William Scharf Paintings & Artwork for Sale | William Scharf Art Value Price Guide

Aug. 20, 2024
Andy Scharf Studio Art Pottery Elephant Figure
Est: $100 - $200
Aaron Anderson Scharf (American, b. 1964) Studio Art Pottery Elephant Figure, naturalistically modeled, signed "Andy Scharf" to rear left foot. 4" H x 7.5" L x 3" D Note: Aaron Anderson "Andy" Scharf is the son of the late William "Bill" Scharf (American, 1927-2018), famed Abstract Expressionist painter. Provenance: Property from the Central Park West Estate of artist William Scharf. Keywords: Statue, Sculpture, Pachyderm, Animalier, Naive Art
Auctions at Showplace
Jun. 27, 2024
William Scharf, Dancer, Red Hair Ribbons, Graphite
Est: $150 - $250
Property from the Estate of Lorlee and Arnold Tenenbaum Description: William Scharf (NY, 1927-2018), Dancer, Red Hair Ribbons, 1966, Graphite on Paper, signed lower left, drawing of a nude woman with red bows in her hair and bangles on her wrists, inscribed on verso with artist, title and date, floating with mat, in a silvered metal frame. Frame size: 18 1/2 in. x 14 1/2 in. Measurements: Height: sheet size, 9 3/4 in. x Width: 8 1/4 in. Condition: Good condition, toning to paper, marks from previous hinge mounting along top edge, light wear to frame. Notice to bidders: The absence of a condition report does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections, or the conditions of aging. PHOTOS MAY ALSO ACT AS A CONDITION REPORT. Please review all photos closely prior to bidding. Complete condition reports are available by request, no later than 24 hours prior to the live auction. All lots are offered and sold 'AS IS’, and Everard Auctions will not provide refunds based on condition. Timepiece movements, lighting and electrics have not been tested, and art has not been examined out of the frame unless otherwise stated. We do not guarantee the condition of frames. By placing a bid, either in person, by phone, absentee or via the Internet, you signify that you agree to be bound by the conditions of sale. Everard Auctions does not provide any shipping or packing services. We recommend that all potential buyers obtain pack/ship estimates prior to bidding. Please contact us for a list of recommended shippers.
Everard Auctions and Appraisals
May. 19, 2024
William Scharf "Excalibur's Eggs" Mixed Media
Est: $600 - $800
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), "Excalibur's Eggs", Mixed Media Collage and Oil on Panel, 1987-2013, signed, titled (alternatively: "Plant Anger", "On the Edge of Yesterday", and "Vinal Haven"), and dated to verso. 12.25" H x 15" W. Provenance: From the collection of a New York-based artist. Keywords: Paintings, Assemblage, Abstract composition, Abstraction, Neotenic, Contemporary Art, Polychrome
Auctions at Showplace
May. 19, 2024
William Scharf "Angel of the Hooks" Oil on Paper
Est: $400 - $600
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), "Angel of the Hooks", Oil on Paper, 1981, signed, titled, dated, and inscribed "With Love to Lee Feb 1981" to verso. 9" H x 12" W. Provenance: From the collection of a New York-based artist. Keywords: Paintings, Abstract composition, Abstraction, Neotenic, Contemporary Art, Polychrome
Auctions at Showplace
May. 19, 2024
William Scharf "Cage" Oil on Panel, 1990s
Est: $600 - $800
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), "Cage", Oil on Panel, 1991-1993, signed, titled, and dated to verso, wood frame. Image: 11.5" H x 15" W; frame: 13.25" H x 16.25" W. Provenance: From the collection of a New York-based artist. Keywords: Paintings, Abstract composition, Abstraction, Contemporary Art, Polychrome
Auctions at Showplace
Apr. 21, 2024
William Scharf "In Serpent Time" Oil on Panel
Est: $1,000 - $2,000
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), "In Serpent Time", Oil on Panel, 1991, signed, titled, and dated to verso, wood frame. Image: 14.5" H x 11.75" W; frame: 16.25" H x 13.25" W. Provenance: From the collection of a New York-based artist. Keywords: Paintings, Abstract, Abstraction, Neotenic, Contemporary Art
Auctions at Showplace
Apr. 21, 2024
William Scharf "Memorial Dawn" Oil on Panel
Est: $1,000 - $2,000
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), "Memorial Dawn", Oil on Panel, 1990-1996, signed, titled, and dated to verso, wood frame. Image: 14.75" H x 11" W; frame: 16" H x 12.25" W. Provenance: From the collection of a New York-based artist. Keywords: Paintings, Abstract, Abstraction, Contemporary Art
Auctions at Showplace
Apr. 21, 2024
William Scharf "Where It Happened" Oil, 1999
Est: $1,000 - $2,000
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), "Where It Happened: Vinal Haven", Oil on Canvas, 1999, signed, titled, and dated to verso, wood frame. Image: 12" H x 15" W; frame: 13.25" H x 16.25" W. Provenance: From the collection of a New York-based artist. Keywords: Paintings, Abstract, Abstraction, Snake, Serpent, Contemporary Art
Auctions at Showplace
Apr. 21, 2024
William Scharf "A Dawn's Reason" Oil on Canvas
Est: $3,000 - $5,000
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), "A Dawn's Reason", Oil on Panel, 1993-1997, signed, titled, dated, and inscribed to verso, black painted wood frame. Image: 63.5" H x 41.5" W; frame: 65" H x 43" W. Provenance: From the collection of a New York-based artist. Keywords: Paintings, Abstract, Abstraction, Neotenic, Contemporary Art
