Live Auction

Single-Owner Estate Art & Antiques feat. Chinese Dynastic Ceramics

Single-Owner Estate Art & Antiques feat. Chinese Dynastic Ceramics

Every collection is to some extent a self-portrait. The collection that will form the centerpiece of our August 19th auction captures quite faithfully the intense curiosity, sense of adventure and charming humor of its founders and owners, Linda and her late husband Ronald (Ron) Williams. Intrepid globetrotters who were equally passionate, among other things, about the arcane roots and evolution of Chinese art and about the striking beauty of sundry varieties of orchids, they devoted much of their time and attention to a collection that would easily stir the envy of many museums. Imagine now a museum whose atmosphere is anything but stuffy or professorial, and which welcomes you with its understated, but unmistakable elegance, and is flanked by a large garden that is itself a feat of art and design, and an open-air museum / playground (a wonderland for Linda and Ron’s grandchildren).

There was certainly a method to this process, and you get the impression that Linda and Ron responded with remarkable consistency to artworks that revealed the spontaneous elegance of nature as well as to objects that permeate our everyday life and render it – and us – more graceful.

The core of this collection, however, is a truly impressive homage to archaic and classical Chinese ceramic. We are talking about roughly two hundred cups, jars, pots etc. spanning more than two millennia, each of which could be the pride of a serious collector. In this artistic treasure, styles generally vary with wonderful subtlety, but sometimes they mark out decidedly different aesthetics and worldviews. What appears to run through much of this collection, though, is a sense of quiet sublime. Deceivingly simple contours and shades of celadon and gray pottery, of yellow or off-white ceramic that are as immediately enthralling in their irreducible simplicity as a line from the Tao Te Ching.

Collectors who prefer more intricate designs will not be disappointed either. They can marvel at Qing dynasty bowls with swirling blue dragons and Ming dynasty cups with explosions of floral motifs and superb depictions of fish which create the illusion that you are looking at the finest fishbowls. Several cups, plates and bowls (e.g., lots 150 and 151) also generate an illusion of a different order: you may be excused if, at first sight, you thought you were admiring contemporary design pieces that abandon any pretense of perfect symmetry or fully controlled decoration in favor of spontaneity and studious imperfection.

Overall, you are faced with a paradox that goes to the heart of this achievement, five decades in the making: Linda and Ron successfully avoided uniformity and excessive rigor, and there is a certain streak of playfulness in their collection; at the same time, they went about their favorite passions like true professionals, whether it was gardening at its most exquisite or the acquisition of artworks which consistently betrayed deep knowledge and fine taste. Their love for art was a perfectly natural continuation – and expression – of the mutual love that defined five decades of their lives.

This auction is now CLOSED! Check out the sales results below. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Auction and Contact Information

Location

2764 E 55th Pl
Indianapolis, IN 46220

Andrea Hastings

Andrea Hastings

Director of Arts & Antiques

317-251-5635

Bridgette Guzman

Bridgette Guzman

Director of Client Services

317-251-5635 or 317-644-9204

Auction Preview

Pre-Columbian Mayan polychrome Copador Glyph cylindrical earthenware pottery vessel on three feet. 6 1/2"H x 5 1/8"Diam.

Lot 224

Pre-Columbian Mayan polychrome Copador Glyph cylindrical earthenware pottery vessel on three feet. 6 1/2"H x 5 1/8"Diam.

