The California Cool Art Auction featured works by more than 100 California artists and reached sales of over $466,000 last Saturday, making it the Laguna Art Museum’s most successful to date.
Proceeds of the auction, attended by 300 people and in its 36th edition, will benefit the museum’s exhibitions and education programs.
The live auction of 20 works included eager bidding on Peter Alexander’s “LAX XXXII,” which sold for $23,000, a museum statement said. Among the other works Tony DeLap’s “Eye in the Sky” fetched $21,000, Lita Albuquerque’s “Heavy Metal Explosion (Silver)” sold for $20,000 and the late Cheryl Ekstrom’s “Beanbag,” sold for $19,000.
Andrea Fiuczynski of Sotheby’s and Mark J. Thomas of California Coast Auctions orchestrated the competitive bidding, with absentee bids adding to the fervor.
Museum education curator Marinta Skupin successfully advocated for a Fund-A-Need campaign, which raised over $33,000 to support secondary school programs.
Another 90 works were purchased by silent bidders with over $173,000 in sales.
Event organizers included Sara Heeschen, Deborah Lake, Jeannie Denholm, Ruben Flores, Vanessa Helin, Lauren MacLaughlin-Brinker, and Karen Morally, along with the museum’s Sarah Strozza.
