basquiat and Francesco Clemente. Towards the end of his life, Warhol’s admiration and respect for these two artists grew partly due to his role as mentor. There are a number of examples of collaborations between these artists, all of which continue to excite collectors when presented for sale; lot 36 is offered at £100,000-£150,000.

Hero (You’re the Man) is a large (2.5 metre long) original painting on collage by the ‘super-cool’ New Yorker Robert Longo (lot 39). Produced as a token of thanks for Bob Krasnow, the legendary chairman of Elektra Records who helped finance Longo’s first video art project Arena Brains in 1989, it is estimated to fetch between £15,000-£20,000.

Proving its cutting-edge credentials, Bloomsbury is delighted to offer examples of eleven Turner Prize winners and shortlisted artists including Fiona Banner, Gillian Carnegie, Martin Creed, Tracey Emin, Gilbert & George, Liam Gillick, Damien Hirst, Shirazeh Houshiary, Richard Wilson, and Jane & Louise Wilson and one from a prospective prize winner, Runa Islam (lots 65-82). Lot 69 is the most extensive and important sound installation ever to come onto the market by the 2001 winner Martin Creed. Comprising 39 metronomes, each set to a different beat, this work was first presented at the British School of Rome in 1996 and has been held in a private collection ever since, estimated at £20,000-£30,000.

From the burgeoning Urban Art scene, there are three original items by the key figure in this group, Banksy (lots 89-91). Secured (lot 89), a 7-foot long spray paint on plywood, is accompanied by the authentication certificate signed and stamped with the thumb print by Stephen Lazarides, dated 2004, and is the only known example of this image still surviving. Originally from a boarded-up house in Liverpool, it was originally salvaged by a student and used as a skate board ramp! Even so the work is still in fine condition and is expected to fetch between £40,000-£60,000. The following lot Untitled , 2003, consists of spray paint with stencil on concrete blocks (estimate £30,000-£50,000). Depicting a television being thrown out of a window, it was commissioned by The Observer for the launch of The Observer Magazine Music Monthly in September 2003. The work was used as a backdrop for a photo shoot of the band Blur and was illustrated on the front cover. Other artists from the movement included in the sale are: Faile, Adam Neate and Jamie Hewlett (of Gorillaz fame).

Bloomsbury Auctions Launches Photographs Department in New York

THE WORLD’S LEADING AUCTION HOUSE FOR RARE BOOKS AND WORKS ON PAPER HIRES FORMER GALLERY AND AUCTION STAFF WITH RENOWNED EXPERTISE TO DEVELOP PHOTOGRAPHY SALES.

New York, NY – June 9, 2008 – Bloomsbury Auctions announced today the launch of their Photographs Department in New York with the appointment of John Cowey as Head of Department and Hannah Hayden as Junior Specialist. The department is being guided by the world-renowned photography specialist Rick Wester, of Rick Wester Fine Art, Inc., as International Consultant. Bloomsbury Auctions opened their New York saleroom just eight months ago at 6 West 48^th Street near Rockefeller Plaza, and it has already announced significant plans for expansion with the development of new departments in modern and contemporary prints and photography.

John Cowey is a well-respected and experienced expert in the field of fine art photography and has worked within the photographic art market for the past 15 years. Most recently, Mr. Cowey worked as gallery manager at Edwynn Houk Gallery, one of the world’s leading private photography galleries. His partner at Bloomsbury Auctions, Hannah Hayden, comes from Phillips de Pury & Company where she managed Client Development for contemporary art and photographs, in addition to working with catalogues, research, and promotion.

Mr. Wester brings almost thirty years of knowledge and experience in the selling, exhibiting, promoting and appraising of photographs in both the private and public sectors to his new role at Bloomsbury Auctions. His experience includes nine years as the International Director of Photographs at Christie’s, Inc. Most recently Mr. Wester was the first Worldwide Head of Photographs at Phillips de Pury & Company, and since September 2007 he has been the President and Director of his own art services company, Rick Wester Fine Art, Inc. Mr. Wester will assist the firm by developing the Photographs Departments in New York, London, and Rome.

Mr. Wester says of the new department, “There is an incredible potential for growth within the photography market and I am truly excited by the prospect of facilitating the development of the Photographs Departments at Bloomsbury Auctions. I fully expect this to be a successful, competitive venture.”

“We are delighted to announce our partnership with such distinguished authorities in the field of fine art photography. It is with great pleasure that we welcome the new staff to Bloomsbury Auctions.” says Tommaso Zanzotto, President of Bloomsbury Auctions, Inc. “Our well known expertise and customer service will now extend to collectors, vendors, and artists in the photography world.” added Mr. Zanzotto, who serves as a Trustee of Aperture Foundation and other fine art organizations.

Bloomsbury Auctions will host its inaugural photography sale in  New York on October 16^th and 17^th, 2008.  John Cowey and Hannah Hayden are available for valuations and welcome inquiries concerning consignments and sales. Please call +1 (212) 719-1000 or send an e-mail to: photographs@bloomsburyauctions.com.

Bloomsbury Auctions was founded in 1983 in London specializing in books and works on paper with salerooms in London, New York, and Rome.