Sold: $12,000

 
Cosme Tura, Italian 15th Century (c. 1430 – 1495), St. Catherine of Alexandria (Santa Caterina d' Alessandria), oil on gesso on wood panels, 16 1/2"H x 12 1/8"W, 19 1/2"H x 15"W (frame)

Lot 218

Cosme Tura, Italian 15th Century (c. 1430 – 1495), St. Catherine of Alexandria (Santa Caterina d' Alessandria), oil on gesso on wood panels, 16 1/2"H x 12 1/8"W, 19 1/2"H x 15"W (frame)

Sold: $3,200

 
Pair of Chinese Qing Dynasty well carved white marble / quartz foo lion garden statues with dragon on base. 18 1/2"H x 11"D x 7"W

Lot 127

Pair of Chinese Qing Dynasty well carved white marble / quartz foo lion garden statues with dragon on base. 18 1/2"H x 11"D x 7"W

Sold: $3,200

 
Pair Ornate Neoclassical monumental palace size terra-cotta / terracotta garden urns with lid. 60"H x 25"Diam.

Lot 229

Pair Ornate Neoclassical monumental palace size terra-cotta / terracotta garden urns with lid. 60"H x 25"Diam.

Sold: $3,800

 
Chinese Qing Dynasty Tongzhi style blue and white porcelain floral dish. 1 3/8"H x 6 1/4"Diam.

Lot 144

Chinese Qing Dynasty Tongzhi style blue and white porcelain floral dish. 1 3/8"H x 6 1/4"Diam.

Sold: $3,200

 
Pair Archaic Dynastic Chinese carved stone / limestone monument megalith blocks with Dragon panels on all sides and auspicious Fu longevity symbol on top, possible temple architectural elements. Approximately 22"H x 44"W

Lot 32

Pair Archaic Dynastic Chinese carved stone / limestone monument megalith blocks with Dragon panels on all sides and auspicious Fu longevity symbol on top, possible temple architectural elements. Approximately 22"H x 44"W

Estimate: $5,000-10,000

 
Cosme Tura, Italian 15th Century (c. 1430 - 1495), Icon Saint, oil on gesso on wood panels, 17"H x 12"W (sight), 20"H x 15"W (frame)

Lot 217

Cosme Tura, Italian 15th Century (c. 1430 - 1495), Icon Saint, oil on gesso on wood panels, 17"H x 12"W (sight), 20"H x 15"W (frame)

Sold: $1,500

 
Chinese Song/Yuan Dynasty Jun ware glazed ceramic pottery bowl. 2 1/2"H x 7"Diam.

Lot 84

Chinese Song/Yuan Dynasty Jun ware glazed ceramic pottery bowl. 2 1/2"H x 7"Diam.

Sold: $1,700

 
V.J. (Guiseppe Varaldo) Cariani, Indiana / Italy (1891 - 1969), landscape, oil on board, 7 1/4"H x 9 1/8"W, 11 1/4"H x 13"W (frame)

Lot 241

V.J. (Guiseppe Varaldo) Cariani, Indiana / Italy (1891 - 1969), landscape, oil on board, 7 1/4"H x 9 1/8"W, 11 1/4"H x 13"W (frame)

Sold: $950

 
Chinese Tang Dynasty Sancai glaze 27 inch pottery camel figure. 26 1/2"H x 18"W x 6"D

Lot 36

Chinese Tang Dynasty Sancai glaze 27 inch pottery camel figure. 26 1/2"H x 18"W x 6"D

Sold: $2,600

 
Chinese small Jun ware blue glaze ceramic tripod censer. Christie's label under base. 3" x 2 1/4"

Lot 86

Chinese small Jun ware blue glaze ceramic tripod censer. Christie's label under base. 3" x 2 1/4"

Sold: $2,900

 
Chinese Ming Dynasty blue and white hand painted scenic figural porcelain bowl, Jiajing mark (later). 3"H x 6"Diam.

Lot 114

Chinese Ming Dynasty blue and white hand painted scenic figural porcelain bowl, Jiajing mark (later). 3"H x 6"Diam.

Sold: $4,200

 
Chinese Neolithic, Majiayao culture, 18 inch bichrome Banshan ware pottery storage jar. 18" H x 19" D

Lot 3

Chinese Neolithic, Majiayao culture, 18 inch bichrome Banshan ware pottery storage jar. 18" H x 19" D

Sold: $550