The Historic Artwork That Once Adorned the Offices of ‘Jet’ and ‘Ebony’ Heads to Auction This Month

Last year, Johnson Publishing,
the parent company behind Ebony and Jet magazines, filed for liquidation, ending the
historic enterprise’s 77-year run. By July, a quartet of
foundations teamed up at the
11th hour to purchase the company’s historic archives
of images, video, and audio
recordings. 

But the fate of the artwork that
adorned the company’s famous headquarters in downtown
Chicago—including pieces by Carrie Mae Weems, Henry Ossawa Tanner,
and Kenneth Victor Young—remained less certain.

Now, those works are set to be
sold. On January 30, Swann Galleries in New York will host a
sale dedicated to
the painting, sculptures, etchings, and other objects
by 75 African American artists
featured in Johnson’s offices. A free-and-public exhibition held five days
prior to the sale will mark the first time these works will have
been shown outside of the company.

“The collection displays the
many directions that fine art and the country itself were heading
in 1971—without a singular point of view and in seemingly opposite
directions,” says Nigel Freeman, director of African-American Fine
Art for Swann, in the introduction to the sale’s catalogue. “But
this variety perfectly reflects the important ideals of the Johnson
Publishing company—chronicling the breadth and depth of African
American life to a national audience.”

The Johnson Publishing Company
was founded with its flagship publication Ebony in 1942 by John Johnson. By the early ’70s,
with Jet
and other outfits also under its
umbrella, the business was at the height of its powers. Its
corporate offices at 820 South Michigan Avenue in the Windy City
became a local landmark upon opening in 1971. The 11-story building
was the first in Chicago’s loop to be designed and owned by African
Americans, and the lush interior complimented the magazine’s role
as a lodestar for black visual culture.

On the walls hung a number of
notable works that, later this month, will make their way to New
York for the auction: an installation of seven framed photographs
with etched glass by Carrie Mae Weems (estimated to go for $100,000
to $150,000 at Swann’s sale); a crepuscular canvas from 1912 by
Henry Ossawa Tanner ($150,000 to $250,000); bronze busts by
Richmond Barthé and Elizabeth Catlett (both estimated at $50,000 to
$75,000); and many others.

Swann’s sale will feature 87
lots in total, none of which will carry a guarantee. Altogether the
collection is valued at $1.2 million. Profits from the sale will go
toward secured claims against Johnson Publishing. Former CEO
Desiree Rogers, who previously loaned $2.7 million to the company,
will get the first cut, according to the Chicago
Tribune.

“African-American
Art from the Johnson Publishing
Company“ will take place Thursday, January 30, 2020,
at Swann Galleries in New York. 

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of ‘Jet’ and ‘Ebony’ Heads to Auction This Month appeared first
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