Christopher Cardozo Fine Art

Edward Curtis Goldtones on Antiques Roadshow

adminCCFA — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:03:25 +0000

A pleasant surprise for fans & collectors of Edward Curtis’ photographs was showcased on PBS’ Antiques Roadshow, January 30th broadcast.

A woman from Eugene, Oregon had three lovely Curtis Orotones (also known as Goldtones) appraised by Daile Kaplan, Swann Galleries Vice President and Director of Photographs.
The segment can be seen here on the PBS website.

©Antiques Roadshow 2011

The vintage 8″ x 10″ goldtones were in the original Curtis Studio “batwing” frames and in good condition. The Old Well At Acoma, The Rush Gatherer, and The Vanishing Race represent three of Curtis’ most famous images. Each vintage, 8″ x 10″ goldtone was valued from $4,000 to $9,000 for a total value as a group of $15,000 – $22,500.

We have all three of these images available in the Goldtone™ gallery on our website. Made from Curtis’ original glass-plate negatives, our contemporary original Goldtones™ have a luminosity and three-dimensionality that is unequaled by any other photographic medium.

While it was Curtis’ favorite process, the complexity and expense of producing goldtones in his day meant that only about 1 in 1,000 of his negatives were originally printed as goldtones.

You can learn more about our Goldtones™ here.

Image Showcase: Bear’s Belly – Arikara, 1904

CCFA Staff — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 20:27:49 +0000
Cardozo Fine Art intends to periodically showcase some of our favorite images from Curtis’ magnum opus The North American Indian. The first image we have chosen is “Bear’s Belly – Arikara”-1904, whose name is translated from Ḳúnúḣ-kanánu.

Bear's Belly - Arikara, 1904
The imposing figure in this striking portrait is depicted wearing the bearskin that plays an important role in his standing within his clan. The dramatic story of how he obtained his cloak is recounted in Curtis’ entry from Volume V, reprinted below. In addition, the image reveals scars Bear’s Belly received during rituals undergone as rites of passage into adulthood.

The dramatic lighting and composition as well as the stark separation from the plain dark background of this photograph, taken in the field, displays Curtis’ mastery of his technique and vision. Also apparent is the full engagement and cooperation of his subject, revealing much more than just his likeness.

“Bear’s Belly – Arikara”-1904. This image was printed as a photogravure, plate 150 from Portfolio V, with the text below from the accompanying Volume V of Curtis’ The North American Indian.
Born in 1847 at Fort Clark in the present North Dakota. He had no experience in war when at the age of nineteen he joined Custer’s scouts at Fort Abraham Lincoln, having been told by old men of the tribe that such a course was the surest way to gain honors. Shortly after his arrival, Custer led a force into the Black Hills country; in the course of which, the young Arikara counted two first coups and one second. Bear’s Belly fasted once. Going to an old man for advice, he was taken to the outskirts of the village to an old buffalo skull, commanded to strip, smear his body with white clay, and sit in front of the skull. When he had taken the assigned position, the old man held up a large knife and an awl while he addressed the buffalo skull: “this young man sits in front of you, and is going to endure great suffering. Look upon him with great favor, you and Neshanu, and give him a long, prosperous life.” With that he cut pieces of skin from the faster’s breast and held them out to the buffalo skull. Bear’s Belly married at the age of nineteen. He became a member of the Bears in the medicine fraternity and relates the following story of an occurrence connected with that event:

“Needing a bearskin in my medicine-making, I went, at the season when the leaves were turning brown, into the White-Clay hills. All the thought of my heart that day was to see a bear and kill him. I passed an eagle trap, but did not stop: it was a bear I wanted, not an eagle. Coming suddenly to the brink of a cliff I saw me three bears. My heart wished to go two ways: I wanted a bear. But to fight three was hard. I decided to try it, and, descending, crept up to within forty yards of them, where I stopped to look around for a way of escape if they charged me. The only way out was by the cliff, and as I could not climb well in moccasins I removed them. One bear was standing with his side toward me, another was walking slowly toward him on the other side. I waited until the second one was close to the first and pulled the trigger. The farther one fell; the bullet had passed through the body of one and into the brain of the other. The wounded one charged, and I ran, loading my rifle, then turned and shot again, breaking his backbone. He lay there on the ground only ten paces from me and I see his face twitching. A noise caused me to remember the third bear, which I saw rushing upon me only six or seven paces away, I was yelling to keep up my courage and the bear was growling in his anger. He rose on his hind legs, and I shot, with my gun nearly touching his chest. He gave a howl and ran off. The bear with the broken back was dragging himself about with his forelegs, and I went to him and said, ‘I came looking for you to be my friend, to be with me always.’ Then I reloaded my gun and shot him through the head. His skin I kept, but the other two I sold.”

