Beauford at Black Art Auction's Fall Auction - Results
Black Art Auction sold two Beauford Delaney works during its Fall Auction on September 14, 2024 in St. Louis, MO.
The estimated sale price for Composition, a painting from the original du Closel collection, was $15,000 - $25,000.
(1961) Oil on canvas
10-5/8 x 5-1/4 inches
Signed on stretcher verso
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
It sold for $13,000.
Untitled, a gouache on paper dated March 1962, had an estimated sale price of $10,000 - $20,000.
(1961) Gouache on paper (J-Annonay watermark)
29-1/4 x 20-3/4 inches
Signed and dated, March 1962
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
It sold for $18,000.
Sale prices include a 25% buyer's premium.
For more information about the results of the Fall Auction, click HERE.
Mike Berry and Beauford - Part 1
Mike C. Berry is Gallery Manager at the University of Tennessee (UT) Downtown Gallery and Artist/Owner of Mike C. Berry Studio in Knoxville, TN. I had the pleasure of meeting him in Paris last fall.
Berry has developed a unique and fascinating "relationship" with Beauford through his framing of Beauford's art for UT. He graciously provided Les Amis with an interview in which he "tells all," including how Beauford's work influences his artistic practice.
Because Berry was so generous with his responses, this interview will be presented in three parts. Find Part 1 below.
Note that all photos and content have been approved for posting by Derek Spratley, Esq., Court appointed administrator of the Beauford Delaney Estate.
Les Amis: Please remind me of circumstances under which you framed a Beauford Delaney painting for the estate for the first time.
MCB: I was assisting with the installation of an exhibition of Delaney works on the University of Tennessee campus in preparations for the Delaney symposium held on campus that year. While assisting on that exhibit I was asked by Derek L. Spratley to frame some pieces for the exhibit entitled Beauford Delaney, The Paris Years at the new Student Union Gallery in 2019.
Then, with a partnership with the School of Art at UT, we collaborate together on another exhibit entitled Beauford Delaney – Transcending Race and Time (December 4 – January 30, 2021) at the UT Downtown Gallery and then again for Beauford and Joseph Delaney – Lives in Art (February 5 – 27, 2021), also at the UT Downtown Gallery.
Les Amis: Describe how your relationship with the estate has grown since that time.
MCB: After working on three exhibitions together and framing over a hundred of Beauford’s pieces since our meeting in 2019, Derek and I have built a professional partnership and now a personal friendship that has its foundation in mutual respect and trust.
What I respect about Derek is that he approaches every matter concerning Beauford’s work with two things in mind: 1) Will it raise Beauford’s artist profile positively? and 2) Will it benefit and honor the Delaney heirs?
I am excited to continue working alongside Derek and honoring Beauford’s artistic legacy by framing and conserving his work for generations to come. I am truly lucky.
I recently learned that Derek and I have a fondness and love of donuts, however my love for them tends to show a bit more than his does. Wink! Wink!
Les Amis: Is the work you do for the estate done under the auspices of UT Downtown Gallery, independently, or both?
MCB: The work I do for the Estate is performed independently through my studio and totally separate from my work at the UT Downtown Gallery.
However, when we designed and installed the two Delaney exhibits in 2020-21, the University was involved and of course there were some overlap because the responsibility of framing and exhibit design were within my purview at the UT Downtown Gallery.
Les Amis: Talk about the Beauford Delaney exhibitions that you framed for the estate in the context of the previous question.
MCB: We decided to mount an exhibition of Beauford's work directly from the estate to showcase some never-before-seen works and make them available to collectors locally and regionally.
This was very successful, with 100% of the works selling to collectors, most of whom were first time Beauford Delaney collectors.
The second show, which was the very next month, featured the two brothers exhibiting together. I have to give a big shout out to my colleague Sarah McFalls, our collection manager at the Ewing Gallery of Art & Architecture (UT School of Art), because she championed the idea of the brothers exhibiting together by asking "When in the course of time will both collections be this readily available for exhibition ever again in Knoxville?"
Remember, we had just had a successful showing of Beauford’s the month prior with 100% sales.
Sarah proposed to exhibit the brothers together since the Ewing Gallery has one of the largest collections of Joseph Delaney works. There had never been an two-person exhibition of their work in Knoxville.
Beauford and Joseph had been invited by the McClung Museum (now the McClung Museum of Natural History & Culture located on the UT campus) to exhibit together in 1970. This resulted in an exhibition including only Joseph’s works because of the difficulty of organizing and shipping Beauford’s works from France.
So, now the time was right to exhibit the brothers together. The gallery was available and the artwork was here - it just needed to be organized and brought together in one room.
I suppose we broke one of our unwritten rules at the gallery of never showing the same artist in back-to-back exhibitions, but this was one of those rare incidents that the stars aligned to create a beautiful moment.
