Auction: September 18 at 11 AM CT

Our curators picked their favorite items from our upcoming September 18 Contemporary Art Within Reach Showcase Auction
| Frank's Picks Frank Hettig | Vice President, Modern & Contemporary Art, Dallas
Invader Invader Guide/ Mission Miami, 2012
What strikes me about Invader (b. 1969) is how he transforms something as familiar as a city street into a space of discovery. With Invader Guide/Mission Miami (2012), that sense of adventure is preserved in a unique form: a hardcover book encased in a custom plexiglass box, its cover itself a micro mosaic of tiles. Measuring just 9 ¼ x 7 ¾ x 1 inches, it's compact and tactile but carries the weight of a much larger artistic mission. For me, that physicality matters-it's not just a record of his Miami "invasion," but a continuation of his practice, embedding the pixelated Space Invader figures into an object that feels both precious and accessible. I love how the piece bridges worlds: the nostalgia of digital iconography, the material permanence of tile, and the intimacy of a book you can hold. Like the street works themselves, it invites curiosity and close looking, but here it's distilled into something you can keep, open, and revisit-an echo of the joy of stumbling upon one of his mosaics in the wild. That combination of playfulness and precision is what makes Invader's work resonate so profoundly with me.
Jean Jullien La Vague
What I find so striking about this painting by Jean Jullien (b. 1983) is how it captures both the simplicity and the enormity of human experience. The lone surfer on a pink board, dwarfed by an endless wall of blue, is rendered in Jullien's characteristic style: bold, graphic, and deceptively simple. Yet behind that clarity lies a profound sense of scale, vulnerability, and play. This balance between accessibility and depth is what makes Jullien's paintings resonate so strongly in today's art market and exhibitions-viewers immediately connect with his imagery, but the works linger because they reveal something deeper about our relationship with the world around us.
| Holly's Picks Vice President, Modern & Contemporary Art, West Coast
Sandow Birk Homecoming G.I. (Jordan Downs) from The Depravities of War series, 2008 | Sandow Birk Village Scene- Afghanistan from The Depravities of War series, 2007
Sandow Birk is acclaimed for using historical references and classical techniques to address political and social issues. His Depravities of War series, begun in 2007 in response to the Iraq War, was inspired by Callot's seventeenth-century Miseries of War, which in turn inspired Goya's nineteenth-century Disasters of War. The present pair of paintings carries this legacy into a modern context: Homecoming G.I. (Jordan Downs) (2008) shows the return of a soldier in the Los Angeles housing projects, while Village Scene - Afghanistan (2007) depicts the devastation of a rural community. Both works combine Birk's keen observation with painterly force, translating the horrors of war into localized narratives. With provenance from the distinguished Catharine Clark Gallery, San Francisco, they exemplify one of Birk's most ambitious series.
Hunt Slonem Newcomb Macklin Fratillery, 2021
Hunt Slonem has spent decades cultivating a visual language rooted in repetition, transforming birds, bunnies, and butterflies into painterly mantras. In this work, a host of butterflies drift across a radiant yellow field, their wings rendered in thick oil paint that has been layered, dragged, and crosshatched to reveal flashes of color beneath. The surface shimmers with movement, inviting the eye to linger on each textured form, while the serial imagery reflects Slonem's view of painting as a meditative practice. The result is both decorative and deeply symbolic, a celebration of metamorphosis and the fleeting brilliance of nature.
Joseph Stashkevetch Cloud Cover #2 (Cat's Cradle) from Roadwork, San Francisco series, 1998
Joseph Stashkevetch (b. 1958) is renowned for his monumental conté crayon drawings, whose photographic precision belies their handmade origins. At first glance, Cloud Cover #2 (Cat's Cradle) from the Roadwork, San Francisco series of 1998 appears to be a photograph, but closer inspection reveals subtle draftsmanship: velvety tonal shifts on heavily sanded rag paper worked in conté crayon and watercolor. Measuring 46 x 70 inches, the artist transforms a web of electrical wires into a monumental work of art. First exhibited at Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, the piece was later acquired by a distinguished private San Francisco collection, underscoring its significance.
| Taylor's Pick Taylor Gattinella | Consignment Director, Modern & Contemporary Art, New York
Larry Bell SMS 259, 1992
Larry Bell's fumed-glass paintings, like SMS 259, integrate thin-film metal coatings on canvas or glass to produce surfaces that both absorb, transmit, and reflect light in shifting ways. They are part of his lifelong engagement with the Light and Space movement, where perception, geometry, and the subtle interplay of color and form play a central role. Though subtle, this work by Bell is quite impactful when considering the industrial materials and techniques he uses.
| Taylor's Pick Taylor Curry | Director, Modern & Contemporary Art, New York
Aboudia Nouchi Graffiti, 2021
One of my favorite lots in this sale is this dynamic drawing by Aboudia. His unmistakable style comes through in the bold crayon lines and bursts of color that radiate raw energy. The central figure carries that mix of playfulness and intensity that has earned his work international recognition. Works on paper like this make an excellent entry point for collectors, offering the immediacy and impact of his large canvases in a more accessible format.
