Bid On-the-Go!
Download the Invaluable app and never miss an auction from your iOS or Android device.
John Thomas Biggers Sold at Auction Prices
Painter, Sculptor, Illustrator, b. 1924 - d. 2001
See Artist Details0 Lots
Sort By:
Categories
Auction Date
Seller
Seller Location
Price Range
soldMay. 20, 2023John Biggers, 1924-2001, Midnight Hour
Est: $1,500 - $2,500John Biggers 1924-2001 Midnight Hour 1995 color etching 18 x 13-1/2 inches (image) signed, titled, dated and numbered CTP 1/25
Black Art Auction
soldMay. 20, 2023John Biggers, 1924-2001, Four Sisters
Est: $1,500 - $2,500John Biggers 1924-2001 Four Sisters 2000 linoleum cut on wove paper 9 x 12 inches (image) signed, titled, dated and numbered 42/75, 2nd edition Following the September 15, 1963 bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, John Biggers reflected on the lives lost of the four young girls who were killed while attending Sunday School. According to Olive Jensen Thiesen, Biggers also made three drawings in a single weekend, Give Me Two Wings, Man of Fire and Mother and Children, in direct response to the events of the Civil Rights struggle. Thiesen p. 68.
Black Art Auction
soldMay. 20, 2023John Biggers, 1924-2001, Holy Family
Est: $20,000 - $30,000John Biggers 1924-2001 Holy Family 1983 conte crayon on paper 27 x 22-1/2 inches signed; signed, titled and dated verso, with small artist's tag Provenance: acquired directly from the artist by Max Robinson. Robinson was the first African American network news anchor in the United States.
Black Art Auction
soldMay. 20, 2023John Biggers, 1924-2001, Our Grandmothers
Est: $2,000 - $3,000John Biggers 1924-2001 Our Grandmothers 1994 book illustrated by John Biggers, text by Maya Angelou 22 x 17-3/4 inches Printed on hand-made paper at HMP Papermill; printed by Daniel Keleher at Wild Carrot Letterpress; design by Dan Carr, lithographs printed at Trestle Editions. The Limited Editions Club. signed by Biggers and Angelou numbered 13 (edition of 400)
Black Art Auction
soldMay. 20, 2023John Biggers, 1924-2001, Contribution of Negro Women in American Life and Education
Est: $1,000 - $2,000John Biggers 1924-2001 Contribution of Negro Women in American Life and Education 1993 color lithograph on paper 12 x 35 inches (image) full margins signed, dated and AP in pencil by the artist
Black Art Auction
soldMay. 20, 2023John Biggers, 1924-2001, At Risk
Est: $1,000 - $2,000John Biggers 1924-2001 At Risk At Risk 1996 lithograph on wove paper 15 3/4 x 11 3/4 inches signed, numbered AP/8 in pencil
Black Art Auction
soldMay. 20, 2023John Biggers, 1924-2001, Dau Fuskie
Est: $1,000 - $2,000John Biggers 1924-2001 Dau Fuskie Dau Fuskie (The First Race between the Turtle and the Hare) 1998 lithograph 10 x 13 3/4 inches signed, and "AP" (outside an edition of 200)
Black Art Auction
soldApr. 06, 2023JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Victim.
Est: $3,000 - $5,000JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Victim. Lithograph on cream wove paper, 1965. 457x406 mm; 18x16 inches, full margins. Signed, dated, titled, and numbered 3/10 in pencil, lower margin. A very good impression of this scarce print.
Swann Auction Galleries
soldApr. 06, 2023JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) The Upper Room.
Est: $10,000 - $15,000JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) The Upper Room. Color lithograph, 1984. 970x660 mm; 38x26 inches, full margins. Signed, titled, dated and numbered 33/75 in pencil, lower margin. Printed by Hand Graphics, Ltd., Santa Fe, with the blind stamp lower left.
Swann Auction Galleries
soldApr. 06, 2023JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Metamorphosis III.
Est: $2,000 - $3,000JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Metamorphosis III. Lithograph printed on cream wove paper, 1992. 762x546 mm; 30x21 1/2 inches, full margins. Signed, titled, dated and numbered 55/70 in pencil, lower margin. Printed by Hand Graphics, Santa Fe, NM, with the blind stamp, lower right.
