From Midcentury Legends to Contemporary Visionaries: Moran's Art + Design Sale

Tues., September 30^th, 2025 | 10:00am PT

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- On Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at 10:00am PT, John Moran Auctioneers will present their highly anticipated fall sale, Art + Design. The auction features 380 lots spanning fine art, design, studio craft, and decorative objects from the 20th and 21st centuries, with notable artists and designers including Alice Baber, Wayne Thiebaud, Wolf Kahn, Richard Diebenkorn, Davood Roostaei, Guangyi Wang, SHAG, Beatrice Wood, Philip and Kelvin LaVerne, Wharton Esherick, and Mario Armond Zamparelli. 

The auction features 380 lots of fine art, design, and decorative objects from the 20th and 21st centuries.

Leading the fine art offerings is Alice Baber'sThe Swing and the Bridge (1970), estimated at $50,000–70,000. Baber's lyrical Abstract Expressionism, marked by translucent color and organic forms, was first exhibited at New York's Stable Gallery in 1957. Her work evokes a sense of painterly rhythm. As Thomas Albright wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle, "Baber's abstractions… appear to undergo movement… like the currents and crosscurrents in a pool of water fed by a hidden spring." 

Two standout works by Iranian-American artist Davood Roostaei (1959–2023) will be presented: Perennial Struggles (2021), estimated at $40,000–60,000, and Journeys (2022), at $20,000–30,000. Roostaei developed "Cryptorealism," a symbol-rich, layered style blending abstraction and figuration. Painting with his fingers since the 1980s, Roostaei created technically intricate and philosophically resonant works. Art critic Peter Frank described Cryptorealism as "swallowing idea and fact… into vortices of paint." His works are held in distinguished private and institutional collections, including the Obama Presidential Library. 

Wayne Thiebaud'sHill Street (1987), a color woodcut printed in Kyoto and estimated at $20,000–30,000, captures the artist's mastery of perspective and color, transforming San Francisco's hills into luminous, abstracted compositions. A key figure in Pop and American realism, Thiebaud's print work is as celebrated as his paintings.

Similarly captivating is Richard Diebenkorn's Ochre (1983), a woodcut also created in Kyoto during his early collaborations with Crown Point Press. Estimated at $20,000–30,000, the piece reflects the refined geometry and spatial nuance of his "Ocean Park" series. 

Another standout is Wolf Kahn'sFoliage in a Lemon-Yellow Surround (2004), estimated at $20,000–30,000. The German-born painter and Hans Hofmann student fused expressive abstraction with American landscape tradition, using radiant color to evoke mood and memory. His works are held in the Met, the Whitney, and SFMOMA.

From the estate of Mario Armond Zamparelli (1921–2012), more than 30 fresh-to-market lots will be offered, including original oils like Reclining Nude in Green Kimono and Seated Nude (each est. $4,000–6,000). Zamparelli, a key creative force behind the branding of Howard Hughes's enterprises, also designed logos for Datsun, Capitol Records, and Disney's "Home of the Future." His paintings reflect his mastery of midcentury style and storytelling. 

The sale also features Grace Family and Warhol by Chinese Political Pop artist Wang Guangyi (each est. $20,000–30,000), and three vibrant works by SHAG (Josh Agle), including Doctor Scorpio's Lair (est. $8,000–12,000). These artists' colorful, satirical works bridge fine art, design, and cultural critique.

Furniture and decorative arts will also shine in this sale. Wharton Esherick's "Hammer Handle" chair (circa 1938), designed for the Hedgerow Theatre, is estimated at $3,000–5,000. A Fragonard Pierced coffee table (1960s) by Philip and Kelvin LaVerne, from their "Historical Civilizations Series," carries a $5,000–7,000 estimate. Also featured is a rare set of six "T" chairs by William Katavolos, Ross Littell, and Douglas Kelley for Laverne Originals (est. $2,500–3,500), with sleek steel frames and leather sling seats. 

Fifty lots from the Estate of Robert Baron, co-owner and President of Glenn of California, will also be featured. Glenn of California helped launch the careers of midcentury icons like Greta Grossman, Milo Baughman, Stanley Young, and Paul Laszlo. Baron, also a prolific designer, worked under his name and the pseudonym Craig Nealee. The collection includes furniture from the Barons' Huntington Harbour home along with important examples by contemporary printmakers. A decorated WWII veteran and POW survivor, Baron was awarded the French Légion d'honneur in 2008. 

Additional highlights include pieces by design legends Charles and Ray Eames, Florence Knoll, Hans Wegner, Norman Cherner, Gaetano Pesce, Vladimir Kagan, Steve Chase, Piero Fornasetti, Ib Kofod-Larsen, and Giancarlo Mattioli. From San Pedro artisan Harold Greene, Moran presents five handcrafted studio furniture lots (est. $600–1,200), reflecting the precision and warmth of the American studio tradition. As the L.A. Times recently noted, Greene is "a complete master of his craft." 

Rounding out the sale are four works by Dale Chihuly (est. $2,500–5,000), a pre-war Gibson Mastertone banjo (est. $1,000–2,000), fresh-to-market Andy Warhol ephemera, a signed 1992 Catalogue Raisonné by Cy Twombly, and a 1988 Porsche 911 Carrera (est. $20,000–30,000). 

For more information and to register and bid, go to www.johnmoran.com.

Contact:

Brenda Smith, John Moran Auctioneers
brenda@johnmoran.com

   

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SOURCE John Moran Auctioneers