VERY SPORTING

As it marks 10 years, the Sporting Art Auction has become a must-attend event

By Julie June StewartBy Julie June StewartBy Julie June Stewart Photos by Amy LaniganPhotos by Amy LaniganPhotos by Amy Lanigan

From left, the Cross Gate Gallery team of Linda Helton, Field Ladd, founder Greg Ladd, Catherine Ladd Kenneally, and Bill Meng has seen their hard work and expertise bear fruit in the success of the Sporting Art Auction.

Cross Gate Gallery near downtown Lexington has a well-earned reputation as the country’s premier sporting art gallery.

he Sporting Art Auction is

Tcelebrating 10 years with another stellar selection of fne sporting art, American paintings, and sculptures on Nov. 18 at Keeneland. Te auction, a collaboration between Cross Gate Gallery and Keeneland, also will continue its tradition of featuring exciting up-and- coming equine artists.

Te frst sporting art auction in 2013 was a resounding success. At that time there had not been a specialized sporting auction in more than 15 years, when major auction houses had their auctions in New York in the late 1990s.

Te sporting art auction is a natural progression for Lexington-based Cross Gate Gallery, considered the country’s premier gallery of fne sporting art and contemporary British fgurative painting. Greg Ladd founded Cross Gate in 1974 and for years has conducted traveling art shows around the nation, including an annual event in Saratoga Springs, New York. Ladd explained: “Te idea [is] that you must get in front of the people to show your inventory. Ten when people come to Lexington, they will visit us.”

Keeneland, with its state-of-the-art sales pavilion and auctioneering expertise, has proved to be the ideal location. “Lexington is the Toroughbred capital of the world, and Keeneland sees every major Toroughbred owner in the world,” Ladd said.

Added gallery associate and daughter Catherine Ladd Kenneally: “Te symbiotic relationship Cross Gate has with Keeneland is

The catalog for the 2022 Sporting Art Auction

Very SPORTING

longstanding and both organizations pride themselves on integrity. We ofen share clientele with the common factor being the love and appreciation of the horse — whether it’s the real thing or a beautiful depiction to be admired on your wall. Te sporting art auction has a great impact on our community. Not only do Keeneland’s portion of the proceeds beneft its nonproft initiatives, but the auction adds another layer of cultural depth to our community.”

Keeneland President and CEO Shannon Arvin agrees. “It’s been really fun these past 10 years to watch the Sporting Art Auction thrive and grow into what we hoped it would be from its inception: a highly anticipated event for sporting art enthusiasts, many of whom are also Keeneland clients. Cross Gate and their team are globally respected, and, like Keeneland, they hold themselves to the highest standards and are committed to the horse industry and the local community. Te synergy between Keeneland and Cross Gate is key to the auction’s success.”

Sellers appreciate the auction’s sell rate of 70 to 80 percent.

Cross Gate seeks inventory throughout the United States and Europe for the auction, which this year features 180 lots. Ladd and his staf collaborate with established contacts and visit European and American art galleries, artists, and estate sales. Ladd and son Field (acquisitions director) travel to Europe for three weeks every June in a quest for art. Field describes the annual trip as delightful as he and his father drive around England, Ireland, and France in a rented car with a “boot” that can hold art. In the early days they depended on hand-drawn maps or directions received at local pubs and post ofces. It’s much easier now with GPS technology.

European art selected for the auction is shipped from London while gallery staf drive in the Cross Gate van to sometimes distant points in the United States to pick up art.

“On the days that the crates are arriving, we hear, ‘Wait until you see this.’ ” Ladd Kenneally said. “Te wooden crates are massive. Some of them are 6 feet by 10 feet or larger. Tey are not just full of paintings but sculptures too and can be heavy. It’s like Christmas morning.”

Cross Gate previews the artwork for each auction in the Keeneland sales pavilion. Auction day typically draws a healthy crowd, though the pandemic resulted in a virtual auction in 2020. “We have a lot of horsemen who live here,” Greg Ladd said.

For founder Greg Ladd, the sporting art auction is a natural progression in the evolution of Cross Gate Gallery.

Artwork in the 2022 auction is showcased in the Keeneland sales pavilion.

Very SPORTING

“A lot of people pass through during the September horse sale, the October race meet, and the November horse sale. Keeneland has a great clientele, and we drop it right in front of them.

“We try to show the best quality we can fnd. Our clientele is well traveled and knows quality. We try to watch what our customers are buying. Early naive or primitive pictures are popular right now, as long as the subject is right and they are well painted. Light and color are what we look for in edgy contemporary work. Te artist still needs to be able to draw, but that always comes through.”

Te inaugural auction featured a work that still holds the record for top price: LeRoy Neiman’s “Flat Racing.” Te gallery staf had the challenging task of reassembling the piece, originally a mural at the old Sportsman’s Park in Chicago, afer the work arrived in individual boxes that contained 119 glaze ceramic 12 x 12 tiles. It sold for $291,000.

Every year the auction features favorite artists. Tey include Sir Alfred Munnings (British, 1878-1959), John Frederick Herring Jr (British, 1820-1907), Andre Pater (Polish/American, b. 1953), Sandra Oppegard (American, b. 1942), and Peter Howell (British, b. 1932).