Swann Auction Galleries
soldFeb. 14, 2023John Mason Brewer (American 1896-1975), Aunt Dicy Tales, Snuff-Dipping Tales of the Texas Negro, with Illustrations by John T. Biggers (American 1924-2001), Copyright 1956, Signed, Limited Edition Book, 328/400
Est: $100 - $200John Mason Brewer (American 1896-1975), Aunt Dicy Tales, Snuff-Dipping Tales of the Texas Negro, with Illustrations by John T. Biggers (American 1924-2001), Copyright 1956, Signed, Limited Edition Book, 328/400, John Mason Brewer was a writer who primarily wrote about African American folklore in Texas. Brewer was the first African American to deliver a lecture series at the University of Arizona, the University of California, and the University of Colorado. He was also known for breaking the color barrier at the Driskill Hotel in Austin. John T. Biggers was an African American muralist who was a founding chairman of the Art Department at Texas State University for Negros, Houston (now Texas Southern University).
Weschler's
soldJan. 21, 2023John Biggers. "Our Grandmothers," printers proof
Est: $2,600 - $8,000(American, 1924-2001). Lithograph printer's proof portfolio for the series "Our Grandmothers." five printers proofs with printer notations, together with a colophon from a final edition, pencil signed by John Biggers and ink signed by Maya Angelou, final series ed. of 400, print final size: 24 x 18 in., unframed, encased in a linen portfolio.
Alex Cooper
soldDec. 03, 2022John Biggers (NC/VA/TX, 1924-2001), Our Grandmothers IV (Morning Star, Evening Star)
Est: $800 - $1,200John Biggers (NC/VA/TX, 1924-2001), Our Grandmothers IV (Morning Star, Evening Star) lithograph on cream wove paper, 1994, pencil signed and numbered 46/60 lower margin, with full margins, from Our Grandmothers, matted and framed. Biggers created this series to illustrate Maya Angelou's poem, Our Grandmothers (1994). Image size 22 x 16 3/4 in.; Frame dimensions 33 x 27 in. Born in Gastonia, North Carolina in 1924, John Biggers was one of the most significant African American artists of the twentieth century. He enrolled at Hampton University in Virginia - then Hampton Institute - where he planned to study plumbing, but after taking a class taught by the influential art educator Viktor Lowenfeld, his concentration shifted. Artistic highlights of his experience at Hampton Institute are inclusion of work in the 1943 Museum of Modern Art exhibition, Young Negro Art, a compilation of selected works by Hampton students. Biggers also became friends with fellow students and artists Elizabeth Catlett and Charles White. Biggers was drafted for the US Navy in 1943, which at the time was still segregated, so he was stationed at Hampton and created preparatory military models for training purposes. Upon leaving the army, he transferred to Pennsylvania State University where he completed his Ph.D. in Art Education. He went on to accept a faculty position at Texas State University for Negroes in Houston (now Texas Southern University), where he founded and chaired the Art Department until his retirement. Private Collection, Durham, North Carolina Additional high-resolution photos are available at www.lelandlittle.com
Leland Little Auctions
soldNov. 19, 2022John Biggers, 1924-2001, Beliphone
Est: $500 - $700John Biggers 1924-2001 Beliphone 2000 lithograph on Rives paper 19-1/4 x 13-1/4 inches signed, dated, titled and numbered 28/50
Black Art Auction
soldNov. 19, 2022John Biggers, 1924-2011, The Four Sisters
Est: $1,000 - $2,000John Biggers 1924-2011 The Four Sisters 2000 lithograph 9 x 12 inches (image) signed, titled, dated and numbered 38/75, 2nd edition
Black Art Auction
soldNov. 19, 2022John Biggers, 1924-2001, Holy Family
Est: $30,000 - $50,000John Biggers 1924-2001 Holy Family 1983 conte crayon on paper 27 x 22-1/2 inches signed; signed, titled and dated verso, with small artist's tag Provenance: the artist to a significant private collection, Chicago, IL
Black Art Auction
soldNov. 06, 2022JOHN BIGGERS PRINT 1998 99/200
Est: $200 - $400JOHN BIGGERS PRINT 1998 99/200 JOHN THOMAS BIGGER WAS AN AFRICAN- AMERICAN MURALIST WHO CAME TO PROMINENCE AFTER THE HARLEM RENAISSANCE AND TOWARDS THE END OF WORLD WAR II. Height: 20.25 in. by Width: 24 in.
Lewis & Maese Auction Company
soldOct. 06, 2022JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) The Word.
Est: $4,000 - $6,000JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) The Word. Lithograph on buff wove paper, 1965. 381x508 mm; 15x20 inches, full margins. Proof, aside from the first edition. Signed, titled, dated and inscribed "proof 1st Ed" and "From Marian Anderson's People" in pencil, lower margin. Illustrated: A Life on Paper: The Drawings and Lithographs of John Thomas Biggers, Olive Jensen Theisen, University of North Texas Press, Denton, Texas, 1984, fig. 50, p. 67. This scarce print, dating from the artist's first body of work in lithography, is a first edition proof for Marian Anderson's People.