Auctions at Showplace
Apr. 16, 2024
William Scharf Abstraction Artist Proof Silkscreen
Est: $300 - $500
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), Abstraction, Silkscreen on Paper, signed in pencil lower right and numbered "AP 37/40" for Artist's Proof edition. Image: 19" H x 23" W; frame: 27.75" H x 32.5" W. Keywords: Prints, Multiples, Dove, Peace, Bird, Purple, Orange
Auctions at Showplace
Oct. 17, 2023
William Scharf (b. 1927-2018), Sphynx Shadow, O/C
Est: $1,000 - $1,500
Property from a Private Collection, Savannah, GA Description: William Scharf (American, b. 1927-2018), Sphynx Shadow, 1985, Oil on Canvas, abstract in tones of black, purple, green, and orange on a white ground, signed on back 'WM. Scharf' and dedicated 'To Larry,' titled in pencil and dated on stretcher. William Scharf (1927-2018) was an American painter, whose work spanned over six decades. He and his work is often described as an icon of late Abstract Expressionism. Scharf had solo exhibitions at the Phillips Collection in Washington, DC; the Neuberger Museum of Art, Purchase College; and the High Museum in Atlanta. He also taught students at the Art Students League in New York for nearly thirty years. Bill was influenced by the work of Mark Rothko as well as surrealist painter Arshile Gorky and the artists Willem de Kooning, Jackson Pollock and Hans Hoffman. A close friend of Mark Rothko, Scharf worked with him on the Rothko Chapel in Texas and would later serve as an officer of the Rothko Foundation.ÊScharfÕs paintings are in numerous prestigious private collections and public collections, including Museum of Modern Art, New York and the National Museum of American Art (Smithsonian), Washington, D.C., the High Museum of Art, Atlanta and the Telfair Museum, Savannah, Georgia. Measurements: Height: 14 1/4 in. x Width: 14 3/4 in. Condition: Good condition, light wear to edges of canvas. Notice to bidders: The absence of a condition report does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections, or the conditions of aging. PHOTOS MAY ALSO ACT AS A CONDITION REPORT. Please review all photos closely prior to bidding. Complete condition reports are available by request, no later than 24 hours prior to the live auction. All lots are offered and sold 'AS ISÕ, and Everard Auctions will not provide refunds based on condition. Timepiece movements, lighting and electrics have not been tested, and art has not been examined out of the frame unless otherwise stated. We do not guarantee the condition of frames. By placing a bid, either in person, by phone, absentee or via the Internet, you signify that you agree to be bound by the conditions of sale. Everard Auctions does not provide any shipping or packing services. We recommend that all potential buyers obtain pack/ship estimates prior to bidding. Please contact us for a list of recommended shippers.
Everard Auctions and Appraisals
Jul. 14, 2023
Work on Paper, William Scharf
Est: $500 - $700
William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "Two Down Persons," 1968, pencil on paper, signed lower right, signed, titled, and dated verso, inscribed verso, sheet: 10.75"h x 14"w, overall (with frame): 17"h x 21"w
Clars Auctions
Jun. 27, 2023
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018) Abstract , Signed
Est: $10 - $200
Limited edition lithograph numbered 149/150 lower left. Signed in pencil lower right. Measures 34" x 28" including frame, 24" x 21" image only. Country of Origin: United States
Lion and Unicorn
Jun. 15, 2023
Work on Paper, William Scharf
Est: $800 - $1,200
William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "Two Down Persons," 1968, pencil on paper, signed lower right, signed, titled, and dated verso, inscribed verso, sheet: 10.75"h x 14"w, overall (with frame): 17"h x 21"w
Clars Auctions
Jun. 15, 2023
Painting, William Scharf
Est: $1,200 - $1,800
William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "Apart from Prescience," 1967, acrylic on paper, unsigned, titled and dated verso, sight: 12"h x 17"w, overall (with frame): 19"h x 25"w
Clars Auctions
Jun. 15, 2023
Painting, William Scharf
Est: $1,200 - $1,800
William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "Eclipse of the Etruscan," 1967, acrylic on paper, unsigned, titled and dated verso, sight: 12"h x 17"w, overall (with frame): 19"h x 25"w
Clars Auctions
Jun. 15, 2023
Work on paper, William Scharf
Est: $1,500 - $2,500
William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "Blue Messenger," 1981, acrylic on paper, titled and dated verso, inscribed "For Sally" verso, sheet (unframed): 9"h x 12"w
Clars Auctions
Jun. 15, 2023
Painting, William Scharf
Est: $3,000 - $5,000
William Scharf (American, b. 1927), The Relic Moves, oil on canvas, signed and titled on stretcher bar verso, canvas (unframed): 57"h x 35"w
Clars Auctions
Jun. 10, 2023
5 William Scharf 1980 orig serigraphs signed
Est: $300 - $500
Scharf, William (American, 1927-2018), 5 prints: Menaced Tear, Dove Leave, Golden Rope, Juggler, Untitled, all 5 date from 1980, serigraphs printed in colors, 17 x 22 inches, 22.8 x 28.2 inches sheet size, each pencil signed and numbered, 3 numbered 83/100 and 2 numbered 57/100 published by Prestige Art Ltd., unframed.