View this Mammoth print here.

Learn more about our Mammoth prints here.

Please leave a comment if there’s a topic or image that you’d like to see in a future posting.

CCFA Contibutes Mammoth Curtis Print

CCFA Staff — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 20:24:01 +0000

2011 Outward Bound Benefit Dinner & Auction

Cardozo Fine Art Contributes Mammoth Curtis Print To Outward Bound Benefit Auction

CFA is happy to have contributed a beautiful Mammoth pigment print of an Edward Curtis portrait of a revered Great Plains warrior titled “Bear’s Belly – Arikara” to Outward Bound’s 49^th Annual National Benefit Auction. The image, one of Curtis’ most powerful and iconic, is a commanding size of 60” x 40” and printed on T.H. Saunders Waterford paper.

Outward Bound, the premier provider of experience-based outdoor leadership programs for teens, adults and professionals, raised $133,000 in just one night! The entire Benefit raised more than $1.4M to provide more scholarships for students and veterans. This was a record breaking evening for the worthy organization.

You can view this print here.

And read more about our Mammoth Prints here.

And see all of our Mammoth Prints here.

This was the third year that Cardozo Fine Art has contributed an item for auction to Outward Bound’s Annual Benefit Auction.

Christopher Cardozo welcomes you to our new website!

CCFA Staff — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 17:03:11 +0000

New Edward Curtis website at edwardcurtis.com

CCFA Staff — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:52:12 +0000

Hey Edward Curtis-loving folks out there! We at edwardcurtis.com and Cardozo Fine Art have launched (finally) our new website! It’s the go-to place for most things Curtis, from our own line of beautiful contemporary original Curtis prints and mammoth reproductions to a comprehensive (and still growing) Edward Curtis biographical and historical information section covering the major events of his life. We even populated it with many iconic and some rarely seen images from our extensive vintage collection. The new website was created to improve your on-line experience by making it easy to find, view and purchase beautiful Edward Curtis images in a variety of sizes and processes. Explore the Curtis Biography section and see the tribes and regions that were the focus of this great photographer’s life and work.

Curtis Biography
From childhood in the Midwest to the beginnings of a career in photography in the northwest to the genesis of his great passion The North American Indian and beyond, this section will give some context and background to enjoy Curtis’ iconic photography with greater depth, and understanding. We share some interesting stories and little-known facts about the amazing adventure that was Edward Curtis’ life.

You’ll be able to watch videos of our founder Christopher Cardozo talking about the close collaboration Curtis had with his Native American subjects, as well as the struggle to raise funds from wealthy and powerful figures, such as J P Morgan, to return year after year to the field in his quest to capture fading Indian culture. Explore a map of the tribal regions Curtis traveled to and read about tribal life of the period.

Well known contemporary Native Americans tell their story of Edward Curtis and the impact he had on their lives including two generations of Horse Capture’s descendants and the importance they place on Curtis’ work.

We will be adding more content to this section in the near future, such as a graphical timeline and videos, so please visit again.

Contemporary Curtis Prints

Looking for an oversized lithograph of Chief Red Hawk in the famous image “An Oasis In The Badlands”? How about a larger-than-life print of the stoic face of Bear’s Belly? Need a luminous Goldtone of the sweeping vista of “Canon de Chelly”? You’ll find these and many more in our unique collection of the finest contemporary original prints of Edward Curtis’ iconic photography.

We at Cardozo Fine Art hope our new website is something you find enjoyable and useful in your exploration of this great American photographer and his fascinating subject, Native American history and culture.

