Contact: Ivy Nicole Jones (New York) 1-718-919-0344
Preview: February 2,2007 10:00am -8:00pm & February 3, 2007
10:00am-4:00pm
Auction: February 3, 2007 @ 6:00 pm
info@welancora.com
ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT CORPORATE COLLECTIONS OF
AFRICAN AMERICAN ART
OFFERED AT WELANCORA
New York- Approximately 30 lots from the collection of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) will be sold at auction by Welancora Auction House on February 3, 2007. This single-owner collection will be sold in conjuction with Welancora’s annual auction of Post War and Contemporary Art. The sale is being held to benefit the Harold A. and Ann R. Sorgenti Fund for African American Art.
While serving as the Chairman of Arco Chemical Company, from 1979 to 1991, Harold A. Sorgenti and his staff developed a corporate art collection comprised primarily of works created by African American artists. Upon his departure from Arco Chemical, Sorgenti purchased the collection and donated a portion of it to PAFA.
Among the strongest group of works in the upcoming auction are pieces by Charles Searles, Nanette Carter, Gregory Coates, Al Loving, Syd Carpenter and James Brantley. Discussing the sale, Naresea Beswick, Senior Vice President and Director of Welancora’s Post War and Contemporary Department in New York, said: “The appearance of works from this collection at auction will be a landmark event providing collectors with a singular opportunity to acquire extraordinary works coming from what was widely regarded as one of the most important corporate collections of African American Art in the world.
The donation of this collection has absolutely transformed the Academy’s holdings in African American art. Among the works donated, however, are a number of pieces already represented in the Academy’s collection. The sale of those duplicate treasures at Welancora’s will help fund the acquisition, of works by other African American artists so essential to filling gaps and strengthening PAFA’s collection.