Concept Art Gallery
Mar. 17, 2023
Works on Paper, William Scharf
Est: $500 - $700
(lot of 2) William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "Geometry Light," 1999, and Untitled, each mixed media on paper, first titled, signed and dated verso, first overall: 12"h x 6.75"w, second overall: 8.75"h x 6.75"w
Clars Auctions
Mar. 05, 2023
William Scharf Abstraction Oil on Canvas
Est: $1,000 - $2,000
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), abstraction, acrylic on canvas, unsigned, unframed. 16" H x 18" W. Removed from the Central Park West estate of artist William Scharf.
Auctions at Showplace
Feb. 09, 2023
Painting, William Scharf
Est: $1,000 - $2,000
William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "From the Bellows the Bird," 1966, gouache on paper, initialed lower right, titled and dated verso, sight: 12"h x 16.75"w, overall (with frame): 19"h x 25"w
Clars Auctions
Feb. 09, 2023
Painting, William Scharf
Est: $2,000 - $4,000
William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "The To Sally Mirror," 1959, oil on canvas, signed, dated and titled/inscribed verso, canvas: 15"h x 15"w, overall (with frame): 15.75"h x 15.75"w
Clars Auctions
Feb. 09, 2023
Works on Paper, William Scharf
Est: $700 - $1,000
(lot of 2) William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "Geometry Light," 1999, and Untitled, each mixed media on paper, first titled, signed and dated verso, first overall: 12"h x 6.75"w, second overall: 8.75"h x 6.75"w
Clars Auctions
Feb. 09, 2023
Works on paper, William Scharf
Est: $700 - $1,000
(lot of 2) William Scharf (American, b. 1927), "Dark Family" and "A Donation," 1981, each mixed media on paper, first signed lower right and each signed, titled and dated verso, each overall (unframed): 9"h x 12"w
Clars Auctions
Feb. 08, 2023
5 William Scharf 1980 orig serigraphs signed
Est: $250 - $500
Scharf, William (American, 1927-2018), 5 prints: Menaced Tear, 73/100, Dove Leave 57/100, Golden Rope 83/100, Juggler 57/100, Untitled 57/100, all 5 date from 1980, serigraphs printed in colors, 17 x 22 inches, 22.8 x 28.2 inches sheet size, each pencil signed and numbered, published by Prestige Art Ltd., unframed.
Concept Art Gallery
Jan. 11, 2023
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018) Untitled
Est: $50 - $100
Screenprint. Signed (lower right) and numbered 17/180.
Cottone Auctions
Nov. 06, 2022
William Scharf Abstraction Oil on Canvas
Est: $1,000 - $2,000
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), abstraction, oil on canvas, July 1964, unsigned, dated on reverse. Image: 12.75" H x 14.5" W; frame: 13.5" H x 15.5" W.
Auctions at Showplace
Jul. 20, 2022
William Scharf Abstraction Silkscreen
Est: $200 - $400
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), abstraction, silkscreen on paper, signed lower right in pencil. Image: 19" H x 23" W; frame: 27.75" H x 32.5" W.
Auctions at Showplace
Jul. 10, 2022
William Scharf Abstraction Oil on Canvas
Est: $1,500 - $2,500
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), abstraction, oil on canvas, July 1964, unsigned, dated on reverse. Image: 12.75" H x 14.5" W; frame: 13.5" H x 15.5" W.
Auctions at Showplace
Jul. 10, 2022
William Scharf "Susannah And" Gouache on Paper
Est: $600 - $800
William Scharf (American, 1927-2018), "Susannah And," gouache on paper, October 27, 1949, signed lower right in pencil, signed and dated on reverse. Image: 9.25" H x 11.5" W; frame: 18.5" H x 20.5" W.
Auctions at Showplace
Apr. 17, 2022
William Scharf (PA,NY,1927-2018) gouache painting
Est: $600 - $750
ARTIST: L William Scharf (Pennsylvania, New York, 1927-2018) NAME: The Mirror Moves on (titled on verso) YEAR: 1963 MEDIUM: gouache on paper CONDITION: Very good. SIGHT SIZE: 11 x 12 inches / 27 x 30 cm MAT SIZE: 17 x 17 inches / 43 x 43 cm SIGNATURE: lower right CATEGORY: antique vintage painting AD: ART CONSIGNMENTS WANTED. CONTACT US SKU#: 120319 US Shipping $49 + insurance. BIOGRAPHY: William Scharf was an American artist from New York City, he taught at The Art Students League of New York. Painting with acrylics, he was a member of the New York School movement. He apprenticed with Mark Rothko and was influenced by his color field paintings. He creates groups of paintings around the theme of a single color, working in a variety of scales and using shapes both geometric and biomorphic. Series have been dedicated to blue, silver, and gold, but black and white appear with the most frequency. The surrealist painter Arshile Gorky and the Abstract expressionism style found in the 1950s in New York City also influenced Scharf. His exhibits include San Francisco Art Institute (1969), the Pepperdine University's Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art (2001), and Richard York Gallery in New York City (2004). Scharf's work has been exhibited in a number of galleries, including the Anita Shapolsky Gallery, Meredith Ward Fine Art, and Hollis Taggart Galleries in New York City.
