Bluff City 15: When Justice Is Done Pt. 3

Partial Auction Catalog - For this season’s full catalog, please call (555)-432-43684

Lot One

A set of five Dutch miniatures in the style of Jeremiah Myer, circa 1730. Painted on ivory, these five figures demonstrate perfectly the advancements that were made in the style during the early part of the eighteenth century. These miniatures are thought to display figures of Dutch nobility and society, and are an essential addition to any serious collector of mid-eighteenth century Dutch portraiture. 

Lot Two

A pastoral American landscape painted in oil on canvas during the early part of the nineteenth century. This work is notable for the broad range in technique shown, from the sparse, quasi-impressionistic brushwork on the distant mountain range to the fine detailing on the coats of the sheep in the foreground. 

Lot Three

A series of photographs depicting Bluff City’s most prominent casinos at night, during the thunderstorm of last year. The artist, known for her bold use of light and colour, brought an intricate lighting setup to each of her shoots, thunderstorm notwithstanding, in order to more accurately capture the striking shapes of the buildings themselves.

Lot Four

A still life of a bowl of fruit and an ox’s skull, surrounded by honeycombs and bees, painted during the mid-twentieth century still life revival. Revivalist paintings like this do not find their way to the market frequently, so this is an excellent opportunity to acquire an excellent example of a much maligned form. 

Lot Five

A large portrait of a young girl seated on a swing in a garden, date and provenance unknown. Note the detailing on the ropes of the swing, on the curls of the bark of the tree that it is suspended from, on the paint flaking from the fence in the background. There is an object in the middle distance. When I was very young, my father built a similar swing for me in our back garden. He went to the garage and fetched a tall ladder that he rested against the trunk. Earlier that day we had driven to the home goods store on Minnow and bought a long, thick rope. I had been asking for a tree swing for years. Later that day, I was watching television when I heard the sound of something hitting the ground hard, and a cry, and I rushed into the garden to find my father below the ladder, holding onto his ankle. It’s broken, he said. It’s broken! Call an ambulance. My mother wasn’t home. I looked up at the ladder, and down at the tools scattered near the foot of it, and I stood there for a long moment. Did I stand there for too long? My father walked with a heavy limp for the rest of his life. Should I have rushed for the phone? When he was old, he would raise himself from a chair and pain would cloud his face. Did I do enough? Was I fast enough? My father was buried with his cane, and I have never swung on a swing suspended carefully from a tall tree.

Featuring: Austin Walker, Art Martinez-Tebbel, Keith J Carberry, Janine Hawkins, and Jack de Quidt 

Music & Description by Jack de Quidt

A transcription is available for this episode here. 

A full list of completed transcriptions is available here. Our transcriptions are provided by a fan-organized paid transcription project.