As the 20th century’s premier portrayer of the Texas state flower, the bluebonnet, it’s no wonder Porfirio Salinas (1910-1973) was President Lyndon Johnson’s favourite painter, especially because so many of Salinas’ bluebonnets were captured at peak bloom in LBJ’s beloved Hill Country. While bluebonnets in rolling landscapes were his forte, Salinas occasionally painted other subjects, as seen in this oil on canvas from 1957 of a windswept horse, titled “The Palomino.” This rare non-floral Salinas will be offered on May 19 at Austin Auction Gallery.
Also offered on May 19 is this patinated and painted bronze by the late Southwestern sculptor Dave McGary (1958-2013). Titled "Eye of the Storm," this piece from 1997 depicts the legendary Lakota Sioux war chief Rain-in-the-Face upon his painted steed—Rain-in-the-Face was just one of the reasons why Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and the majority of his 7th U.S. Cavalry never returned from the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876.
The Austin Auction Gallery sale concludes on May 20 with 746 lots, including this pair of biomorphic figures in bronze by Robert X. Holmes. Titled “Ballet Dancers,” the sculpture rises more than seven feet above its 30-inch base and was cast in an edition of only nine.
Finally, one of the highpoints of the weekend is sure to be this rare Tiffany Studios Dore Bronze Lily Lamp, which features 18 curved arms and their companion Favrile glass shades (the underside of the lily-pad base is marked “Tiffany Studios New York,” while each shade is etched with the letters “L.C.T.”). Like many of the lots offered on May 20, this one is from the estate of Solomon Alexander Torf of Beverly Hills, who founded the House of Props in Hollywood in 1948.
