1958 ABSTRACT BY ADOLPH GOTTLIEB SELLS FOR $1.384 MILLION AT DOYLE NEW YORK'S MAY 22, 2007 AUCTION OF MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY ART

A World Auction Record for the Artist

Sale Totals Over $3.8 Million With Strong International Competition

Works by American, European, Asian and Latin American Artists

On May 22, 2007, Doyle New York held an auction of Modern and Contemporary Art. The sale showcased paintings, drawings and sculpture by important European, American and Asian artists of the 20th century. Strong international competition sent the sale total to $3,810,280 with an exceptional 87% sold by lot and 90% sold by value, well over the estimate of $2,106,300-2,936,800.

The top lot of the sale was a 1958 abstract work, Blast III, by Adolph Gottleib (American, 1903-1974) that attracted strong interest during the exhibition and sale. With competitive bidding from the salesroom and the telephones, the piece sold to a telephone bidder for $1.384 million, a World Auction Record for the Artist. Also selling strongly was an untitled work from 1959 by Chinese/French artist Zao Wou-Ki (b. 1921) that achieved $600,000, its high estimate. Spent, a 1971 work on paper by Ed Ruscha (American, b. 1937) almost tripled its pre-sale estimate of $80,000-100,000, selling for $288,000.

NEXT MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY ART AUCTION
November 2007

CONSIGNMENTS ARE CURRENTLY BEING ACCEPTED
To have your property evaluated for possible consignment in the next Modern and Contemporary Art auction, please contact:
Harold Porcher, 212-427-4141, ext. 235, paintings@DoyleNewYork.com

CATALOGUE
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View the May 22, 2007 catalogue

MEDIA CONTACT
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Images and interviews are available upon request.