This would not have happened without the hard work of our team: Sam Yates (retired director), Sarah McFalls, collections manager, and Eric Cagley, gallery preparator, as well as the generosity and grace of Derek Spratley, the Court appointed administrator of the Beauford Delaney Estate.
Beauford at Black Art Auction's Fall Auction
Two Beauford Delaney works are being put up for auction during Black Art Auction's Fall Auction on September 14, 2024 in St. Louis, MO.
Composition (1961) is a painting from the original du Closel collection of Beauford's work.
(1961) Oil on canvas
10-5/8 x 5-1/4 inches
Signed on stretcher verso
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
There is no indication as to when in 1961 Beauford might have painted Composition. That year was both productive and traumatic for him.
In Amazing Grace: A Life of Beauford Delaney, biographer David Leeming talks of group shows in London and Paris and letters that Beauford wrote to friends indicating his troubled state of mind during the first part of the year. He then writes extensively about Beauford's July trip to Greece and his two suicide attempts in that country, followed by the love and care friends extended to him once he returned to Paris in late August.
At the end of this section of the book, readers learn that "Beauford's sixtieth birthday on December 30, 1961 was spent a long way from home in a quiet room with no friends and, under doctor's orders, no possibility of communicating with them."
Untitled is a gouache on paper dated March 1962.
(1961) Gouache on paper (J-Annonay watermark)
29-1/4 x 20-3/4 inches
Signed and dated, March 1962
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
By this time, Beauford had moved to the rue Vercingétorix studio that was organized for him by Mme du Closel.
Leeming writes that "Being back in Montparnasse suited Beauford," and describes Beauford's pleasure at being able to meet friends on the street while walking around the neighborhood. He says that Beauford's health improved, which contributed to his gradual return to consuming alcohol. This, in turn, negated the effects of his medication.
Despite the warning he received from his psychiatrist, Beauford continued to drink during the spring of 1962 and relapsed into a psychotic state in early May.
The estimated sale price of Composition is $15,000 - $25,000.
The estimated sale price of Untitled is $10,000 - $20,000.
For information about the Fall Auction, click HERE.Breakin' for Summer
While Parisians are slowly returning to the city from their summer holidays, Paris is in a lull between the 2024 Summer Olympic games that ended on August 11 and the Paralympic Games that will begin in August 28.
Les Amis is taking a couple of weeks off to rest and rejuvenate in conjunction with the "inter-Olympic pause."
Look for a new blog post before mid-September.
In the interim, we hope the rest of your summer is as vibrant as the work shown below!
(1963) Gouache on paper
signed, inscribed and dated 'Beauford Delaney July 28, 1963 Paris' (lower left);
signed again 'Beauford Delaney' (on the reverse)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Beauford's Street Scenes
People who are familiar with work from Beauford's New York years undoubtedly know about his Greene Street paintings.
Beauford created many additional works that are called "Street Scene" or something similar. I thought it would be fun to display them together in this blog posts.
All but one of the works represented below were created well before Beauford left NYC for Paris in 1953.
Watercolor on paper
15 1/2 x 22 1/2 inches
Purchased with funds provided by the KMA’s Collectors Circle2, 2014
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1945) Oil on canvas
Image by Manu Sasoonian, from Amazing Grace
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1946) Oil and mixed media on masonite
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1948) Oil on canvas
Signed and dated in oil, lower left.
Image from Swann Auction Galleries Web site
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Beauford Delaney
(1953) Pastel on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
The oil painting below was created 15 years after Beauford arrived in Paris. I believe it represents the elevated train (metro) that serves the south and southwest parts of the city.
(1968) Oil on canvas
Signed and dated "BEAUFORD DELANEY 1968" lower right
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Educating Children about Beauford
In perusing the articles that Les Amis has published over the years, I came across a post on how museums use Beauford's art to reach out to children.
This inspired me to do a Google search on "Beauford Delaney" and "children." In doing so, I found three sites that are meant to serve as references for kids who want to learn about him.
Britannica Kids has a brief article that is identified as being appropriate for students in Grades 6-8. The 1953 B&W Carl Van Vechten photo portrait of Beauford accompanies this listing.
© Carl van Vechten 1953
Public domain
Kiddle Encyclopedia posted a much more extensive article about Beauford in December 2023. A table of "Quick Facts," illustrated by the Van Vechten portrait, appears at the top right of the Web page.
A table of contents appears at the left, beneath the introductory paragraph. It contains links to the various sections of the article - Biography (which is subdivided into "Early Life," "New York City, USA," "Paris, France," and "Mental Deterioriation"), Legacy, and The Beauford Delaney burial site.
Kiddle also has a Web page about Beauford's brother, Joseph, as well as the Knoxville Museum of Art.
