Andrew Wyeth, “Gone Ashore,” watercolor on paper, signed lower left. In a thick white mat with metal casement frame. From the estate of Linda Bean. (Courtesy of Thomaston Place Auction Galleries)
Three Wyeths and Andy Warhol will be in Thomaston this weekend — sort of.
The Thomaston Place Auction Galleries is in the midst of its biggest auction of the year — the Summer Grandeur sale. The four-day event includes more than 1,500 objects of all kinds: There’s antique furniture and contemporary artwork, a 1989 limousine and a 1956 Ford Thunderbird, even a metal model of a boat used in the production of the 1925 film “Ben Hur.” On Sunday, the final day of the auction, the lineup includes eight original works by three generations of Wyeths.
Kaja Veilleux, owner and auctioneer, said he has sold works by these artists before. But it is rare to see all three men — N.C., Andrew and Jamie — in one sale at the same time. The estimated value of each work ranges from $30,000 to $500,000.
“The only other place you could find that many is if you go to one of the museums in Maine,” Veilleux said.
All of the Wyeths come from the estate of the late businesswoman and philanthropist Linda L. Bean. A granddaughter of L.L. Bean founder Leon Leonwood Bean, she was an avid art collector and a friend of the Wyeths.
“She was a great supporter of the Wyeth family,” Veilleux said. “These are serious pieces of art.”
N.C. Wyeth, “Custer’s Last Stand,” oil on canvas, signed and dated lower right “N.C. Wyeth, 1930,” titled and inscribed lower right “To Martin Pyle from NCW.” From the estate of Linda Bean. (Courtesy of Thomaston Place Auction Galleries)
The collection includes two oil paintings by the illustrator N.C. Wyeth. One is a view of his house in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, circa 1920. The other is a 1930 painting, “Custer’s Last Stand,” which depicts a scene from the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876. There are five paintings by his son Andrew Wyeth, known for his realist scenes. One work is “Gone Ashore,” a quiet scene rendered in watercolor of a figure in a sunlit bedroom. It is expected to fetch the highest price of the eight works, with an estimated value of $400,000 to $500,000.
“There’s a window open,” Veilleux said in a video about the painting on social media. “There’s a slight breeze coming through her hair and over her shoulder, the sunlight coming through the window. It’s a masterpiece of Andrew Wyeth’s figural painting of that period.”
Jamie Wyeth, “Star,” 1999, combined medium. From the estate of Linda Bean. (Courtesy of Thomaston Place Auction Galleries)
There is one work by Jamie Wyeth, the grandson of N.C. and son of Andrew. “Star” (1999) captures one of his favorite subjects — a seagull.
Perhaps it is fitting that Jamie Wyeth’s painting is in this sale, which also features his good friend Andy Warhol. And while the Wyeth paintings came from Bean’s collection, the Warhol print of Marilyn Monroe came from a lucky break. Veilleux said the seller purchased a storage unit that had a wooden crate inside. They brought the crate to a free appraisal day at Thomaston Place, a longtime tradition for Veilleux.
“We unscrewed the crate, and there it was,” he said. “Lo and behold, in this original Plexiglas protective frame, was this Andy Warhol of Marilyn.”
The description of the item says it was from a portfolio of 10 prints created in 1967, signed in pencil and numbered 13 out of 250. The auction house estimate is $30,000 to $40,000, but Veilleux said that it could sell for as much as $100,000.
It’ll be a long weekend for the staff at Thomaston Place, who monitor bids on the phone, online and in person. Veilleux said he sells an item every 35 to 40 seconds. These summer sales are usually three days long, so a four-day extravaganza is new even for Veilleux, who has been in business for more than four decades.
“I try to have a decent night’s sleep and a good breakfast,” he said. “Because I won’t eat again once I start for eight hours.”
Andy Warhol, “Marilyn (F. & S. 28),” 1967. Screenprint in colors, on wove paper, the full sheet. From the portfolio of 10 prints created in 1967. Signed in pencil and rubber stamp-numbered 13/250 in black ink on verso. (Courtesy of Thomaston Place Auction Galleries)
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