Bloomsbury Auctions sells Einstein’s Views on God and Religion for a Massive World Record £207,600

The bidding was frenetic at Bloomsbury Auctions‘ 25^th Anniversary sale in London for Albert Einstein’s handwritten letter to his friend, in which he discusses his thoughts about God and religion.   The saleroom was packed to capacity with 11 extra telephone lines;  at around £50,000 there was an imperceptible lull in the bidding, it immediately sped off once again finally selling to a private overseas collector for an astounding £207,600.

The highlight of Bloomsbury Auctions’ 25^th Anniversary sale on 15^th May 2008 is an unrecorded letter from Albert Einstein, in which the theoretical physicist wrote of his religious beliefs (lot 303).  Rupert Powell, Bloomsbury’s Managing Director said, ‘The private buyer has a passion for theoretical physics and all that that entails. This extraordinary letter seemed to strike a chord, giving a deep personal insight one of the greatest minds of the 20^th century.  The final £207,600 has eclipsed previous  records by at least four times.’

Handwritten in pen in 1954 to his friend the philosopher Eric Gutkind, Einstein writes, ‘The word god is for me nothing more  than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honourable, but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish.’  Einstein was Jewish but went to a Catholic primary school, receiving private tuition in Judaism at home.  He declined the offer from the newly formed state of Israel to be its second president.  In Bloomsbury’s letter, which was written in German the year before his death,  Einstein wrote, ‘For me the Jewish religion like all others is the incarnation of the most childish superstitions.  And the Jewish people to whom I gladly belong and with whose mentality I have a deep affinity, have no different quality for me than all other people.  As far as my experience goes, they are no better than other human groups, although they are protected from the worst cancers by lack of power.  Otherwise I cannot see anything ‘chosen’ about them.’  Although Einstein emphatically rejected conventional religion, he was affronted when his views were appropriated by atheists, whose lack of humility he found offensive.

‘We’re especially delighted with the sale as not only have we broken another world , but we have made a staggering £1.3 in our 25^th Anniversary sale,’ said Powell.   Today Bloomsbury Auctions which has branches in Rome and New York, sells more books and works on paper than any other auction house in the world.

Masterworks of 20th Century Russian Literature and Illustration

NEW YORK AUCTION 21 MAY 2008

Bloomsbury Auctions presents an extremely rare and highly desirable collection of rare books and works on paper representing Russian cultural life

Bloomsbury Auctions New York is delighted to bring to the market an extraordinary collection of early 20th Century Russian Literature, autographs, photographs and associated illustration art from 1900 through to 1950, beginning with pieces from the ‘Silver Age’ through the Revolutionary and post Revolutionary periods through to the Stalin era. This wide ranging collection shows how the word in the novel and in poetry alongside the art of the illustrator became one of the few ways of expressing oneself in an ever more tightly controlled society. It is an unprecedented collection of rare and desirable association material from the major Russian authors and artists of this tumultuous period of history. Please click here to view the Masterworks of 20th Century Russian Literature and Illustration catalogue.

One of the sale highlights is a presentation copy of Anton Chekhov’s very first book. Also noteworthy are inscribed works by Leo Tolstoy, Maxim Gorky, Anna Akhmatova, Aleksandr Blok, Konstantin Balmont, Andrei Belyi, Ivan Bunin, Ilya Erenberg, Kornei Chukovsky, Anatolyi Lunacharsky, Vsevolod Meyerhold, Evegenii Zamyatin and other prominent literary figures. There are copies of the first and second edition of the very first Russian “coming out” novel Krylya (Wings, 1906) by Mikhail Kuzmin and other books by this modern gay icon. Especially unusual is the typed book of poetry by the OBERIU poet Nikolai Zabolotsky, complete with a collage cover.

The Russian émigré community too is well represented in Masterworks of 20th Century Russian Literature and Illustration. There is a good selection of early novels in Russian written by Vladimir Nabokov under the pseudonym “Sirin” as well as a hand-written contract for an unpublished libretto signed by “Vladimir Vladimirovich Sirin (Nabokov)” in 1924. Although the phrase Russian erotica may sound like an oxymoron, it too may be found in this sale. There are copies of Somov’s naughty rare pseudo eighteenth-century pastiche Le livre de la marquise (1918) as well as the two last works of erotica to be published during the Soviet regime. Also for sale is a beautiful copy of the notorious hand-colored lithographs Idylle printanière (1933) by the celebrated children’s book illustrator Fedor Rojankovsky.

Besides many fine illustrated books, there are original drawings and watercolors by such esteemed artists as Altman, Annenkov, Bilibin, Burliuk, Chekhonin, Goncharova, Grigoriev, Larionov, Narbut, Puni, Roerich, Soudeikin and Kiril Zdanevich. The autograph material includes examples by Sasha Chorny, Aleksei Remizov, Benedikt Livshits and a letter by Leon Trotsky in German. There are also rare periodicals and photographs, including a rare signed photograph of Akhmatova. This unprecedented collection reflects the great variety of intellectual, literary, and artistic developments in Russian culture during the early 20th century. For a fuller introduction to the sale by Michael Patrick Hearn, curator, please click here.

Viewings will be held on Thursday, May 15th until Tuesday, May 20th from 9:00 am until 5:30 pm and on Wednesday, May 21st from 9:00 am until 12:00 pm. The auction will begin on Wednesday, May 21st at precisely 2:00 pm. Visit http://www.bloomsburyauctions.com/ to view the catalogue, auction calendar and sale results.

Bloomsbury Auctions is the world’s leading auction house for rare books and works on paper and is headquartered in London with salerooms in New York and Rome.