(1948) Oil on canvas
Image from Swann Auction Galleries Web site
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
To visit these Websites, click on the links below:
The James Baldwin Centennial
August 2, 2024 was the 100th anniversary of James Baldwin's birth.
Les Amis joins individuals and organizations on both sides of the Atlantic in commemorating this date by acknowledging the profound impact that Beauford's love and influence had on the shaping of the one of the 20th century's most formidable literary giants.
Baldwin's name appears dozens of times in this blog, and multiple images of portraits Beauford created of him are also displayed here.
Following are images of (perhaps) lesser known portraits of his dear friend.
(1945) Pastel on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Image - Screenshot from YouTube video
Judd Tully - Beauford and Joseph Delaney, Their Life and Art
James Baldwin
(1966) oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1966) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1967) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1971) Oil on canvas
Bequest of James Baldwin
Image courtesy of Clark Atlanta University Art Galleries
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
For information about the James Baldwin Centennial Festival, which will be held in Paris from September 9-13, 2024, click HERE.
Painting Is a Continuous Flow
July is BIPOC Mental Health Month (formerly known as Minority Mental Health Month).
In thinking about this, I turned to David Leeming's Amazing Grace: A Biography of Beauford Delaney to search for the passage where Leeming describes writings assigned to Beauford by his psychiatrist, Dr. Gaston Ferdière.
Among the quotes in this passage, I found the following one to be particularly poignant:
"Wherever one is, painting is a continuous flow and includes its own sources..."
Below is a selection of Beauford's abstract work that, through fluid lines and swirls, represents this flow across the decades that he lived in Paris.
(1956) Inks on paper
45 x 33.5 cm; 17.7" x 13.2"
Private collection
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1959) Oil on canvas
144.5 x 95.5 cm; 56.9" x 37.6"
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1963) Watercolor on wove paper
Signed and dated "July 19, 1963" in ink, lower right
Image courtesy of Swann Auction Galleries
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1965) Watercolor on wove paper
Signed, dated and inscribed "avec amour" in ink.
Image courtesy of Swann Auction Galleries
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1970) Gouache
© Artistes sans Frontières/Douglas Petrovic, 2004
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1970) Mixed media on cardboard
Private collection
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Summertime at Sainte-Anne's Hospital
I'm not sure what drew me to Sainte-Anne's Hospital last Wednesday, but it was powerful.
I was feeling exhausted and debating taking a well-deserved nap when I looked outside and saw blue sky in the direction of the hospital.
Counterintuitively, something told me that I needed exercise more than I needed to sleep.
So, I set out with the intent to enjoy a tour of the grounds where Beauford strolled during his four-year stay at the hospital.
The hospital continues to renovate buildings and improve its landscape. Just past the reception area, an administrative building and the courtyard in front of it look fresh and new. A huge mural celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Fédération Hospitalière de France (FHF - French Hospital Federation), of which Sainte-Anne's is a member.
© Entrée to Black Paris
When I visit the hospital, I usually walk straight down Allée Paul Verlaine to Parc Charles Baudelaire. I immediately noticed that this tree-lined thoroughfare had been the subject of recent landscaping - short wooden fences protected new plantings of wood spurge at the base of the trees.
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
Something told me to turn off the road and go in a different direction that day. I found myself walking past the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire into the area that borders the rear of the psychiatric nursing facility of the Préfecture de Police.
I was rewarded with the discovery of a medieval garden and a small vineyard!
There is no path to the garden. You must walk across a long stretch of grass to enter the enclosed area.
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
The garden is quite small, but idyllic nonetheless. I was greeted by the gentle fragrance of lavender as I entered this space to take a few photos.
When I retraced my steps to the medieval garden sign and walked straight past it, I was startled to see the vineyard. It is planted around a sculpture of Victor Hugo by Georges Bareau.
© Entrée to Black Paris
The last time I photographed the sculpture was in 2018. Nothing remotely resembling a garden of any kind, let alone a vineyard, was there at that time.
Georges Bareau
Enameled stoneware
Given to the City of Paris in 1911
Installed at Sainte-Anne's Hospital in 1952
Photo © 2018 Entrée to Black Paris
Since then, the hospital has installed a white slab on which the sculpture now sits. They have placed a table and chairs there so hospital personnel and visitors can enjoy the view.
© Entrée to Black Paris
Near the sculpture, more mature vines are planted on a slope called Coteau "Les Contemplations." (Les Contemplations is the name of a collection of poems written by Hugo and published in 1856.)
© Entrée to Black Paris
A couple of olive trees punctuate this area as well.
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
To date, I have found no information on when the vineyard was planted or what the hospital does with the harvest!
I followed Allée Vincent Van Gogh away from the Coteau. Near its intersection with Allée Paul Verlaine, I discovered a plaque attesting to the bombardment of the hospital during World War I.
© Entrée to Black Paris
It reads "A German artillery shell fell on this wall on May 27, 1918 at 6:30 AM."
