Sometimes, the names of furniture makers or artists appear to be lost to history. But often, some research can bring them forth again. Every antique auction, whether it’s a $10 million barn burner or a $5,000 snoozer has points of interest that can be learned and stored for future use. No records were set at Bruce Gamage’s April 19^th, 2016 offering in Rockland, Maine. But it did bring forth some interesting bits of esoterica at prices that didn’t elicit much pain.

Harvey Ellis (1852-1904) was New York architect and painter. He participated in the design of numerous public and private structures, everything from iron frame sky scrapers to water towers to the St. Louis City Hall, built in 1904. About a year earlier, he joined forces with Gustav Stickley to work in Stickley’s United Crafts organization, and despite having virtually no experience in furniture design, he produced a remarkable volume of creations, including chests, bedroom sets, bookcases, settees, and more. His brief seven-month tenure with the company ended with his death in January of 1904. A nine-drawer oak chest Gustav Stickley Arts & Crafts chest, designed by Ellis, featured a wide overhung top and the rare original heavy hand-hammered brasses. It was the sale’s leader at $3680 (including buyer’s premium), and if had it retained its original backsplash, it might have brought two or three times that much.

Apparently the first name of sculptor “L. Bossin” has been nearly lost to history. His full name may have been Paul-Lucien Bessin I could only learn that he lived between 1911 and 1953. But he created a bronze sculpture titled Libellule, the French word for dragonfly. It stood about 20” tall, had full-dimensional insects at the base, and a standing winged semi-nude nymph with her arms raised as if emerging from a chrysalis. Curiously, I located numerous versions of this sculpture attributed to Paul-Lucien Bessin, even though they were clearly marked “L. Bossin.” Even repros, of which there are many, often in the form of a floral lamp, go for $500 or more. This one, even if it was an afterwork, looked like a good steal at $316.25.

Another artist nearly lost in time is Walter Wright (1866-1933). He was born in Nottingham, England and emigrated to New Zealand in 1877. He was said to have included lots of pink in his compositions before being convinced to delete such shades from his palette. A 7” x 10” oil on canvas showed a nicely detailed scene of fishermen and strollers on the shores of a meandering stream, with a flock of sheep in the background. It must have been done after his “pink days,” as there’s not a hint of rose coloration in it. Signed and dated lower left “W. WRIGHT / 1928,” it went home for $575.

©Maine Antique Digest

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