Early Fall Auction Sales
May Offer Better Value

For the art world, the fall Impressionist, Contemporary, Post-War and Modern auctions are the most important measures of the state of the market. But with those sales still two months away, dealers, collectors and auction houses can find early indicators in the lower-profile sales that begin next week. For example, continuing strong sales at the Asian auctions could be a predictor of buyer optimism through the end of the year.

A 16th-century Persian-style Chinese vase, at Christie's.

Still, dealers, auction houses and collectors believe there are some areas that remain undervalued. Here's a look at some of the sales scheduled in the next few weeks for those categories.

Asian Art

CHRISTIE'S AND SOTHEBY'S: Sept. 20-22

In the past few years, the market for Asian art, which can include everything from Indian paintings to depictions of Buddha, has grown tremendously. There are more objects on sale commanding higher prices, in part because new collectors in China and India have begun buying.

At Sotheby's, an 18th-century court portrait.

Next week, one of the higher priced items being sold at Christie's is a landscape by the 14th-century artist Wang Meng, estimated at $700,000 to $900,000. At Sotheby's, there's a blue-and-white vase from the Ming era (the 14th to the 17th centuries), from the estate of Laurance S. Rockefeller, priced at $300,000 to $400,000.

Prices tend to be lower for porcelain from before the 14th century, often because it has been excavated and many Asian collectors are superstitious about buying material that has been buried, says Mee-Seen Loong, a Chinese-art specialist at Sotheby's. These items also tend to be less ornate in design. Christie's has a 13th-century celadon bowl with an estimate of $6,000 to $8,000. Sotheby's is offering a Tang dynasty (7th-to-10th centuries) glazed pillow, estimated at $12,000 to $15,000.

Jewelry

CHRISTIE'S: Magnificent Jewels, Oct. 19

SOTHEBY'S: Important Jewels, Sept. 28; Magnificent Jewels, Dec. 8

Victorian necklace, circa 1870, at Sotheby's.

The auction houses divide their jewelry sales into "magnificent" jewels, where the most unusual and priciest items are found, and "important" jewels, where the gems might top out at $400,000. Christie's October sale of magnificent jewels, two months before the similarly high-end one at Sotheby's, is emphasizing diamonds: One 33.11-carat diamond pendant is estimated at more than $2 million. Sotheby's magnificent-jewels sale in December has a Harry Winston 26-carat platinum and diamond ring for $1.5 million.

Increasingly though, buyers are looking for more wearable items from specific periods, such as Art Deco, the 1950s -- and Victorian brooches, bracelets and necklaces that go well with this season's Empire-waisted dresses and high-necked blouses. Many of these items are relatively affordable, falling in the $1,500 to $15,000 range. In its Sept. 28 sale, for example, Sotheby's is offering a Victorian gold-and-garnet necklace, circa 1870, priced from $5,000 to $7,000, as well as late 19th-century gold-and-enamel bangle-bracelets from Tiffany, priced at $6,000 to $8,000. Christie's jewelry selection starts at $25,000.

Louis XV desk, at Sotheby's.

CHRISTIE'S: English Furniture, Oct. 18; European Furniture, Oct. 21

SOTHEBY'S: French and Continental Furniture, Sept. 30; English Furniture, Oct. 21

It used to be that the décor-conscious would decorate their homes in re-creations of a certain style, like 18th-century French. But with today's more mix-'n-match aesthetic, there's been an effort to unload some period items, leading to new availability of one-of-a-kind pieces and bargains, says Alistair Clarke, the world-wide head of European furniture at Sotheby's. "There's definitely an opportunity to buy inexpensive furnishings -- there's a lot more 18th-century furniture around than you might think," says Mr. Clarke.

Christie's has a sale from the estate of society decorator Billy Baldwin in its Oct. 21 furniture sale, which includes a pair of Louis XVI chairs for $10,000 to $15,000, while other pieces are much less. And in its French and Continental Furniture sale on Sept. 30, Sotheby's has a set of armchairs that includes four Italian 18th-century side chairs for $5,000 to $8,000, and a set of 10 18th-century Italian Neo-classical chairs for $18,000 to $22,000 -- relative bargains, especially if compared to "what you have to pay for new furniture," says Mr. Clarke.

19th Century/ Old Master Paintings

CHRISTIE'S: Old Master Paintings, Sept. 30

SOTHEBY'S: 19th Century European Art, Oct. 25

Eugene Iglesias will be looking for new investment opportunities with 19th-century paintings. The retired actor -- one credit includes the '60s television series "Wild, Wild West" -- used to collect Modern works. But more recently, he's become interested in artists like Eugen von Blaas and Raimundo de Madrazo Garreta. They're not household names, says Mr. Iglesias, who lives in Hollywood Hills, Calif., but he prefers their "exquisite detail" and their lower price tags.

These types of works are often available for well under $100,000, with some Old Masters going for less than $10,000. Sotheby's 19th-century painting sale will include a society portrait by Anders Zorn that looks as stylish as a John Singer Sargent but, priced at $400,000 to $600,000, is a fraction of the cost. Another well-priced Old Masters on the block at Christie's will be a portrait by Gilbert Stuart (known for his depictions of George Washington) for $30,000 to $50,000.

Photography

CHRISTIE'S: Photography sales, Oct. 10-12

SOTHEBY'S: Photographs, Oct. 10-11

There's nothing like a museum show to bolster prices, and collectors are spending a lot of money on name artists, even for "multiples," that is, identical prints of the same photograph. Two years ago, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, for example, staged a Diane Arbus show that later traveled to New York's Metropolitan Museum. Her work has since reached auction highs, with "Identical Twins (Cathleen and Colleen), Roselle, N.J." fetching $478,400 last year.

Other works by Arbus are at auction next month, as are photos at Christie's by Robert Mapplethorpe (40 dye-transfer photographs, estimated for a total of $1 million) and Richard Avedon (the Beatles in psychedelic colors, for $200,000 to $300,000). Sotheby's is selling Dorothea Lange's "White Angel Breadline," a photo Lange gave to Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry in 1936, which may bring in $200,000 to $300,000.

Denise Bethel, director of photography for Sotheby's, suggests looking for works from the 1950s and 1960s by such photographers as Aaron Suskind, Wynn Bullock and Paul Caponigro. Sotheby's is selling works in the $5,000 to $7,000 range by Bullock, a realist, and Mr. Caponigro, famous for moody nature photographs. Christie's is offering two groups of 15 photos by documentary photographer Garry Winogrand, each priced for $30,000 to $50,000.

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