Once back on Allée Paul Verlaine, I walked past Parc Charles Baudelaire and found that the shallow trenches that once served as a man made rivulet had been filled with flower beds.
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
Continuing down Allée Paul Verlaine, I noted that the façade of the central administration building has been freshly scrubbed.
© Entrée to Black Paris
Going through this building's passageway toward the pharmacy, I turned my gaze toward my favorite sculpture on the grounds - Daphne.
© Entrée to Black Paris
The flowers surrounding the pedestal were graffiti geraniums and biennial beeblossoms.
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
Because I spent so much time in the area of the medieval garden and the vineyard, I had to move quickly through the rest of my visit to get back to my office for a meeting. Happily, I was still able to take several photos of the flora as I made my rounds before leaving the campus.
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
Perhaps my next blog post about Sainte-Anne's Hospital will be about a mid-winter visit. Then I will have written about all four seasons there.
To read about early spring and fall visits to the hospital, click on the links below:
Case Antiques Auction Results
Last week, Case Antiques of Knoxville, TN placed four (4) works on paper from the Beauford Delaney Estate up for sale during its Two Day Summer Fine Arts and Antiques sale.
(c. 1930s) Pastel on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Estimated sale price: $8,000 - $10,000
(1963) Charcoal on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Estimated sale price: $4,000 - $4,400
(Undated) Pastel on Paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Estimated sale price: $8,000 - $9,000
(1966) Ink on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Estimated sale price: $3,400 - $3,800
All of them sold.
The pastel portraits fetched the best prices of the group: Portrait of a Man Smoking a Pipe sold for $9,760 and Portrait of a Man with Glasses and Necktie sold for $7,320.
The ink on paper landscape of Istanbul sold for $4,148, and the charcoal on paper portrait sold for $3,416.
All sale prices listed above include a 22% buyer's premium.
For additional information about the sales (the July 6 and July 7 auctions are listed separately), click HERE.
Case Auctions Offers Four Beauford Delaney Works on Paper for Sale
Today and tomorrow, Case Auctions of Knoxville, TN is offering four (4) works on paper from the Beauford Delaney Estate for purchase during its Two Day Summer Fine Arts and Antiques sale.
Lots 168 and 169 will be auctioned on July 6, 2024:
(c. 1930s) Pastel on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Estimated sale price: $8,000 - $10,000
(1963) Charcoal on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Estimated sale price: $4,000 - $4,400
(1963) Charcoal on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
While I have seen 1930s portraits done by Beauford that are consistent with the style of Portrait of a Man Smoking a Pipe, I have not seen any 1963 portraits that compare to Portrait of a Black Man.
Lots 1087 and 1088 will be auctioned on July 7, 2024:
(Undated) Pastel on Paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Estimated sale price: $8,000 - $9,000
(1966) Ink on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Estimated sale price: $3,400 - $3,800
(1966) Ink on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
The ink on paper landscape entitled Istanbul, Turkey is signed and dated 1966.
I have published images of two additional Istanbul landscapes with the same date in past blog posts: an oil on paper in "Beauford in Istanbul" and a watercolor in "Another June Sale."
All the works being auctioned by Case this weekend bear the stamp of Beauford's estate.
For information about the sale, click HERE.
UTLibraries Comes to Paris
The University of Tennessee Libraries is visiting Paris this summer to conduct research that will support a Beauford Delaney exhibition at its facility in Autumn 2025. The exhibition will feature the Beauford Delaney Papers*, which the libraries obtained in 2022 and made available to researchers in January 2024.
UTLibraries received a $250,000 grant from the Henry Luce Foundation to complete processing and promote the archive. The grant will not only fund the exhibition and celebration, but also support a two-year graduate research fellowship and community exhibitions planned in collaboration with the Knoxville Museum of Art (KMA), the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, and UT’s Ewing Gallery of Art.
Senior Associate Dean Holly Mercer contacted me in April 2024 to request my assistance through consulting and providing walking tours relevant to Beauford's life in Paris. Thanks to the Wells International Foundation's Entrée to Black Paris Cultural Awareness program, I was able to support this project by providing two private guided tours, a visit to Thiais Cemetery (Beauford's final resting place), and several hours of consulting over a period of three weeks.
In addition to Senior Associate Dean Mercer, I had the pleasure of interacting with Jennifer Beals, Director of the Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and University Archives; Kris Bronstad, Modern Political Archivist & Assistant Professor; and Katrina Stack, Graduate Research Assistant for the Beauford Delaney Papers.
During the first week, Director Beals and Ph.D. candidate Stack experienced the "Beauford Delaney's Montparnasse" walk, which takes place in Paris' 6th and 14th arrondissements.
