307 N Michigan Ave., Suite 308
Chicago, IL 60601
Downtown: 312.814.8510
Suburban: 630.734.3300
Conservation and Cleaning Reveal the Story Behind a Famous Pollock Painting
When a work of art comes to us to be appraised, sometimes a professional cleaning is needed to get a better idea of its value. Dirt and dust accumulated over years of neglect need to be removed to accurately assess the piece. Signatures, brushstrokes, and subtleties not previously evident suddenly spring into new life whenRead the Rest…
Birger Sandzén: Colors of the Midwest
This week, we decided to feature a Midwestern artist to celebrate the rich culture and tradition of art in the Midwest. Acclaimed landscape painter Birger Sandzén was born in Blindsbery, Sweden in 1871. When he was eight years old he was gifted his first art supplies, and began drawing lessons with art student Kommminster GustafRead the Rest…
Whistler’s Etchings; A Master of the Art Makes his Mark
Nocturn: Palaces James McNeill Whistler, 1879, Etching/drypoint, 11 5/8″ x 7 7/8″ Recently here at MIR we have been lucky to have the chance to work on a large and impressive collection of etchings by the artist James Abbot McNeil Whistler (1834-1903), one of the most prominent American artists of the late 19th century. He isRead the Rest…
Finders Keepers: Stolen Artwork Uncovered
Marcia Fuqua, a 51-year old Virginia woman, unwittingly purchased an original painting by French Impressionist artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) for $7 at the Harpers Ferry Flea Market. News of the discovery made waves in the art world this month when an Alexandria auction house announced its intentions to sell the Renoir landscape, and a journalistRead the Rest…
The Power of Provenance: A Picture Worth a Thousand Words
Every picture has a story. To be able to follow an image from its inception to its current-day location is an incredible example of provenance, or the documented story behind a piece of work. In terms of the art market, provenance is a means by which art experts can examine and verify authenticity and establishRead the Rest…
Lost Parmigianino Drawing Uncovered
A drawing by the acclaimed Italian artist Francesco (Parmigianino) Mazzola (1503-1540) was recently found tucked inside of a bible. The drawing, a sketch for Parmigianino’s masterpiece Madonna dal Collo Lungo (or Madonna with the Long Neck) was considered missing by the Huntington Library and Art Collections in San Marino, California for the last thirty years;Read the Rest…
Damage and Insuring Art
This past January and February, just a few months after the catastrophic Hurricane Sandy flooded parts of New York City, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) published a new map assessing the risk levels per neighborhood of possible future flooding inRead the Rest…
The Importance of a Professional Eye
There exists something in the art world called “connoisseurship.” It simply means the combination of knowledge, experience, and instinct that enables experts to discern a true work of art from the superfluity of fakes and imitators in the world. It is this quality that can elevate a simple sketch into a treasured part of history,Read the Rest…
Édouard Leon Cortès: Picturing Paris
French post-Impressionist artist – born 1882 in Lagney-sur-Marne, France – is most famous for his romantic Parisian vignettes. Grandson to artist Antonio Cortès and son to Spanish Court painter Antonio Cortès, the virtuoso Édouard was inclined toward the arts in his youth and studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. When in 1901 theRead the Rest…
Masami Teraoka: New Views of Mt. Fuji/Sinking Pleasure Boat
At first glance Masami Teraoka’s panoramic view of a rustic wooden boat filled with revelers and being overtaken by ferocious waves appears to be a traditional Ukiyo-E, or Japanese woodblock print. These colorful prints originating in the austere Edo period depicted the “floating world” of transient sensual pleasures of beauty, music, food, and drink. TheyRead the Rest…
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307 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 308
Chicago, IL 60601
phone: 312.814.8510
email: info@mirappraisal.com