Broward Auction Gallery LLC
Sep. 28, 2021
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) Vegetable Oracle, Grape's Elephant, A Tryst of Ulnas, Untitled, Lung Prisoner, Coronation of the Moth and Spinal Task, c. 1999-2002 (a group of 7 works)
Est: $2,000 - $4,000
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) Vegetable Oracle, Grape's Elephant, A Tryst of Ulnas, Untitled, Lung Prisoner, Coronation of the Moth and Spinal Task, c. 1999-2002 (a group of 7 works) acrylic on cardboard paper each signed, titled and dated (verso) Each: 9 x 4 inches. Property from a Private Collection, New York Provenance: Gifted to the present owner by the Artist Lot note: The present group of paintings, including the seven work here, by William Scharf span a decades long career and represent an artist who spent years exploring and refining his intensely realized inner vision. Although he is often grouped with the Abstract Expressionists, his unique oeuvre defies simple categorization. Ranging in size from miniature to immense, Scharf's artworks teem with vaguely familiar forms that evoke Surrealism while also expressing the dynamism of Abstract Expressionism. His paintings embody a very individual and immediately recognizable pictorial vocabulary. Scharf was a master of the drawn line and this is seen in the swooping, curving brushstrokes in such works as A Branch of the Egg, 1962 (Lot 28), San Francisco, 1973 (Lot 45), and Whole Dawn, Half Egg, 1986 (lot 46). He was a constant doodler who would fill reams of napkins with drawings while at dinners. The strength of motion of his line serves as a defining force in the open shapes of his larger canvases that are filled and then colored in. The primacy of line is also a part of what makes his smaller works, some measuring no more than 9 x 4 inches, so compelling. In Vegetable Oracle and Coronation of the Moth, both c. 1999-2002 (Lot 48), confident lines form mysterious, organic shapes, which themselves are incised with assertive, incised strokes of both paint and the paintbrush's handle. The role of color is likewise paramount to Scharf's paintings and adds a pronounced physicality. A close friendship with Color Field artist Mark Rothko cemented Scharf's interest in color and its emotive possibilities. He was an early adapter of acrylics, which lends a pure incandescence to his compositions. His loose brushstrokes, combined with semi-transparent layering of glazes, create swirls of richly juxtaposed color that generate a kaleidoscopic, almost hallucinogenic, sensation in works such as Grape's Elephant, A Tryst of Ulnas, and Lung Prisoner, c. 1999-2000 (Lot 48). Elemental energy is aljso conveyed through the push/pull of dark and light pigments, as evidenced in The Scratched and Unfixed Air, 2007-8 and They Thought Their Worlds of Each Other, 2008 (Lot 29). The value of contrasting dark and light was recognized by Scharf, who stated, "As a painter I use the nearness of darks to enthuse myself to finding the brightness and brilliance of wondrous whites (quoted in William Scharf: Within White, exh. cat., New York, 2010). The gesture of his organic lines and the painterliness of his pigments unite and construct transcendental dreams of other worlds. "Scharf's paintings seek origins in what look like seeds, pods, winding roots, the interior channels of human bodies and plants-and reciprocally ponder stars and moons, planets and galaxies. He subsumes the darkness of night in a pervasive richness of color-there is no better colorist-that radiates, glows, and burns with inner light" (Barbara Novak, "Bill Scharf and the Aboriginal Self: The Blue Paintings," William Scharf: Blue Is, exh. cat., New York, 2009). Visual references to mythological or religious themes suggest creation, destruction, and propagation, and are gateways to existential mysteries. The artist's evocative titles similarly invite a search for landmarks, and yet the works reject overt meaning or obvious imagery. Scharf's complex compositions are a search for things seen and unseen, the real world and a world imagined. They are shaded in mystery and wonder and defy easy interpretation. Born in Media, Pennsylvania, in 1927, Scharf was encouraged to study art by American artist and illustrator N.C. Wyeth. He went on to study at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Barnes Foundation, and the Academie de la Grand ChaumiÃ¨re. Scharf moved to New York in the 1950s and became a close friend of Mark Rothko and his wife, Mell, as well as other artists of the New York School. A beloved educator, he taught at institutions including the School of Visual Arts in New York, the San Francisco Art Institute, Stanford University, the Pratt Institute, and the Arts Students League in New York, until his retirement in 2015. Scharf's paintings can be found in the permanent collections of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; the Brooklyn Museum; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin; and the National Museum of American Art in Washington, DC.