© Wells International Foundation
During Week 2, the consultation session with Archivist Bronstad and Stack began at Le Select, one of Beauford's favorite Montparnasse cafés, and ended over lunch at the nearby Chez Lionel. In walking from one location to the other, we made a quick detour to stand in front of the hotel on rue Delambre where Beauford's first studio was located.
© Discover Paris!
Two days later, we visited Thiais Cemetery. Bronstad and Stack purchased a lovely bunch of yellow roses to place on the tombstone.
© Wells International Foundation
© Wells International Foundation
While at the grave, we discovered the remnants of a sketch and message left under the ceramic flower arrangement by UT Downtown Gallery Manager Mike Berry in October 2023. Though he had slipped the sketch into a Ziploc bag, the plastic failed to protect it.
Fortunately, we could still make out the words "With love, Knoxville, TN."
© Wells International Foundation
During Week 3, Associate Dean Mercer and Stack experienced the newly developed "Beauford on the Left Bank" walk, which emerged from the customization of the Entrée to Black Paris walk entitled "James Baldwin in Paris." Both tours take place on and around boulevard Saint-Germain in the 6th arrondissement.
Stack, a cultural geographer whose primary research areas are geographies of memory and Black geographies, remarked on the proximity of the locations visited on each of the walking tours. She also noted that the Left Bank walk ended down the street from where the Montparnasse walk began.
© Wells International Foundation
I am looking forward to visiting Knoxville next year to see the main exhibition at UT Libraries and the community exhibitions at KMA, Beck, and UT’s Ewing Gallery of Art!
*The Beauford Delaney Papers consists of family, personal, and professional correspondence, photographs, sketchbooks and notebooks, artwork, exhibition material, and biographical records created or collected by Beauford.
It also includes correspondence with influential artists and gallerists such as Palmer Hayden, Lawrence Calcagno, James LeGros, Dorothy Block, Darthea Speyer, and Joseph Delaney; the writers James Baldwin, Henry Miller, and James Jones; and other cultural figures.
For more information about the archive project, click HERE.
Bob Mair on Beauford
Bob Mair is the founder/owner/CEO of Black Toast Music, an Indie music publishing company. He is also a musician and composer.
Mair wrote to me a few days ago in search of information about Grèce, one of two paintings shown during the 2016 Resonance of Form and Vibration of Color exhibition in Paris that are currently in his collection.
(1967) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Our lively email exchange about this work inspired me to extend a request an interview, which he accepted.
Read it below.
Les Amis: When did you first learn about Beauford Delaney?
BM: I believe it was 2013 when Jim Levis first showed me works by Beauford. I was enamored by the work but I hadn’t developed quite the eye to understand what I was looking at. I knew the work was good, I could feel it, but I didn’t understand why. His work was so different than what I was collecting at the time. I wish I could go back in time, as those works are now long gone.
Les Amis: What attracts you to his work?
BM: There is something that Beauford understood and was able to capture in his work. It was beyond just the physical and tactile, he was able to paint the essence of things. The people he painted (the portraits) as well as the pure abstract works he painted all had a thread that connected them. I don’t know if he was a Buddhist, but he was able to capture the “no separation”, the entirety of things. The whole of what is. Physical, spiritual, light and dark. And over time, as I have studied the work, I believe that some of the paintings that are perceived as pure abstract are actually portraits. No separation.
Les Amis: When did you begin collecting his work?
BM: I began collecting his work in 2017. I was at a viewing with Jim Levis in Long Island City. Jim had quite a bit of art on the walls - things he knew I was drawn to as well as some things that he wanted to test the waters with to see if I might be drawn to them. I wasn’t so sure about anything he had shown me on that particular day.
My daughter and Jim’s partner, Jamie Black, left the room and went into the hallway. Outside, Jim had a cart of other paintings that were pulled for another client to view after we left. My daughter Rachel said, "Dad, I really like this painting." It was Untitled 1970 by Beauford.
(1970) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
I was so excited. I felt that my earlier sense of Delaney’s work from years ago had been validated. My daughter has a fantastic eye and I felt it was meant to be. So – that was the first Delaney that was added to my collection.
Les Amis: Of the four works that you own, which is your favorite and why?
BM: I really don’t have a favorite. I love them all. Each work stands on its own for different reasons. That being said, in my opinion, these are all stellar works by an amazing man and artist, and I’m very lucky to be the current caretaker of these works. They cover a wide swath of what he experienced, who and what he loved, as well as the fact that they are some of the best examples of the “no separation” understanding that Beauford was able to convey in his work.
Les Amis: What type of research are you performing on Beauford's work and why?
BM: I’m a bit OCD as well as a bit ADD so I love getting hyper focused and going down the “rabbit hole.” I look for hard to find out of print exhibition catalogs, essays, books, museum catalogs, etc. for every artist I collect as well as artists that I’d like to collect. My Art Book collection is quite extensive at this point. It’s a passion.
