Maine Antique Digest, December 2016

51 / 241

Maine Antique Digest, December 2016 11-A
Trove of Emily B. Waite Artwork Sold
Many of the works offered had possible later signatures by
Emily Burling Waite, who often added them to her earlier
paintings. That was likely the case with this portrait of a
redheaded nude that sold for $1956.
by Don Johnson
Artwork by Emily BurlingWaite (1887-1980) brought
record prices during an online auction by Every-
thing But The House (EBTH) on October 26 in Worces-
ter, Massachusetts. The 162 lots totaled $68,396.
“This collection was kind of a landmark for us,” said
Graydon Sikes, director of artwork for EBTH. “We pretty
much blew auction records out of the book.”
The top lot was a portrait of a woman leading a lamb in
a pastoral setting with two other lambs nearby. The signed
32¼" x 26" unframed oil on canvas realized $4656 (no
buyer’s premium charged). The price nearly quadrupled
the artist’s previous record, set for In the Orchard, an oil
on canvas portrait of a girl with an apple in each hand
that sold for $1175 at Skinner in March 2004.
While not a well-known name in most art circles,
Waite had a lengthy career. She attended the School of
the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, where she studied
from 1908 to 1910. After receiving the Paige Traveling
Scholarship, she spent two years in Europe. Most of her
work, however, originated in New England. She married
Arthur Williams Manchester in 1921, and even though
she was married until 1931, she continued to paint under
her maiden name her entire career.
Following Waite’s death in 1980, her art studio was
locked by her son, and it remained untouched until after
his death in 2013. The contents then became available
to the Worcester Historical Museum, which kept some
items for its permanent collection and consigned the rest
to EBTH. The consignment included oils, drawings, and
etchings that spanned nearly eight decades, from Waite’s
time as a student to the last years of her life.
The best of the oil on canvas portraits offered by
EBTH included one of a strawberry-blond boy sitting
with a reddish-brown dog against a green background.
The signed 22" x 18" unframed painting with a patch on
the back brought $3850. Portrait of Jonkvrow Enny von
der Berg, a signed, unframed life-size (77" x 45") depic-
tion of a woman in an evening gown, brought $3069. A
portrait of a seated red-haired woman in a dress, holding
a gray scarf draped across her lap, signed, 50" x 39¾",
unframed, sold for $2705. A signed 1901-12 painting of a
girl sitting with a goat in a European landscape was done
when Waite was a student traveling overseas. The 32"
x 40" painting brought $2409. A life-size (77" x 51½")
unframed portrait of a woman in a turquoise gown, her
hand resting on a large Chinese floor vase, was signed
and had a patch on the back. It brought $2300.
A number of nudes were offered. A signed 58¾" x
46½" oil on canvas portrait of a redheaded woman seated
on a green-draped block and looking at a copper vase
filled with flowers was in a simple frame and had a patch
on the back. It sold for $1956. A depiction of a female
nude seated on a draped block, her back to the viewer,
was marked “Waite” on the back. It was executed while
Waite was a student in Boston. The 46" x 36" can-
vas, unstretched and in good condition except for
losses from being rolled, sold for $1550.
A still life of dahlias in a vase, oil on canvas,
While not an exact match, the boy and dog had similar
reddish hair, which contrasted nicely with the green
background. This portrait by Emily Burling Waite
sold for $3850, the second-highest price of the auction.
Selling for a record $4656 was this painting of a
woman with sheep. It was likely done while Emily
Burling Waite was touring Europe as part of a
scholarship between 1910 and 1912.
signed, 16" x 15" plus frame, brought $1400.
Examples in other media included a head-and-shoulders
portrait of a redheaded woman in a pink dress, a signed pas-
tel on paper, 21½" x 14½" plus frame, that realized $2349.
Dr. Goddard and his Rocket, a 13" x 10" etching of Robert
Hutchings Goddard at work in his laboratory, had a printed
signature in the plate, a date of 1956, and a graphite signa-
ture; it sold for $1433. Goddard created and built the first
liquid-fueled rocket. A pastel still life of apples, a brass
bowl, a lamp, and a tin-glazed plate, signed, 20" x 14" plus
frame, sold for $950.
Only 10% of the lots sold to regional bidders. “These
things strung their way all across the country,” said Sikes.
EBTH has another 150 to 200 works by Waite still to
be offered. “We didn’t want to saturate the market,” said
Sikes. “This is sort of a new venture for us to offer these
more obscure artists, not just estates but living artists who
have no track record. We will be doing more of that in the
future.”
