Born Marquis Lewis in 1979, RETNA grew up in Mid-City Los Angeles and entered the scene as a graffiti and street artist who quickly cultivated his distinctive aesthetic and vernacular, a kind of bold and coded script informed by traditional urban graffiti as well as Arabic and Hebrew calligraphy and ancient hieroglyphics. This untitled acrylic, spray paint and thread on canvas pushes RETNA’s script-like vernacular into territory that reflects his admiration for legend Keith Haring.

RETNA Untitled
Auction: January 30

The 1964 Topps Stand-Up set consists of 77 blank-backed, unnumbered and die-cut cards, each one featuring a full action pose of a player set against a yellow-and-green background. The cards were designed so that the top half of the background could be punched out, allowing the player to stand up. Offered here is the Mickey Mantle card, which is found in Mint condition. Of the 878 examples in the PSA Population Report, this is one of only 10 cards graded Mint, with none rated higher. 

1964 Topps Stand-Up Mickey Mantle PSA Mint 9
Auction: January 31-February 1

Instantly recognizable for their intense emerald-green color and spectacular twinning and gemminess, these English fluorites reach up to 1.8 centimeters and all but cover the top side of the specimen. Under UV light, the fluorite has a pale blue fluorescence but turns to deep blue in natural sunlight, a phenomenon unique to this and one other locality. Several dark gray octahedrons of galena are dispersed throughout the groups of fluorite, adding an impressive contrast when the specimen fluoresces.

Fluorite and Galena
Weardale, County Durham, England
Auction: February 8