Hindman
Sep. 28, 2021
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) Whole Dawn, Half Egg, 1986 and Untitled (a pair of works)
Est: $800 - $1,200
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) Whole Dawn, Half Egg, 1986 and Untitled (a pair of works) oil on masonite and tempera on paper signed William Scharf, titled and dated (verso) and signed W Scharf (lower left) 8 1/2 x 11 1/2 and 7 x 8 inches. Property from a Private Collection, New York Provenance: Gifted to the present owner by the Artist Lot note: The present group of paintings, including Whole Dawn, Half Egg, 1986, and Untitled, by William Scharf span a decades long career and represent an artist who spent years exploring and refining his intensely realized inner vision. Although he is often grouped with the Abstract Expressionists, his unique oeuvre defies simple categorization. Ranging in size from miniature to immense, Scharf's artworks teem with vaguely familiar forms that evoke Surrealism while also expressing the dynamism of Abstract Expressionism. His paintings embody a very individual and immediately recognizable pictorial vocabulary. Scharf was a master of the drawn line and this is seen in the swooping, curving brushstrokes in such works as A Branch of the Egg, 1962 (Lot 28), San Francisco, 1973 (Lot 45), and Whole Dawn, Half Egg, 1986 (lot 46). He was a constant doodler who would fill reams of napkins with drawings while at dinners. The strength of motion of his line serves as a defining force in the open shapes of his larger canvases that are filled and then colored in. The primacy of line is also a part of what makes his smaller works, some measuring no more than 9 x 4 inches, so compelling. In Vegetable Oracle and Coronation of the Moth, both c. 1999-2002 (Lot 48), confident lines form mysterious, organic shapes, which themselves are incised with assertive, incised strokes of both paint and the paintbrush's handle. The role of color is likewise paramount to Scharf's paintings and adds a pronounced physicality. A close friendship with Color Field artist Mark Rothko cemented Scharf's interest in color and its emotive possibilities. He was an early adapter of acrylics, which lends a pure incandescence to his compositions. His loose brushstrokes, combined with semi-transparent layering of glazes, create swirls of richly juxtaposed color that generate a kaleidoscopic, almost hallucinogenic, sensation in works such as Grape's Elephant, A Tryst of Ulnas, and Lung Prisoner, c. 1999-2000 (Lot 48). Elemental energy is aljso conveyed through the push/pull of dark and light pigments, as evidenced in The Scratched and Unfixed Air, 2007-8 and They Thought Their Worlds of Each Other, 2008 (Lot 29). The value of contrasting dark and light was recognized by Scharf, who stated, "As a painter I use the nearness of darks to enthuse myself to finding the brightness and brilliance of wondrous whites (quoted in William Scharf: Within White, exh. cat., New York, 2010). The gesture of his organic lines and the painterliness of his pigments unite and construct transcendental dreams of other worlds. "Scharf's paintings seek origins in what look like seeds, pods, winding roots, the interior channels of human bodies and plants-and reciprocally ponder stars and moons, planets and galaxies. He subsumes the darkness of night in a pervasive richness of color-there is no better colorist-that radiates, glows, and burns with inner light" (Barbara Novak, "Bill Scharf and the Aboriginal Self: The Blue Paintings," William Scharf: Blue Is, exh. cat., New York, 2009). Visual references to mythological or religious themes suggest creation, destruction, and propagation, and are gateways to existential mysteries. The artist's evocative titles similarly invite a search for landmarks, and yet the works reject overt meaning or obvious imagery. Scharf's complex compositions are a search for things seen and unseen, the real world and a world imagined. They are shaded in mystery and wonder and defy easy interpretation. Born in Media, Pennsylvania, in 1927, Scharf was encouraged to study art by American artist and illustrator N.C. Wyeth. He went on to study at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Barnes Foundation, and the Academie de la Grand ChaumiÃ¨re. Scharf moved to New York in the 1950s and became a close friend of Mark Rothko and his wife, Mell, as well as other artists of the New York School. A beloved educator, he taught at institutions including the School of Visual Arts in New York, the San Francisco Art Institute, Stanford University, the Pratt Institute, and the Arts Students League in New York, until his retirement in 2015. Scharf's paintings can be found in the permanent collections of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; the Brooklyn Museum; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin; and the National Museum of American Art in Washington, DC.