A SELECTION OF AUCTION HIGHLIGHTS

ADOLPH GOTTLIEB Between 1957 and 1958, Adolph Gottlieb completed a series of three paintings entitled Blast I, Blast II and Blast III. Though these works were not the first realizations of the iconic and recognizable form that came to be known as the "burst" paintings, they are fully developed manifestations of the contrasting gestural forms for which Gottlieb is best known. Gottlieb, as well as many other American artists of his generation, were hungrily searching for a modernist language to call their own. Beyond the influences of Picasso, Miro, Kadinsky and Klee, these artists also incorporated ideas from Surrealism and tribal arts. This led Gottlieb to paint his celebrated pictographs of the 1940's, figurative works painted in a highly expressionistic style. Blast III, painted on a grandly human scale, is a striking juxtaposition of tranquility and dynamism. The cool stillness of the oval shape is balanced by the thrust and energy of the more vibrant black form below it. Beyond these opposing forces there is also a suggestion of landscape, with the upper sphere emblematic of a setting sun over a raging and tumultuous landmass. Whatever abstract forms or ideas they are meant to represent, these clearly opposing yet harmonious forces actively engage both the mind and spirit of the viewer. Doyle New York is particularly pleased to offer this work given the esteemed locations of the other two works in the series. Blast I, differing only slightly in color and size, is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York. Blast II, the second of the "burst" trifecta, was offered in May 2003 at Christie's New York.
	Lot 1161 Adolph Gottlieb American, 1903-1974 Blast III, 1958 Signed ADOLPH GOTTLIEB, dated 1958 and inscribed with title and measurements on the reverse Oil on canvas 69 x 40 inches (175.3 x 101.6 cm) Provenance: [Paul Kantor] to Gifford Phillips, Santa Monica, California, 1959 Exhibited: Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, New York School - The First Generation, July 17 - August 1, 1965 Roslyn, New York, Nassau County Museum of Art, Long Island Collections, May 29 - September 12, 1993, no. 77.1993.1 Literature: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles. New York School: The First Generation, 1965, illus. p. 97 Donald L. Weismann, The Visual Arts as Human Experience, New Jersey, 1974, pp. 67-70, illus. p. 67, pl. 17 Estimate: $700,000-900,000 Sold to an American buyer for $1,384,000 A WORLD AUCTION RECORD FOR THE ARTIST
	Lot 1162 Adolph Gottlieb American, 1903-1974 Pictograph, 1942 Signed A. Gottlieb and dated 1942 (lr) Oil on artists board 29 1/4 x 23 1/4 inches (74.3 x 59.1 cm) Provenance: Acquired directly from the artist by Marcella Diamond Tow Thence by descent to the present owner Literature: The Tiger's Eye, no. 3, March 1948, illus., p. 100 'The Tiger's Eye,' The Art of a Magazine, Yale University Art Museum. New Haven, 2002, illus. p. 42 Estimate: $60,000-80,000 Sold to an East Coast Buyer for $114,000
ZAO WOU-KI Part of the European response to the New York action painters, Wou-Ki distinguished himself in the late 1950s with his expressionistic oil paintings that also evoke the classical Chinese landscape paintings. His canvases are a harmonic blending of east and west that convey timeless beauty and deliver edgy foresight into the fast paced development of artistic ideas.
	Lot 1173 Zao Wou-Ki Chinese/American, b. 1921 Untitled, 1959 Signed (lr); signed Zao Wou-Ki and dated 2.11.59 on the reverse Oil on canvas 51 x 38 inches (129.5 x 96.5 cm) Estimate: $400,000-600,000 Sold to a buyer from New York for $600,000
ED RUSCHA Ed Ruscha's artworks are hard to categorize. Beyond all labels, it is easy to dub him a wonderful draftsman, and an innovative technician. This work on paper is created using pastel and gunpowder. Spent is a beautiful and captivating work of art both in concept and craftsmanship, a balance that equates true artistic genius.
	Lot 1209 Ed Ruscha American, b. 1937 Spent, 1971 Gunpowder and pastel on paper Signed and dated 1971 (ll) 11 1/2 x 29 inches (29.2 x 73.7 cm) Literature: Ed Ruscha, They Called Her Styrene, Phaidon Press Limited, London, 2000, illus. Estimate: $80,000-100,000 Sold to a buyer from New York for $288,000
RICHARD DIEBENKORN Known for his abstracted landscapes, such as his Ocean Park series, this West Coast American artist also devoted his attention to the human form, primarily women. The strong, yet shifting line and compositional balance of this drawing are fine examples of Diebenkorn's compositions.
	Lot 1174 Richard Diebenkorn American, 1922-1993 Seated Woman (#45), 1965 Initialed and dated '65 (ll) Charcoal with stumping on paper 24 1/2 x 19 inches (62.2 x 48.3 cm) Provenance: Poindexter Gallery, New York The catalogue raisonne number for this work is RD369. Estimate: $70,000-90,000 Sold to a buyer from New York for $144,000
BARBARA HEPWORTH Recognized as one of Britains leading abstract sculptors, Barbara Hepworth has reached beyond the shores of the British Isles, and is recognized worldwide for her achievements. The monolith forms are fine examples of her work and relate to the constructions of her fellow British abstract artist, Ben Nicholson.
	Lot 1189 Barbara Hepworth British, 1903-1975 Maquette for Monolith, 1963 Signed Barbara Hepworth, numbered 7/9 and inscribed MS on the base Bronze Height 12 3/4 inches (32.4 cm) Exhibition: Kroller Muller Museum, Otterlo, Netherlands, 1965, no. 37 Estimate: $40,000-60,000 Sold to a buyer from the United Kingdom for $138,000

WORKS BY OTHER ARTISTS

	Lot 1109 Arshile Gorky American, 1904-1948 Souvenir Signed A. Gorky (ll); titled, dated 1939 and signed A. Gorky on the reverse Oil on canvas 24 x 20 inches Provenance: Mrs. David Metzger Dr. Newton Richards Dr. Estmond Long Christie's, May 13, 1981, Lot 36, p. 21, illus. Estimate: $20,000-30,000 Sold to a buyer from New York for $144,000
	Lot 1099 Pablo Picasso Spanish, 1881-1973 Trois Femmes, 1943 Signed Picasso (lr) Pencil and ink wash on paper 11 1/4 x 8 3/4 inches (28.6 x 22.2 cm) This work is accompanied by a photo certificate from the artist dated 23.3.66. Property from the Estate of Jeanne K. Blum Estimate: $40,000-60,000 Sold to a buyer from Ireland for $90,000