Press Release

Davenport, WA -- An outstanding single-owner collection of artworks dedicated entirely to the renowned American artist and illustrator Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966) will come up for bid in an auction planned for Wednesday, September 24th, by Grant Zahajko Auctions, online and live in the gallery located at 510 Morgan Street in Davenport, starting at 9am Pacific time.

The auction is officially titled Maxfield Parrish: Artist & Illustrator, Celebrating a Career!

Maxfield Parrish was active in the first half of the 20th century. His works featured distinctive saturated hues and idealized neo-classical imagery. His career helped shape the Golden Age of illustration and American visual arts. In his storied career he produced almost 900 pieces of art, including calendars, greeting cards and magazine covers. His works are highly collectible today.

“After 47 years of discerningly collecting items relating to Maxfield Parrish, one of the more serious collectors of the artist has decided to auction his collection amassed over almost half a century,” said Grant Zahajko of Grant Zahajko Auctions. “This collection includes an original Maxfield Parrish that was shown twice at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Massachusetts.”

Mr. Zahajko added the auction – totaling just under 300 lots – includes “some of the rarest Parrish prints in existence, high grade examples with vibrant, original colors, a very large calendar collection, rare and top condition Parrish illustrated books, sketches, signed checks, advertising items, letters, Parrish prints in the best condition that you'll find and much more.”

The sale’s expected headliner is lot #17, an original mixed media (pencil, watercolor and cut-out) study titled The Knave Watched Violetta Depart, dated 1910-1912. The study is known to have been owned by one of the artist's neighbors in Plainfield, N.H. It was given to him by Parrish because the neighbor had expressed an interest in it. It should bring $25,000-$35,000.

“Mr. Parrish considered his studies worthless, and he often burned them,” Zahajko said. “If someone expressed an interest in them, he would give them away.” This study was exhibited in the Norman Rockwell Museum twice, including the Keepers of the Flame: Parrish, Wyeth, Rockwell and Narrative Tradition exhibition. Papers, letters, photos and a book are included.

Also expected to attract keen bidder interest is lot #177: Maxfield Parrish’s cover proof artwork for Hearst Magazine’s May 1913 issue that was never published. The image size is 10 inches by 7 inches (matted, 13 ¾ inches by 10 ¾ inches) and in 1995 the work was placed into a modern frame measuring 15 ¾ inches by 12 ¾ inches. The estimate is $8,000-$12,000.

A black and white image of this unpublished cover appears in the 1973 book Maxfield Parrish by Coy Ludwig, and includes a certified copy of a letter from Jack W. Jacobsen, the author of Maxfield Parrish: The Man Behind the Make Believe, stating that this item was purchased by himself in Brimfield, Mass., back in 1952 from the seller, who sold it for Maxfield Parrish, Jr.

Calendars are a huge part of Parrish’s catalog. Lot #8 is an extremely scarce large calendar by Parrish for Edison Mazda Lamps, titled The Lamp Seller of Baghdad. The calendar, from 1923, retains a full pad of calendar pages and measures 26 ¾ inches by 17 inches. It has been professionally framed in a Stephen Hutak custom modern frame. The estimate is $2,000-$3,000.

To learn more about Grant Zahajko Auctions and the Maxfield Parrish: Artist & Illustrator, Celebrating a Career! auction on Wednesday, September 24th, at 9am Pacific time, visit https://bid.gzauctions.com. Updates are posted often.

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