Hindman
Sep. 28, 2021
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) San Francisco, 1973
Est: $3,000 - $5,000
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) San Francisco, 1973 oil on canvas signed Wm Scharf, titled and dated (verso) 42 x 101 inches. Property from a Private Collection, New York Lot note: The present group of paintings, including San Francisco, 1973, by William Scharf span a decades long career and represent an artist who spent years exploring and refining his intensely realized inner vision. Although he is often grouped with the Abstract Expressionists, his unique oeuvre defies simple categorization. Ranging in size from miniature to immense, Scharf's artworks teem with vaguely familiar forms that evoke Surrealism while also expressing the dynamism of Abstract Expressionism. His paintings embody a very individual and immediately recognizable pictorial vocabulary. Scharf was a master of the drawn line and this is seen in the swooping, curving brushstrokes in such works as A Branch of the Egg, 1962 (Lot 28), San Francisco, 1973 (Lot 45), and Whole Dawn, Half Egg, 1986 (lot 46). He was a constant doodler who would fill reams of napkins with drawings while at dinners. The strength of motion of his line serves as a defining force in the open shapes of his larger canvases that are filled and then colored in. The primacy of line is also a part of what makes his smaller works, some measuring no more than 9 x 4 inches, so compelling. In Vegetable Oracle and Coronation of the Moth, both c. 1999-2002 (Lot 48), confident lines form mysterious, organic shapes, which themselves are incised with assertive, incised strokes of both paint and the paintbrush's handle. The role of color is likewise paramount to Scharf's paintings and adds a pronounced physicality. A close friendship with Color Field artist Mark Rothko cemented Scharf's interest in color and its emotive possibilities. He was an early adapter of acrylics, which lends a pure incandescence to his compositions. His loose brushstrokes, combined with semi-transparent layering of glazes, create swirls of richly juxtaposed color that generate a kaleidoscopic, almost hallucinogenic, sensation in works such as Grape's Elephant, A Tryst of Ulnas, and Lung Prisoner, c. 1999-2000 (Lot 48). Elemental energy is aljso conveyed through the push/pull of dark and light pigments, as evidenced in The Scratched and Unfixed Air, 2007-8 and They Thought Their Worlds of Each Other, 2008 (Lot 29). The value of contrasting dark and light was recognized by Scharf, who stated, "As a painter I use the nearness of darks to enthuse myself to finding the brightness and brilliance of wondrous whites (quoted in William Scharf: Within White, exh. cat., New York, 2010). The gesture of his organic lines and the painterliness of his pigments unite and construct transcendental dreams of other worlds. "Scharf's paintings seek origins in what look like seeds, pods, winding roots, the interior channels of human bodies and plants-and reciprocally ponder stars and moons, planets and galaxies. He subsumes the darkness of night in a pervasive richness of color-there is no better colorist-that radiates, glows, and burns with inner light" (Barbara Novak, "Bill Scharf and the Aboriginal Self: The Blue Paintings," William Scharf: Blue Is, exh. cat., New York, 2009). Visual references to mythological or religious themes suggest creation, destruction, and propagation, and are gateways to existential mysteries. The artist's evocative titles similarly invite a search for landmarks, and yet the works reject overt meaning or obvious imagery. Scharf's complex compositions are a search for things seen and unseen, the real world and a world imagined. They are shaded in mystery and wonder and defy easy interpretation. Born in Media, Pennsylvania, in 1927, Scharf was encouraged to study art by American artist and illustrator N.C. Wyeth. He went on to study at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Barnes Foundation, and the Academie de la Grand ChaumiÃ¨re. Scharf moved to New York in the 1950s and became a close friend of Mark Rothko and his wife, Mell, as well as other artists of the New York School. A beloved educator, he taught at institutions including the School of Visual Arts in New York, the San Francisco Art Institute, Stanford University, the Pratt Institute, and the Arts Students League in New York, until his retirement in 2015. Scharf's paintings can be found in the permanent collections of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; the Brooklyn Museum; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin; and the National Museum of American Art in Washington, DC.
Hindman
Sep. 28, 2021
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) The Scratched and Unfixed Air, 2007-8 and They Thought Their Worlds of Each Other, 2008 (a pair of works)
Est: $1,000 - $2,000
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) The Scratched and Unfixed Air, 2007-8 and They Thought Their Worlds of Each Other, 2008 (a pair of works) acrylic on paper each signed W Scharf, titled and dated (verso) each 9 x 12 inches. Property from a Private Collection, New York Provenance: Meredith Ward Fine Art, New York Exhibited: New York, Meredith Ward Fine Art, William Scharf: Blue Is, January 9 - February 14, 2009, pp. 10; 12-13, illus. Lot note: The present group of paintings, including The Scratched and Unfixed Air, 2007-8 and They Thought Their Worlds of Each Other, 2008, by William Scharf span a decades long career and represent an artist who spent years exploring and refining his intensely realized inner vision. Although he is often grouped with the Abstract Expressionists, his unique oeuvre defies simple categorization. Ranging in size from miniature to immense, Scharf's artworks teem with vaguely familiar forms that evoke Surrealism while also expressing the dynamism of Abstract Expressionism. His paintings embody a very individual and immediately recognizable pictorial vocabulary. Scharf was a master of the drawn line and this is seen in the swooping, curving brushstrokes in such works as A Branch of the Egg, 1962 (Lot 28), San Francisco, 1973 (Lot 45), and Whole Dawn, Half Egg, 1986 (lot 46). He was a constant doodler who would fill reams of napkins with drawings while at dinners. The strength of motion of his line serves as a defining force in the open shapes of his larger canvases that are filled and then colored in. The primacy of line is also a part of what makes his smaller works, some measuring no more than 9 x 4 inches, so compelling. In Vegetable Oracle and Coronation of the Moth, both c. 1999-2002 (Lot 48), confident lines form mysterious, organic shapes, which themselves are incised with assertive, incised strokes of both paint and the paintbrush's handle. The role of color is likewise paramount to Scharf's paintings and adds a pronounced physicality. A close friendship with Color Field artist Mark Rothko cemented Scharf's interest in color and its emotive possibilities. He was an early adapter of acrylics, which lends a pure incandescence to his compositions. His loose brushstrokes, combined with semi-transparent layering of glazes, create swirls of richly juxtaposed color that generate a kaleidoscopic, almost hallucinogenic, sensation