Rare Edward Curtis Works on artnet.com

CCFA Staff — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 16:51:29 +0000

Artnet Auctions presents the Edward Sheriff Curtis Sale

Artnet Auctions announces an important sale of over 50 works by Edward Sheriff Curtis (American, 1868–1952).

The Three Chiefs - Piegan, c.1900

Edward Sheriff Curtis
The Three Chiefs – Piegan, c.1900
Gold toned printing-out-paper print
12.88 x 16.5 in. (32.7 x 41.9 cm.)
Est. US$100,000–120,000

New York / Berlin / Paris, October 18, 2011—artnet Auctions announces an unprecedented sale of works by Edward Sheriff Curtis. This sale is unique in auction history; it is the first time that so many high-quality vintage Curtis’ prints are being offered together at a single auction. All works are in excellent condition and have an impeccable provenance, drawn exclusively from the holdings of the world’s leading Curtis expert and collector, Christopher Cardozo. From a collector/connoisseur’s perspective, this is a rare opportunity to acquire important works with absolute confidence of a quality and condition never found before on the market.

Curtis is the renowned ethnographer and photographer who preserved for posterity a powerful visual record of the beauty, heart, and spirit of Native Americans and their way of life. Curtis’ artistry is widely recognized, and he is one of the most collected photographers.

The sale comprises over 50 lots with an overall estimated value of US$850,000 to US$1.1 million. These vintage photographs richly represent the scope of Curtis’ project, with a strong emphasis on subjects from the Great Plains and Plateau regions of the United States. There is also a unique series on the Hopi tribe (Est. US$80,000 to US$120,000) that contains 21 vintage prints, many rare or unique. Also featured is a collection of 10 rare items of Curtis ephemera offered in a single lot (Est. US$5,000–7,000). All the media in which Curtis worked are represented: photogravure, platinum, gelatin silver, goldtone, and cyanotype—another auction first.
The sale includes a number of iconic and sought-after Curtis’ photographs, some of which in more than one medium. Highlights include The Three Chiefs – Piegan, c.1900, a gold toned printing-out-paper print (Est. US$100,000–120,000); A Hopi Man, 1904/1921, a photogravure on Gampi tissue paper (Est. US$14,000–18,000); A Walpi Man, 1900/c.1903, platinum (Est. US$75,000–100,000); An Oasis in the Badlands – Sioux, 1905, in several media, including a hand-colored platinum print (Est. US$16,000–20,000), a photogravure on Japanese vellum (Est. US$40,000–50,000), a platinum print (Est. US$10,000– $12,000), and a gelatin silver print (Est. US$12,000–15,000); Assiniboin Mother and Child, c.1926, a photogravure print on Gampi tissue paper (Est. US$6,500–8,500); Canyon de Chelly – Navaho, c.1904, platinum (Est. US$20,000–25,000); Nez Perce Brave, c.1905, platinum (Est. US$50,000–55,000); The Vanishing Race – Navaho, c.1904, platinum (Est. US$20,000–30,000); Untitled (Curtis with Whale), c.1914, gelatin silver (Est. US$6,500–7,500); Zuni Governor, c.1925, gelatin silver (Est. US$30,000–40,000); and Before the Storm – Apache, 1906, goldtone (Est. US$20,000–30,000).

The Edward Sheriff Curtis sale runs from October 18th to October 25th.

For more information, please contact the specialists below.
USA Christopher Sweet +1-212-497-9700 ext. 165 CSweet@artnet.com

Germany Marie-Kathrin Krimphoff +49 (0)30 20 91 78 40 MKriphoff@artnet.de

France Florence Alexandre +33 (0)1 42 86 67 16 FAlexandre@artnet.fr

Visit the sale on artnet Auctions: http://www.artnet.com/auctions/edward-sheriff-curtis-photograph-sale.

About artnet: With 24/7 worldwide bidding, artnet Auctions is the world’s first and only online auction platform to buy and sell Modern and Contemporary Fine Art, prints, photographs, and Design. artnet has been online since 1995 and is host to approximately 2 million visitors each month. Through the artnet Price Database of all auction sales results and artnet Galleries of all premier art galleries worldwide, artnet is the leading online resource for the international art market.