Editor’s Picks
Three choice lots from upcoming Heritage auctions
Photographs
In Tyler Shields’ Gator Birkin II, from the photographer’s famed Indulgence series, a model’s well-manicured hands grip the bottom of an exotic-skin Hermès Birkin bag while an alligator holds tight to the bag’s handle. Like the other playful images in the Indulgence series, this game of luxury-goods tug of war is Shields’ tongue-in-cheek statement on society’s obsession with designer brands and consumerism in general. So, who wins in this reptile-human power struggle? While the gator would appear to have the upper hand, as coveted as Birkins are, we wouldn’t count the model out.
Tyler ShieldsGator Birkin II, 2015
Digital pigment print
22-1/2 x 30 inches (57.2 x 76.2 cm) (image/sheet)
Estimate: $2,000-$4,000
Auction: June 14
European Art
William-Adolphe Bouguereau’s Bergère (Shepherdess) was formerly in the personal collections of both John Joseph Albright, who founded the Albright Art Gallery (later the Albright-Knox) in Buffalo, New York, and Amon G. Carter Sr., progenitor of the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth, Texas. Bergère depicts a placid young woman sitting in a grassy, moody landscape and gazing off just to the right of the viewer’s sightline. The pensive moment is captured with the realism of a photograph and the ineffable poetry that flows from the artist’s hand.
William-Adolphe Bouguereau Bergère (Shepherdess), 1888
Oil on canvas
45-1/2 x 32-1/2 inches (115.6 x 82.6 cm)
Estimate: $500,000-$700,000
Auction: June 9
Sneakers
After Michael Jordan’s success in his 1985-86 NBA season, along with the notoriety provided by the debut of Nike’s Air Jordan 1, a second signature sneaker model was in order. Designed by sneaker legends Peter Moore and Bruce Kilgore, and with a noticeably absent Nike Swoosh, the elegant Air Jordan 2 combined high-end fashion with basketball for the first time. Featuring faux iguana skin and premium full-grain leather on the upper, the present lot is an unreleased prototype of the original Air Jordan 2.
Air Jordan II Unreleased Prototype White/Black
Size: US 9
Condition Rating: 2
Year: 1985-87
Auction: June 21