I love to learn, to expand, to understand all I can in regard to the art, the artists, the struggle, and the history of why there even “was a struggle for them.” These artists experienced things in their lifetime that I will never experience, yet it is so valuable to embrace history and learn from it.
(1969) Gouache on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Les Amis: Did Beauford's work ever influence your work as a musician?
BM: Beauford’s work actually complimented my work as a musician. His work is an extension of my love of jazz. It expresses a deeper expression of what is similar to Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, etc.
By having Beauford’s work in my home, I feel a constant reminder of the best of what is and what could be. Having his work hang in my home is like having my walls filled with Zen Koans. I am so lucky to be surrounded by such talent and artistry. The ability to overcome the boundaries that Beauford was faced with is a constant reminder to me as an artist to keep going no matter what.
Les Amis: Do you have any additional thoughts that you'd like to contribute?
BM: I would like to see Beauford Delaney’s work get more interest from museums. His story is so amazing and his work should really be shared with the public on a much larger scale.
I’m a huge fan of loaning artwork so that it’s able to be seen and experienced by others who can learn and open their eyes to what is possible. I love having his work on my walls, but I think it’s selfish to not be willing to share the experience.
(1968) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Beauford’s story and work is a fantastic example of what is possible. I’d love to see a beautiful film created that shows the life and times of Beauford - his childhood, his struggles, his associations with people like James Baldwin, which all culminated in such amazing art.
Beauford's Art and the James Baldwin Centennial
As the centennial of James Baldwin's birth (August 2, 1924) approaches, companies and cultural institutions that wish to honor Baldwin are publishing announcements about their products and programs.
Beauford's art, especially the many portraits he created of Baldwin, has provided fertile ground from which these organizations have gathered fruit to enhance their offerings.
In Washington, D.C., the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery will host a one-room show that honors Baldwin beginning on July 12, 2024. Called This Morning, This Evening, So Soon: James Baldwin and the Voices of Queer Resistance, the museum quite naturally looked to its collection and selected Beauford's 1963 pastel-on-paper portrait of Baldwin to herald the exhibition.
(1963) Pastel on Paper
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institute
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Curator Rhea Combs consulted with Hilton Als on this exhibition. Als curated the critically acclaimed 2019 exhibition God Made My Face: A Collective Portrait of James Baldwin at the David Zwirner Gallery in NYC; his show was the inspiration of what visitors will see at the National Portrait Gallery.
Edited for release in conjunction with the Baldwin Centennial, Als' new book of the same name features two Beauford Delaney works - Beauford's iconic portrait of Baldwin entitled Dark Rapture, and a work from Beauford's New York years entitled Rehearsal.
(1941) Oil on masonite
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
(1952) oil on canvas
36 1/8" x 30 1/8" / 91.8 x 76.5 cm
signed and dated
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Image courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, NY
Vintage Books of Penguin Random House has re-issued deluxe editions of Baldwin's Giovanni's Room, Go Tell It on the Mountain, and If Beale Street Could Talk. Each book features a Beauford Delaney portrait of Baldwin as cover art.
I anticipate that more such occurences will be forthcoming over the next few weeks and will report them as I learn of them.
Recent auction sales
Last week, Christie's New York and Black Art Auction in St. Louis, MO auctioned Beauford Delaney works.
Christie's sold an untitled Beauford Delaney abstract at its Post War and Contemporary Art Day Sale on May 17, 2024.
(1967) Oil on canvas
Signed, inscribed and dated ‘Beauford Delaney Paris 1967’
(on the reverse)
31 ¾ x 23 ¾ in. (80.6 x 60.2 cm.)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Beauford painted this work sometime in 1967. Though this was a tumultuous year for him due to his concern over the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. and multiple illnesses, he also experienced the joy of spending time with James Baldwin in Cannes during the summer and with Henry Miller in Paris during the fall.
Christie's estimated that Untitled would sell for between $100,000 and $150,000.
The painting sold for $378,000, including a 26% buyer's premium.
On May 18, 2024, Black Art Auction sold a mixed media on paper self-portrait of Beauford during its May Signature Auction.
(1964) Mixed media drawing on paper
10 x 8 inches
signed
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Beauford produced this work in 1964, the year he received a Fairfield Foundation grant of $3,500 and had a solo art exhibition at the Lambert Gallery on the Ile Saint-Louis. Its estimated sale price was $3,000 - $5,000.
It sold for $8,000, including a 25% buyer's premium.
David Leeming Presents the Bond of the Unusual Door
On May 12, 2024, David A. Leeming delivered a livestreamed presentation called "Jimmy and Beauford: The Bond of the Unusual Door" at a gathering organized by Stonington Free Library in Stonington, Connecticut.
The event was promoted as a talk during which Leeming would speak about the "life-changing and life-long friendship between James Baldwin and the artist Beauford Delaney."
