Date: Fri 19-Jun-1998

Publication: Ant

Author: AMYD

Quick Words:

Doyle-Galleries

Full Text:

William Doyle Galleries Celebrated 15 Years Auctioning Haute Couture

Collections On May 6 - lm

NEW YORK CITY -- On May 6, William Doyle Galleries celebrated 15 years

auctioning haute couture collections. The sale eclipsed expectations by

achieving a sale total of $420,312 and yielding a notably high overall selling

rate of 97 percent, with 58 percent of the lots surpassing the high estimates.

Having pioneered auctions of haute couture collections from such celebrities

as Hope Hampton and Gloria Swanson in 1983, William Doyle Galleries has

witnessed the ever increasing popularity of collecting couture, antique

clothing and textiles. Doyle reports there is a 70 percent increase in this

sale category over just the past three years.

The auction represented a timeline of fashion history beginning with Victorian

and Edwardian era examples and advancing to more modern designs from the

second half of the Twentieth Century. Leading the sale was a Paul Poiret gown,

circa 1910, made of ivory satin with a blue chiffon tunic overdress

embroidered and trimmed with loosely hanging beads. The aesthetic appeal of

this gown contributed to the $18,400 purchase price, which may also reflect

the current interest in pieces dating from around the historic year of the

Titanic disaster.

Another piece attracting attention was a white leather coat, circa 1915,

embroidered in black cord with white leather strips forming a lattice pattern

across the satin sleeves that were edged in monkey fur. Together with a

matching hat this set outdistanced the pre-sale estimate at $4,887.

Also among the top performers were several extravagant mid-1950s gowns such as

a Pierre Balmain ivory satin embroidered evening gown that sold to an American

museum for $3,450 and a black velvet mermaid-shaped strapless gown with a

beaded ivory satin flare designed by Charles James in 1954 that commanded

$14,375.

Other spectacular 1950s creations were highlights of the private collection of

Maria Cole, wife of music legend Nat King Cole. Stealing the spotlight were

two sleeveless Christian Dior dresses from 1958, the first year that Yves

Saint Laurent designed his own line for Dior. A rose silk faille bouffant

dress with flowers on the skirt from the spring/summer 1958 collection doubled

expectations at $6,900, while a cornflower blue silk faille cocktail dress

with an exuberant balloon skirt from the fall/winter 1958 collection sold for

$3,450. The interest in Yves Saint Laurent designs also extended to his

fashion drawing of costumes for Le Mariage de Figaro, which reached $2,770.

Representing the psychedelic decade was a quintessential 1960s Pucci evening

gown printed in geometric and spiral patterns of various shades and accented

with brightly colored beads and sequins. It reached $4,312.

Within the accessories category premium prices were commanded for items by

both Hermes and Louis Vuitton. Hermes handbags proved popular with private

collectors whose competitive bidding repeatedly drove prices well beyond the

pre-sale estimates, as demonstrated by the $5,175 attained for a 1950s black

crocodile Kelly bag, the $4,600 realized for a 1960s small black crocodile

mallette bag, and the $4,025 achieved for an early 1970s forest green calf

Kelly bag. Also well received was Louis Vuitton luggage such as a late

Nineteenth Century trunk in the checkerboard pattern that brought $2,530 and

other later examples dating from the 1950s with LV stamped leather trim,

including a steamer trunk that made $3,737 and a small suitcase that realized

$2,760. Unexpected enthusiasm greeted a most unusual and whimsical beaded bag

in the form of a monk puppet with painted wood head, hands and feet. It

generated $3,450.

The couture clothing and accessories were complemented by a rich diversity of

Asian, American and European textiles, including Victorian needlework and

lace, as well as a Nineteenth Century Sardinian coverlet that sold for $700 to

benefit the acquisition fund of the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum,

Smithsonian Institution.

All prices quoted reflect the 15 percent buyer's commission.

For information, call 212/427-2730 ext 212.