Tis year’s most impressive piece is a painting by Munnings titled “Going Out Epsom,” which has an estimated value of $3 million to $5 million. Munnings, known as one of England’s fnest equine artists, frequently painted at Epsom. He would bring his own horses and grooms to the paddock (afer the meet), sketching as he planned a painting. He would go to great lengths to ensure the details in his subject matter, such as the colors of the jockey silks against the sky and the muscle tone of the horses.

Ladd is enthusiastic about “Going Out Epsom” because of

The auction preview takes place during the September and November Thoroughbred sales and the fall race meet.

Catherine Ladd Kenneally describes Cross Gate Gallery and Keeneland as natural partners in the Sporting Art Auction.

Very SPORTING

Munnings. “Of all the 20th century sporting painters, he was the man. He is a wonderful painter. Tis is the most important racing picture of this caliber in the past 25-30 years.”

Ladd considers Andre Pater, with whom he has worked for 20 years, the top sporting artist today. Pater’s work is highly coveted in the auction. In 2016 his painting “Red Arrow” sold for $276,000 afer an enthusiastic bidding duel. Te painting depicts a Lakota warrior. Pater was present and said it was “a stunning surprise. Nobody was expecting this,” he said. He was thrilled to receive a standing ovation from the audience.

Sporting art ofen includes non-equestrian subjects. Dogs are always popular as are chickens, roosters, cows, cats, and associated barn animals. Tere is always a strong interest in paintings depicting the sporting art lifestyle such as shooting, fshing, and boating.

Te gallery makes an efort to tell the story of each painting in its catalog. “Te thought and time we put into the editorial side of the catalog is massive,” Field Ladd said.

An equine painting with no context might arouse little interest, Field Ladd said. “But you could take that same painting and say this horse was from a farm that has been around Lexington for 150 years. Suddenly, you have reached into farms whose families are still around.

Sir Alfred Munnings’ “Going Out Epsom” is the prize of the 2022 auction with an estimated value of $3 million to $5 million. Field Ladd travels with his father, Greg, to Europe every June in search of artwork for the auction. Pieces also come from across the U.S.

“All the stories that we tell give the painting life. Te way in which the story reconnects the racing community to a piece of art is important to us and to the community. Te power to be able to connect the dots generationally — not only through families but through horse generations — is a big power in our sale. Purchasers have been able to purchase paintings that mean a great deal to their family legacy.”

Te gallery also seeks and develops contemporary artists and encourages them to explore equine art. “We try to be very selective with our contemporary (living) artists as well. By showing what we think is the best work out there, we attract other good painters,” Greg Ladd said. “Our contemporary artists get great exposure.”

Artist Sandra Oppegard agrees that Ladd has a talent for discovering artists with a talent for equine subjects. “Greg picks people out that do another kind of art,” she said. “He is always looking for someone with a defnite style, and he will point them in the direction of doing sporting art.”

Some of these artists have benefted from an artist-in-residence program in which they stay at Keeneland for several weeks, take in racing and stroll the grounds, and work in an on-site studio.

Tis year’s auction features several artists new to the event. “We

ABOUT THE AUCTION

The 10th Annual Sporting Art Auction will be held Friday, Nov. 18, 2022, at 4 p.m. at the Keeneland sales pavilion. Information about registering, viewing, or requesting a catalog is available at https:// thesportingartauction.com. Further information about Cross Gate Gallery is at crossgategallery.com.

Important pieces sold at previous auctions Important pieces sold at previous auctions include, clockwise from left, “Flat Racing” by include, clockwise from left, “Flat Racing” by LeRoy Neiman ($291,000 in 2013); “Midway” LeRoy Neiman ($291,000 in 2013); “Midway” by Henry Lawrence Faulkner ($57,500 in 2021); by Henry Lawrence Faulkner ($57,500 in 2021); “Winter Scene, Chantilly” by Peter Howell “Winter Scene, Chantilly” by Peter Howell ($34,000 in 2019); and “Red Arrow” by Andre ($34,000 in 2019); and “Red Arrow” by Andre Pater ($276,000 in 2016). Pater ($276,000 in 2016).

are looking at more contemporary artists,” Field Ladd said, “I think this year we have more variety and pieces with an edge to them than we have had in the past.”

For new participating artists, the auction is a glorious event. Jill Soukup, an award-winning Colorado-based artist, said, “It is an honor to have my work in this prestigious exhibition. It’s always an excellent show, exhibiting masterful works of art from the past and present. Of course, Toroughbreds are a common theme in this show, but other subjects and breeds are also honored. It’s a must-see art exhibition.”

It’s been an extraordinary journey, not only for Cross Gate and Keeneland but for the artists and the equine community.

Ladd Kenneally attributes the auction’s success to her father. “Te feel-good element is my dad. He dreamt it out of thin air. He put his blood, sweat, and tears into it all these years. It’s really come to fruition with the partnership of Keeneland. It speaks volumes about his integrity and our integrity being partnered with Keeneland.”

Te sporting art auction has created a global artistic community that appreciates the beauty and strength of equines and of sporting art to the beneft of all. Tere is much to anticipate and an exciting future ahead. KM

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