Because Leeming is a biographer of Baldwin and Beauford, I looked forward to hearing his focused take on the relationship between the two men. He beautifully wove the theme of "the unusual door" through his presentation and punctuated his talk with images of paintings of Beauford or by Beauford.
Leeming attributed the phrase "the bond of the unusual door" to Baldwin. The first passage through this door occurred when Baldwin met Beauford for the first time as a depressed, 16-year-old high school student. Leeming described how Beauford's relationship with Baldwin grew and deepened and spoke poignantly about how Beauford helped Baldwin develop as a creative artist.
The second passage took place when Beauford joined Baldwin in Paris and the roles the two men previously played in each other's lives were reversed. Beauford now depended on Baldwin for introductions to people and advice on navigating life in the city.
Leeming then described his own experience with "the unusual door" when met Beauford for the first time. Charged by Baldwin to bring Beauford to Istanbul by car in 1966, he experienced firsthand the beauty and torment of Beauford's existence. After a harrowing road trip, they joined Baldwin and spent several days together in Turkey. Beauford painted a portrait of Leeming during that visit.
Screenshot from Stonington Free Library livestream
(1966) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Leeming talked about Baldwin's acquisition of property in Saint-Paul-de-Vence in southern France and Beauford's frequent visits there, particularly when he was physically or mentally fragile. He mentioned Beauford's Rosa Parks series, his love affair with the color "yellow," and his eventual commitment to Sainte-Anne's psychiatric hospital. And he spoke about Baldwin's reaction to Beauford's death.
In closing, Leeming told how he and Baldwin's brother, David, sat up with Baldwin during the final days of his battle with stomach cancer. Leeming said that much of their conversation was about Beauford and revealed that Baldwin was working on a novel about Beauford at that time. Unfortunately, he had made precious little progress on this work by the time he died.
The audience posed many questions after Leeming concluded his talk, but they were not audible on the live stream. My biggest takeaway from the Q&A period was that Leeming's biography of Beauford, entitled Amazing Grace: A Life of Beauford Delaney, will be republished in 2024 by Karma Books with a forward by Hilton Als.
Rest assured that Les Amis will report on this new edition of Beauford's biography as soon as I obtain and read it!
Beauford at the Paris College of Art Commencement Ceremony
A few weeks ago, Alana Manga, Registrar and Director of Student Success of the Paris College of Art (PCA), invited me to deliver this year's undergraduate commencement address.
Her message included the following statements:
Paris College of Art is an international college of art and design located in the 10eme arrondissement in Paris. We offer American undergraduate and graduate degrees (Bachelor of Fine Arts, Master of Arts and Master of Fine Arts) in Communication Design, Photography, Fine Arts, Interior Design and Fashion. The student body represents 51 different countries, and a similar number of cultures.
Your support of Beauford Delaney, in addition to the entrepreneurial spirit that led to Entrée to Black Paris and the Wells International Foundation are incredible accomplishments. Having met you at an American University of Paris event, I think your wealth of knowledge and insights would be valued by the graduating artist and designers encountering a world grappling with war.
I was honored to accept this invitation and delighted to base my speech on various aspects of Beauford's life and art.
The ceremony took place on May 10, 2024 at the Club d'Etoile, near Paris' Arc de Triomphe in the 8th arrondissement.
© Wells International Foundation
The weather was perfect and the house was full.
PCA Provost Dr. Michael Meere opened the ceremony with the first congratulatory discourse of the day.
© Wells International Foundation
Two members of the Class of 2024 - Ofir Avita, BFA Photography and Kirstin Ceralde, BFA Fine Art - then addressed the audience. Both students delivered thoughtful and amusing speeches that were vigorously applauded.
Dr. Meere announced the winners of student service awards and the Provost Award for Excellence in Teaching and then introduced me. He provided the perfect segway to the information I shared with the audience about Beauford.
I first congratulated the graduates and encouraged them to view themselves and their work as sources of POWER – POWER to bring about positive change in the world.
Through the evocation of events and relationships that Beauford experienced, I then invited them to create and use their art as a source of healing, a means of bridging cultural gaps, a catalyst for social change, and a unifying force in the face of negative preconceived notions and emotions.
© Wells International Foundation
Watch the first segment of the ~20-minute address below.
(Huge thanks to Alana Manga for supplying this video.)
Following my address, Dr. Meere conferred the degrees for BFA students in Communication Design, Fashion Design, Fine Arts, Interior Design, and Photography as well as Certificates in Communications Design, Interior Design, Fashion Design, and Fine Arts.
Dr. Anthony Pinder, Vice Provost, Internationalization and Equity at Emerson College, conferred the degrees for BFA students in the joint Emerson/PCA global Film Art program.
Dr. Meere then invited the students to move the tassles on their graduation caps from right to left, and the ceremony was concluded. The students celebrated with a traditional cap toss and shouts of joy.
