LeRoy Neiman Signed US Pop Art Ink Femlin for Auction at 888 Auctions on Jan 31, 2019

LeRoy Neiman Signed US Pop Art Ink Femlin – January 31, 2019

Ink on paper, featuring a femlin. Signed LeRoy Neiman on the lower right corner. 24 x 18 cm (9.4 x 7.1 inches). PROVENANCE: Property of a gentleman (Chicago, IL).

Acquired from the father of the current owner, J. Ruzic. Ruzic’s involvement in the restaurant industry during his lifetime was of a national presence and awarded him the position on the Chicago & Illinois Restaurant Association as well as the National Restaurant Association.

He toured Europe at their request (along with others) to help initiate training programs in the United States in the early and mid 1960’s. Ruzic was also known for his Apple Strudel, which he sold retail through his restaurant and commercially to the White Hall & Tremont Hotels in downtown Chicago amongst others in the late 1950’s and into the mid and late 1960’s.

The original Mayor Daily, Senator Dirksen, Mr. Hefner and Mr. Neiman were all customers amongst others. Arnie Morton was a friend and was the first Food & Beverage Director for Mr. Hefner’s Playboy Club in downtown Chicago. Mr. Morton went on to run all the Clubs and eventually developed Morton’s Steak House across the country (his son Peter went on to start Hard Rock Cafe).

The current owner, J. Ruzic was the national president of a franchisee council who had Mr. Neiman design his first and only Neiman Jacket (as a high level give away for the Jimmy Connors Nuveen Challenge Event, which in the mid 1990’s was Jimmy Connors answer to the tennis version on the Senior PGA Tour). As a result, the J. Ruzic met Mr. Neiman on many occasions. The photograph shows the Ruzic’s with LeRoy Neiman (photograph is not included in the lot)

Click Here to view Lot #138 – LeRoy Neiman Signed US Pop Art Ink Femlin – January 31, 2019

LeRoy Neiman

LeRoy Neiman (1921-2012) was an American artist who blended a Pop Art sensibility with impressionistic brushwork and vibrant color. “I do not depart from the colors borrowed from life,” he once said. “But I use color to emphasize the scent, the spirit, and the feeling of the thing I’ve experienced.” His prints and paintings of sporting events, leisure activities, and movie characters like Rocky were published in magazines such as Playboy.

Born LeRoy Runquist on June 8, 1921 in St. Paul, MN, the painter enrolled briefly at the St. Paul School of Art and then at the Art Institute of Chicago after having served in the US military. During his life he sometimes performed on television, captivating audiences by drawing or painting portraits live on air. The prolific and popular artist donated a substantial donation to Columbia University School of the Arts in 1995, which helped to create its LeRoy Neiman Center for Print Studies. Neiman died on June 20, 2012 in New York, NY at the age of 91.

Today, the artist’s works are held in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., and the Indianapolis Museum of Art, among others.

Auction Overview

Richmond Hill, ON – 393 fresh to market items will be available to the discerning buyers and collectors in 888 Auctions’ January 17th auction featuring the finest in MODERN PAINTINGS, JEWELRY & ASIAN ANTIQUES 2019-01-31. Taking place in the afternoon at 2 PM (EST), bidders will be competing against one another over a variety of items on display.