Highlights and Sales Results--Couer d' Alene Western Art Auction 2012

Shirt Worn by Chief Joseph Sold for 877,500 at Auction

Scout's Report by Howard Terpning Sold for 977,000 at Auction

A Life of Cultivation by Scott Tallman Powers--Winner of the Collector's Choice Award

The 2012 Couer d'Alene auction realized total sales of over 17.4 Million  up from last year's 16.9 Million.

Top sales prices included Howard Terpning's "Scout's Report" which sold for 977,000, Frank Tenney-Johnson's "Cowboys Roping the Bear" which sold for 921,000, and a shirt worn by Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce tribe (and documented in the earliest known photo of him and a painting that hangs in the Smithsonian and was used for a U.S. postage stamp), which sold for 877,500.

Although there were many sales (90% of all lots sold),  and overall sales were up over last year, we didn't see the way over estimates sales on Terpning paintings that we did at the last big auction in Scottsdale. Can't complain about the almost 1 Million hammer price on "Scout's Report", though.

There were many wonderful paintings, and some very good buys to be had. One of my collectors walked away with a painting well below what he was prepared to pay for it.

Auctions are a funny thing.--sometimes there are two or more collectors who want the same painting and prices can go wild, other times if collectors intent on buying paintings by a particular artist don't attend, or buy something else during the auction, and use up their art budget, you may find a treasure for less than you would expect.
 
The Collector's Choice Award for the 2012 event went to Scott Tallman Powers for his new painting "A Life of Cultivation", which sold for 22,230..