Several members of the audience, including PCA faculty, graduates, and family members of graduates, approached me during the reception after the ceremony to tell me how much they enjoyed the stories I shared about Beauford and the effect his art has had in the four areas described above.
I am thankful for such an extraordinary opportunity to extend Beauford's legacy!
© Wells International Foundation
Jimmy and Beauford: The Bond of the Unusual Door
In last week's post, I mentioned that I recently learned of an upcoming livestreamed interview with Beauford's (and James Baldwin's) biographer, David A. Leeming, during which Leeming will discuss the relationship between Beauford and James Baldwin.
Today, I'm sharing details about this interview.
Leeming met Beauford when Baldwin asked him to collect Beauford in Paris and bring him to Istanbul in July 1966. He got to know Beauford quite well during the voyage and the time they spent together once they arrived in Turkey. I wrote briefly about this in the blog post entitled "Beauford in Istanbul".
(1966) Oil on canvas
Image from Amazing Grace: A Life of Beauford Delaney book jacket
Courtesy of Ernie Bynum and Denis Costin (Ernden)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Leeming is a resident of Stonington, Connecticut. The interview will be hosted by the Stonington Free Library on May 12, 2024 from 5 PM to 6 PM Eastern Time. Online event pages are touting it as Leeming "marking" the 100th anniversary of Baldwin's birth (August 2, 1924).
This 1-hour hybrid event is free and open to the public. No registration is required. Those wanting to join the live stream can do so HERE.
For additional information, send email to Karla Umland at karla[at]stoningtonfreelibrary[dot]org.
Video Explorations of Beauford's Life and Art
I recently learned that Beauford's biographer, David A. Leeming, will soon be featured in a livestreamed interview during which he will talk about the relationship between Beauford and James Baldwin.
The news inspired me to look for videos that explore this relationship and other aspects of Beauford's life, and I found more than I expected.
Below are a few short (less than 5-minute) recordings that present various perspectives on his life and art.
"Remembering Knoxville-born Artist Beauford Delaney" gives a brief overview of Beauford's life, focusing on his Knoxville origin.
"MIA Highlight: Beauford Delaney, Untitled, 1954" presents Beauford's famous "raincoat painting," focusing on the abstract nature of this work.
"#FallenThroughTheCracks: Black Artists in History - Beauford Delaney" beautifully and succinctly summarizes Beauford's development as an artist.
"Portrait of James Baldwin by Beauford Delaney" presents the 1945 oil portrait of Baldwin held by the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Finally, the Knoxville Museum of Art obtained permission from INA France to present this ~1-minute video of rare footage of Beauford being interviewed in his Clamart studio on the KMA Facebook page.
Click on the image below to view it.
Beauford's Paris: Rue des Anglais
I don't know if Beauford ever visited the rue des Anglais in Paris.
What I do know is that his several of his paintings "lived" there for a period of time after he was committed to Sainte-Anne's Hospital.
© Entrée to Black Paris
David Leeming wrote about this in his biography called Amazing Grace: A Life of Beauford Delaney:
...Baldwin went to Paris hoping to find a way of arranging for Beauford's permanent care. His first act was to find—at his expense—a new apartment for the storage of Beauford's paintings and for the painter's use should he recover. The apartment was in the rue d'Anglais, near an apartment Baldwin hoped to rent or buy for himself.
I was inspired to write this post after a lengthy Facebook communication with author David Yeats. I posted this image of a painting by Khalif Tahir Thompson, and Yeats commented that he recognized Beauford's portrait of James Baldwin on the wall behind Thompson's brilliant portrayal of Baldwin.
Khalif Tahir Thompson
2020 mixed media
Image from FB - Fair use claim
(1971) Oil on canvas
Bequest of James Baldwin
Image courtesy of Clark Atlanta University Art Galleries
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Yeats told me that he mentions Beauford in his novel, The Opal Causeway, in a scene where two young boys are talking about art in a library and one of them says he thinks he recognizes a Beauford Delaney painting.
Yeats lived at 12, rue des Anglais in April 1975, which was about the time Beauford went to Sainte-Anne's. He knew Baldwin and Baldwin's dear friend, Bernard Hassell. He mentioned that Hassell lived on rue des Anglais and that Beauford's paintings were stored in a flat in the same building. He said the door of that flat had a huge seal on it.
While he couldn't remember the exact address of the building, Yeats described it as being "on the left coming from the direction of bd. Saint Germain." He thought the building might have been at Number 8.
I decided to go to the rue des Anglais to photograph the buildings as they look today.
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
© Entrée to Black Paris
I have asked the Beauford Delaney estate whether it knows the exact address of the storage flat, and they have initiated a search of the Beauford Delaney Papers at UTKnoxville to find this information.
I will update this post once the search is completed.