EBTH announced on October 31 that it had raised $41.5
million in its latest round of venture capital Series C fund-
ing. EBTH plans to “use the capital to fuel growth initiatives
in operations and technology and to continue to expand its
team nationally.” EBTH has raised $84.5 million to date.
For more information, phone Sikes at (513) 370-4778 or
visit ).
are satisfied. Neither of us will rest until this
is achieved and we are confident that it will
be very soon.”
Leigh Keno said: “Kamelot has simply
acted to firm up the security that its con-
signors already hold—the purchased lots, all
of which remain in their possession. They
have always had the right to sell the items,
but have thus far chosen not to. At the same
time, we have been disabled from resell-
ing the inventory, as we had hoped. We are
attempting to work with Kamelot to resolve
this matter.”
The Kenos are involved in three other
antiques-related lawsuits, all centering on
auction purchases made but not paid for. Stair
Galleries in Hudson, New York, filed suit in
New York state court against Leslie Keno for
failing to pay his bill from an April 30 and
May 1 auction. According to the complaint,
Keno “entered into an agreement with Stair
to purchase works of art, furniture, and objet
d’art...for the sum total of $287,214.93.”
Keno “breached the Agreement by failing to
pay Stair the amounts due.” Stair claims that
it lost commissions and incurred fees total-
ing $74,450.25. An exhibit filed with the suit
lists 62 objects that Keno was invoiced for
after the sale.
Colin Stair said the auction house has
reoffered about 50 of the 62 lots that Keno
did not pay for. “So far, we are at a loss of
$107,000 approximately in hammer prices,”
he said.
“Colin Stair is a longtime friend. There
has been a constant line of communication
with Colin, and he will be paid for any and
all losses that he has incurred as promptly as
possible,” said Leslie Keno.
On August 17 Sloans & Kenyon of Chevy
Chase, Maryland, filed suit against Leigh
Keno and Keno, Inc. Sixty-seven lots were
won by Keno, Inc. and Leigh Keno in Sloans
& Kenyon’s online sale held on April 30,
according to the complaint filed in Mont-
gomery County Circuit Court. The total
hammer prices were $61,905, and the buy-
ers’ premiums were $14,725.76 for a total of
$76,630.76. “Repeated demands have been
made for payment but none [has] been forth-
coming from Keno,” court papers state.
Cakebread Art Antiques Collectibles, Inc.
does business as New Orleans Auction Gal-
leries (NOAG). NOAG filed suit on June
10 against the brothers and Keno Art Advi-
sory, LLC. The total bill was approximately
$400,000. The Kenos have sent NOAG a
$70,000 payment. No other payment has
been made.
NOAG has requested and was granted per-
mission from the court to file a motion for
summary judgment on the breach of con-
tract claims. According to NOAG’s attorney
Shawn C. Reed, “It will be filed very soon.”
A summary judgment would resolve the law-
suit before the trial.
“We care about consignors. We care about
auctioneers. We care about people,” said
Leigh Keno. “All we think about every day
is paying these people back.”
PAAM Adds Hoppers to Permanent Collection
The Provincetown (Massa-
chusetts) Art Association
and Museum has acquired 96
drawings by Edward Hopper, 69
drawings and watercolors by his
wife, Josephine Hopper, and 22
diaries dating from 1933 to 1956
that chronicle the Hoppers’ lives.
The donation was made through
the generosity of Laurence C. and
J. Anton Schiffenhaus in honor of
their mother, Mary Schiffenhaus,
who was a close friend of Jose-
phine and Edward Hopper, and
two anonymous donors.
Up until 2013 the PAAM had only one Hopper in its permanent collection: a
landscape painting by Josephine Hopper. In honor of the museum’s centennial
in 2014, two drawings by Edward Hopper were given to the collection by the
Herman Maril Foundation and by Robert C. Duffy.
Edward Hopper’s landscapes are synonymous with Cape Cod. Edward and
Josephine arrived in Cape Cod in 1930 and spent almost 40 years in their clas-
sic Cape house with a large window overlooking Fisher Beach. Right up until
his death in 1967, the Cape is where Edward would go to paint what became
some of his most famous works, including Cape Cod Sunset, Corn Hill, Seven
A.M., and Gas. In total he painted more than 100 oils and watercolors depict-
ing Cape Cod.
With this acquisition PAAM now has the opportunity to expand its scholar-
ship and research offerings through the Hoppers’ sketches and drawings, and
through the writings of Josephine, which span three decades.
An exhibition of these drawings will be mounted at the PAAM in August
2017. For more information, call (508) 487-1750 or visit the website (www.
).