Swann Auction Galleries
soldOct. 06, 2022JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Untitled (Study of a Gourd.).
Est: $5,000 - $7,000JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Untitled (Study of a Gourd.). Conté crayon with watercolor on smooth wove paper, circa 1985. 279x355 mm; 11x14 inches. Signed in conté crayon, upper left. Provenance: acquired directly from the artist, private collection, Texas. The gourd is a familiar object in African culture and John Biggers's art. It is one of the many everyday objects Biggers used to symoblize African heritage and Black culture in his paintings and murals.
Swann Auction Galleries
soldOct. 06, 2022JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Untitled (Study for the Word).
Est: $8,000 - $12,000JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Untitled (Study for the Word). Conté crayon on cream wove paper, 1951. 355x508 mm; 14x20 inches. Signed and dated in pencil, lower left. Provenance: acquired directly from the artist, private collection, Texas. Exhibited: Private Treasure, Public View, San Antonio Museum of Art, Texas, February 2 - March 14, 1985. This scarce study was created by Biggers as a preparatory work for the figures he used in two murals: The Contributions of Negro Women to American Life and Education, for the Blue Triangle Community Center, Houston, TX, 1954 and The History of Negro Education in Morris County, Naples, TX, 1955. The lithograph, The Word, 1965 also features these two men, who symbolize advancement and education for African Americans.
Swann Auction Galleries
soldOct. 06, 2022JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Family Ark.
Est: $5,000 - $7,000JOHN BIGGERS (1924 - 2001) Family Ark. Offset color lithograph triptych, 1992. Overall 758x1257 mm; 29 3/8x49 1/2 inches. Left panel, 758x352 mm; 29 3/8x 13 7/8 inches; center panel, 758x555 mm; 29 3/8x21 7/8 inches; right panel, 758x352 mm; 29 x13 7/8 inches. Signed, dated and numbered 17/100 in pencil, lower right. Printed and published by the Brandywine Workshop, Philadelphia. Provenance: the collection of Anne & Allan Edmunds. Illustrated: Allan L. Edmunds, ed. and Halima Taha. Three Decades of American Printmaking: The Brandywine Workshop Collection pl. 150, p. 117. Another impression of this triptych is in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Painter, muralist, printmaker and educator John Biggers elevated the importance of understanding and addressing one's heritage in his narrative art. He conveyed this consciousness to generations of his students at Hampton University and Texas Southern University. In this composition, filled with symbols and objects from African and African American history, art, and religion, Biggers presents a family united in prayer in a triptych format resembling an altarpiece. The head wrap on the woman with outstretched arms at the center evokes the horned headdress of Hathor, the Egyptian goddess of love and protection. Consigned to support the Brandywine Workshop in Philadelphia and its legacy endowment campaign.
Swann Auction Galleries
soldJul. 30, 2022John Thomas Biggers, American , Midnight Hour, 1995, color etching, ed. 12/60
Est: $1,000 - $1,500John Thomas Biggers American Midnight Hour, 1995 color etching, ed. 12/60 signed, dated, titled and numbered in pencil lower margin, unframed.
Link Auction Galleries
soldJul. 30, 2022John Thomas Biggers, American (1924-2001), Family Ark, Triptych, 1992, color offset lithograph
Est: $4,000 - $6,000John Thomas Biggers American, (1924-2001) Family Ark, Triptych, 1992 color offset lithograph initialed and dated on the reverse, unframed.
Link Auction Galleries
soldJul. 14, 2022John Biggers (American, 1924-2001) Our Grandmothers suite, 1994 Lithographs on p
Est: $500 - $700John Biggers (American, 1924-2001) Our Grandmothers suite, 1994 Lithographs on paper 21-1/2 x 16-1/2 inches (54.6 x 41.9 cm) (image, each) 340/400 Signed by Maya Angelou and John Biggers in ink on the colophon Published by The Limited Editions Club HID01801242017
Heritage Auctions
Popular Artists
As the world's leading online auction marketplace, thousands of auction houses use Invaluable to deepen relationships with millions of clients around the world. Stay connected to the things you love with curated items and auctions sent to your inbox.
You can unsubscribe at any time. View ourPrivacy Policy.
© 1986-2023 Invaluable, LLC. and participating auction houses. All Rights Reserved.