Sarah Slappey Untitled
One of the standout lots in this sale is this work on paper by Sarah Slappey. Her unmistakable style comes through in the glossy, intertwined forms that balance playfulness with the uncanny. The composition radiates sensuality and tension, hallmarks of Slappey's work. Though more intimate in scale, this drawing retains the richness of her canvases, making it a smart and desirable addition to any collection.
| Desiree's Pick Consignment Director, Prints & Multiples, Beverly Hills
James Havard Northwest Swell-Virgin Gorda, 1980
James Havard's Northwest Swell-Virgin Gorda is a large work that reflects his transition from Abstract Illusionism toward a more expressive, textured style. Inspired by the natural rhythms of the sea around Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands, the work suggests the movement of ocean swells through layered brushwork and undulating forms rather than direct representation. With its scale and vibrant surface, the painting captures both Havard's mastery of illusionistic space and his growing interest in evoking place, atmosphere, and emotion through abstraction.
| Walter's Pick Walter Ramirez | Senior Consignment Director, Urban Art, New York
Lidya Buzio 4 Buildings in Indigo, 1996
Lidya Buzio, a Uruguayan born ceramist trained in Montevideo's Taller Torres-García, absorbed the group's Constructivist influences before moving to New York in 1971. There, she became known for sculptural earthenware vessels built from geometric forms such as cylinders and cones. She burnished their surfaces with slips and pigments to create luminous, fresco-like imagery, often depicting New York's rooftops, water towers, and skylines. Later works turned to Long Island's rural land- and seascapes. In 4 Buildings in Indigo, she adapts her signature technique to shaped wooden panels while maintaining her celebrated New York urbanscape motif.
| Rebecca's Pick Rebecca Lax | Consignment Director, Prints & Multiples, New York
Lloyd Ney Untitled (Composition #3), 1950
Lloyd Raymond "Bill" Ney (1893 - 1965) was born in Pennsylvania, eventually served in the U.S. Army during World War I and later taught at the Kansas City Art Institute. After studying in Paris, he settled in New Hope, Pennsylvania, a hub for modernist artists. Ney was a painter and sculptor known for his textural, abstract work. He created New London Facets for the New London, Ohio post office-the only abstract mural commissioned by the Treasury Department during the New Deal. Ney exhibited at the Guggenheim, where some of his work remains in the permanent collection. This work reminds me of a cross between Hilma af Klint, Wassily Kandinsky and artist Hilla Rebay (who was a good friend of his and the first director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York). Very delicately rendered, this watercolor was most likely made during a trip to New Orleans (note inscription) and describes the vibrancy of the artist's surroundings in beautifully layered colors.
| Ezriel's Picks Ezriel Wilson | Cataloguer, Fine Arts, Dallas
Rebecca Chamberlain "Deskey" Set- Amodec Vanities, 1931, 2010
Rebecca Chamberlain (b. 1970) always captivates me with the precision in the tedious execution and spatial mood of her large monochromatic renderings of interior spaces. In her 2010 work "Deskey" set- Amodec Vanities 1931 , from the prestigious Meyerson collection, Chamberlain captures the power of not only an empty room but the relationship of the presence of objects within that space. Chamberlain's choice of partial viewing in the space give an almost liminal appearance, void of figuration. She leaves the viewer to contemplate an empty room. Each scene is staged with various furniture as a focal point, arranged intimately, as though the viewer is gaining a glimpse into a personal moment- or the ghost of a presence that once was. In this way, Chamberlain transforms absence into presence, inviting the viewer to linger in the quiet tension between memory, space, and time.
Lela Shields The Watcher, 2004
Another eye-catching work in this auction is Lela Shields The Watcher, 2004. In the work, Shields has married the powerful symbolism of animals and nature by way of intricate linework to communicate the fragility of life. In a cluster of branches, a large bird-mother-like in appearance, adorned with a flower crown and a beaded necklace-watches on. Nearby, a smaller similar bird is being eaten by a large, heavy red snake tangled in the upper branches. The viewer is left to ponder concepts of mortality, motherhood, and the spiritual in nature. Shields's skillful execution of ultra fine linework, combined with fine touches of opulent glitter, elevates this piece beyond mere illustration. The result feels powerful in its representation. The Watcher carries both technical mastery and symbolic weight, making it a compelling addition for collectors who value the union of fine craft and profound meaning.
Find these and more in our September 18 Contemporary Art Within Reach Showcase Auction. If you have questions about buying or selling, please contact a local expert below. Sincerely,
|  | Frank Hettig Vice President, Modern & Contemporary Art FrankH@HA.com (214) 409-1157
|  | Holly Sherratt Vice President, Modern & Contemporary Art, West Coast HollyS@HA.com (415) 548-5921
|  | Taylor Gattinella Consignment Director, Modern & Contemporary Art, New York TaylorG@HA.com (212) 486-3681
|  | Taylor Curry Director, Modern & Contemporary Art, New York TaylorC@HA.com (212) 486-3503
|  | Desiree Pakravan Consignment Director, Prints & Multiples, Beverly Hills DesireeP@HA.com (310) 492-8621
|  | Walter Ramirez Senior Consignment Director, Urban Art, New York WalterR@HA.com (212) 486-3521
|  | Rebecca Lax Consignment Director, Prints & Multiples, New York BeckyL@HA.com (212) 486-3736
|  | Ezriel Wilson Cataloguer, Fine Arts, Dallas EzrielW@HA.com (214) 409-1112