Second Avenue Gothic (2006), by C.B. Smith(20 inches by 20 inches, edition of 25)
By Katie Deits
WEST PALM BEACH — This week, the Norton Museum of Art will offer a chance for photography lovers to add to their collections when it hosts its third biennial photography auction.
Proceeds from the auction, set for Friday night, benefit the West Palm Beach museum’s photography acquisitions and exhibitions.
“For $100 a person, you get a lot, including a great dinner, an open bar, a cool crowd, and the chance to bid on about 75 lots with works ranging from about $500 to $10,000,” said Palm Beach resident Doug Anderson, chairman of the event and a member of the Norton’s Photography Committee. “Plus you will be supporting the Norton’s photography programming, which is a great cause.”
Photographers featured in the auction include Reed Krakoff, Cheryl Maeder, John Waters, C.B. Smith, Tracy Kammenstein, Pat Kurs, Nancy Ellison and Sandra Hamburg.
The highest estimated value for a photograph in the auction will reach $15,000, but expect to see plenty of bids for some of the less expensive photos, said Charles Stainback, the Norton’s curator of photography.
“The quality across the board is exceptional, from the lowest-priced to the highest-priced photographs,” Stainback said, who added that beginning collectors might want to consider works by artists such as April Tillman, Dan Tague, or Arno Rafael Minkkinen.
“These artists offer a range of young and established, color and black and white, traditional and non-traditional,” he said.
Tickets for the auction, and for a preview Thursday, are $100. A look at the lots in the auction is available on the Norton Website.
“It’s going to be a terrific evening that I am excited to be a part of,” Anderson said.
The auction Friday runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Thursday’s preview is set for 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. For more information, call Kati Erickson at 832-5196, ext. 1193.
Ivan Salaverry (2007), by Reed Krakoff(Digital c-print, 36 inches by 36 inches)