in works such as Grape's Elephant, A Tryst of Ulnas, and Lung Prisoner, c. 1999-2000 (Lot 48). Elemental energy is aljso conveyed through the push/pull of dark and light pigments, as evidenced in The Scratched and Unfixed Air, 2007-8 and They Thought Their Worlds of Each Other, 2008 (Lot 29). The value of contrasting dark and light was recognized by Scharf, who stated, "As a painter I use the nearness of darks to enthuse myself to finding the brightness and brilliance of wondrous whites (quoted in William Scharf: Within White, exh. cat., New York, 2010). The gesture of his organic lines and the painterliness of his pigments unite and construct transcendental dreams of other worlds. "Scharf's paintings seek origins in what look like seeds, pods, winding roots, the interior channels of human bodies and plants-and reciprocally ponder stars and moons, planets and galaxies. He subsumes the darkness of night in a pervasive richness of color-there is no better colorist-that radiates, glows, and burns with inner light" (Barbara Novak, "Bill Scharf and the Aboriginal Self: The Blue Paintings," William Scharf: Blue Is, exh. cat., New York, 2009). Visual references to mythological or religious themes suggest creation, destruction, and propagation, and are gateways to existential mysteries. The artist's evocative titles similarly invite a search for landmarks, and yet the works reject overt meaning or obvious imagery. Scharf's complex compositions are a search for things seen and unseen, the real world and a world imagined. They are shaded in mystery and wonder and defy easy interpretation. Born in Media, Pennsylvania, in 1927, Scharf was encouraged to study art by American artist and illustrator N.C. Wyeth. He went on to study at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Barnes Foundation, and the Academie de la Grand ChaumiÃ¨re. Scharf moved to New York in the 1950s and became a close friend of Mark Rothko and his wife, Mell, as well as other artists of the New York School. A beloved educator, he taught at institutions including the School of Visual Arts in New York, the San Francisco Art Institute, Stanford University, the Pratt Institute, and the Arts Students League in New York, until his retirement in 2015. Scharf's paintings can be found in the permanent collections of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; the Brooklyn Museum; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin; and the National Museum of American Art in Washington, DC.
Hindman
Sep. 28, 2021
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) A Branch of the Egg, 1962
Est: $1,000 - $2,000
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) A Branch of the Egg, 1962 oil on canvas signed W. Scharf (lower right); signed, titled and dated (verso) 18 x 18 inches. Property from a Private Collection, New York Lot note: The present group of paintings, including A Branch of the Egg, 1962, by William Scharf span a decades long career and represent an artist who spent years exploring and refining his intensely realized inner vision. Although he is often grouped with the Abstract Expressionists, his unique oeuvre defies simple categorization. Ranging in size from miniature to immense, Scharf's artworks teem with vaguely familiar forms that evoke Surrealism while also expressing the dynamism of Abstract Expressionism. His paintings embody a very individual and immediately recognizable pictorial vocabulary. Scharf was a master of the drawn line and this is seen in the swooping, curving brushstrokes in such works as A Branch of the Egg, 1962 (Lot 28), San Francisco, 1973 (Lot 45), and Whole Dawn, Half Egg, 1986 (lot 46). He was a constant doodler who would fill reams of napkins with drawings while at dinners. The strength of motion of his line serves as a defining force in the open shapes of his larger canvases that are filled and then colored in. The primacy of line is also a part of what makes his smaller works, some measuring no more than 9 x 4 inches, so compelling. In Vegetable Oracle and Coronation of the Moth, both c. 1999-2002 (Lot 48), confident lines form mysterious, organic shapes, which themselves are incised with assertive, incised strokes of both paint and the paintbrush's handle. The role of color is likewise paramount to Scharf's paintings and adds a pronounced physicality. A close friendship with Color Field artist Mark Rothko cemented Scharf's interest in color and its emotive possibilities. He was an early adapter of acrylics, which lends a pure incandescence to his compositions. His loose brushstrokes, combined with semi-transparent layering of glazes, create swirls of richly juxtaposed color that generate a kaleidoscopic, almost hallucinogenic, sensation in works such as Grape's Elephant, A Tryst of Ulnas, and Lung Prisoner, c. 1999-2000 (Lot 48). Elemental energy is aljso conveyed through the push/pull of dark and light pigments, as evidenced in The Scratched and Unfixed Air, 2007-8 and They Thought Their Worlds of Each Other, 2008 (Lot 29). The value of contrasting dark and light was recognized by Scharf, who stated, "As a painter I use the nearness of darks to enthuse myself to finding the brightness and brilliance of wondrous whites (quoted in William Scharf: Within White, exh. cat., New York, 2010). The gesture of his organic lines and the painterliness of his pigments unite and construct transcendental dreams of other worlds. "Scharf's paintings seek origins in what look like seeds, pods, winding roots, the interior channels of human bodies and plants-and reciprocally ponder stars and moons, planets and galaxies. He subsumes the darkness of night in a pervasive richness of color-there is no better colorist-that radiates, glows, and burns with inner light" (Barbara Novak, "Bill Scharf and the Aboriginal Self: The Blue Paintings," William Scharf: Blue Is, exh. cat., New York, 2009). Visual references to mythological or religious themes suggest creation, destruction, and propagation, and are gateways to existential mysteries. The artist's evocative titles similarly invite a search for landmarks, and yet the works reject overt meaning or obvious imagery. Scharf's complex compositions are a search for things seen and unseen, the real world and a world imagined. They are shaded in mystery and wonder and defy easy interpretation. Born in Media, Pennsylvania, in 1927, Scharf was encouraged to study art by American artist and illustrator N.C. Wyeth. He went on to study at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the Barnes Foundation, and the Academie de la Grand ChaumiÃ¨re. Scharf moved to New York in the 1950s and became a close friend of Mark Rothko and his wife, Mell, as well as other artists of the New York School. A beloved educator, he taught at institutions including the School of Visual Arts in New York, the San Francisco Art Institute, Stanford University, the Pratt Institute, and the Arts Students League in New York, until his retirement in 2015. Scharf's paintings can be found in the permanent collections of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; the Brooklyn Museum; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston; the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin; and the National Museum of American Art in Washington, DC.
Hindman
Jul. 09, 2020
William Scharf (American, b. 1927)
Est: $400 - $600
William Scharf (American, b. 1927) Night Coil, 1965 gouache on paper signed W Scharf, titled and dated on cardboard affixed to backing sight: 5 5/8 x 6 5/8 inches.
Cowan's Auctions
Jun. 10, 2019
William Scharf (American 1927-2018), three 20th C. silkscreens, including: "Untitled"; "Menaced Tear"; and "Golden Rope", all ed. 59...
Est: $100 - $200
William Scharf (American 1927-2018), three 20th C. silkscreens, including: "Untitled"; "Menaced Tear"; and "Golden Rope", all ed. 59/100, each depicts abstracted shapes, predominantly purple, black, and yellow, all signed and LR, all overall 23" h. x 28" w.; all pieces with wear consistent with age and use including toning and minor damages.
Winter Associates, Inc.
Sep. 29, 2018
WILLIAM SCHARF (AMERICAN, 1927-) UNTITLED Gouache on paper: 7 1/2 x 5 3/4 in. (sight)
Est: $400 - $600
WILLIAM SCHARF (AMERICAN, 1927-) UNTITLED Gouache on paper: 7 1/2 x 5 3/4 in. (sight) Framed; lower right signed: W. Scharf
Potomack Company
Aug. 09, 2018
WILLIAM SCHARF, Pennsylvania/New York, Contemporary, Abstract composition in shades of yellow., Oil on canvas, 10" x 108".
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
WILLIAM SCHARF Pennsylvania/New York, Contemporary Abstract composition in shades of yellow. Signed lower left. Oil on canvas, 10" x 108".
Eldred's
Aug. 09, 2018
WILLIAM SCHARF, Pennsylvania/New York, Contemporary, Abstract composition in reds, pinks and greens., Oil on canvas, 12" x 128". Fra...
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
WILLIAM SCHARF Pennsylvania/New York, Contemporary Abstract composition in reds, pinks and greens. Signed. Oil on canvas, 12" x 128". Framed.
Eldred's
Feb. 10, 2018
5 William Scharf silkscreens
Est: $200 - $400
William Scharf (American 1927-2018)- ''Dove Leave''; ''Golden Ripe''; ''Juggler''; ''Menaced Tear'' and Untitled- 5 silkscreens in colors, all signed and numbered 56/100 in pencil, 'Menaced Tear' ahs large horizontal scrath otherwise in good condition. 17 x 22 1/4'' ea.
Rachel Davis Fine Arts
Feb. 04, 2018
William Scharf (American, b. 1927)- Mixed Media
Est: -
Mixed media on black paper collage, signed and dated at bottom right "W. Scharf 1963" and on verso "March 12, 1963"; circle of Seymour Boardman. 10" H X 12" W. Minor tear at upper left side; collage element at left side detached though present.
Auctions at Showplace
Mar. 04, 2017
William Scharf (NY, b. 1927), Untitled
Est: $1,000 - $3,000
acrylic on canvas, signed and dated 1953 on the verso, framed. DOA 41 1/8 x 61.5 in. Born in Medina, PA, Scharf received his art training in Philadelphia and Paris before moving to New York in the early 1950s. His work has been reappraised in the 21st century as "a reminder of the continuing vitality of the most serious sort of abstract painting as derived from the New York School." (Michael Kimmelman, "Art in Review; William Scharf," New York Times, March 26, 2004) Additional high-resolution photos are available at LelandLittle.com
Leland Little Auctions
Mar. 11, 2016
William Scharf (NY, b. 1927), Untitled
Est: $800 - $1,200
oil on canvas, signed and dated 1953 on the verso, framed. DOA 41.75 x 51.5 in.
Leland Little Auctions
Dec. 04, 2015
WILLIAM SCHARF (AMERICAN, 1927- ) SCREEN PRINT "BANANA DOG" PENCIL SIGNED LOWER RIGHT, NUMBER 107/150, OVERALL SIZE 27" X 30 1/2"
Est: -
WILLIAM SCHARF (AMERICAN, 1927- ) SCREEN PRINT "BANANA DOG" PENCIL SIGNED LOWER RIGHT, NUMBER 107/150, OVERALL SIZE 27" X 30 1/2"
Apple Tree Auction Center
Jun. 08, 2010
WILLIAM SCHARF Two color pencil drawings.
Est: $1,200 - $1,800
WILLIAM SCHARF Two color pencil drawings. Figure with Dagger, 1964. 280x215 mm; 11x8 1/2 inches. Signed and dated in pencil, lower left recto * Heaving Person, 1964. 110x140 mm; 5x6 3/8 inches. Signed and dated in pencil, lower right recto.
Swann Auction Galleries