Knoxville (865) 558-3033 • Nashville (615) 812-6096 • info@caseantiques.com

Case Auctions
Live Auction

2023 Summer Fine Art & Antiques (Day 1)

Sat, Jul 8, 2023 09:00AM EDT
Lot 155

Bill Sawyer Oil on Board Painting, "Fishing Worms"

Estimate: $3,000 - $3,400
Sold for

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $10
$100 $25
$500 $50
$1,000 $100
$3,000 $200
$5,000 $500
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
$50,000 $5,000
$100,000 $10,000
Bill Sawyer (American/Tennessee, 1936-2020) oil on board painting depicting a large old white house and outbuildings, set in a stark winter landscape with bare trees. The sole splashes of color come from the blue jeans and red pinafore of a man and child, standing on the porch, and from a homemade, red-lettered sign advertising "Fishing Worms", sticking out of the grass beside a dirt road. Signed "Bill Sawyer" lower left, near road. Housed in a stained wood frame with linen mat. Lyzon Gallery (Nashville) framing label en verso. Board - 18" H x 24" W. Frame - 25" H x 31" W. Biography: Bill Sawyer was a self-taught artist from Nashville. He is said to have taken up painting while stationed in France in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the 1950s. His first exhibition was in Nashville in May of 1959 and he went on to have one-man shows at Daniel Orr's Gallery in San Diego, the Little Gallery in Memphis, TN, and the Parthenon in Nashville. Joseph Patterson, then the president of the American Association of Museums, arranged for a show of Sawyer's work at the Durlacher Brothers Gallery in New York in 1964. Sawyer was the first untrained artist to have a one-man show at the gallery, and his second show there, in 1966, sold out. Shortly after this time, Sawyer traveled overseas. After his trip, for unknown reasons, Sawyer seems to have never painted again. He sought privacy, living quietly in Nashville, where he passed away in 2020. After 1966, his work went on to be exhibited at the Fine Arts Center at Cheekwood, and in the Art of Tennessee exhibit at the Frist Museum (2006).

Condition

A few tiny inclusions to roof and one miniscule stain in sky area, otherwise excellent condition.

Available payment options

  • Visa
  • Mastercard
  • Amex
  • Diners
  • Discover
  • JCB
  • Union Pay

Payment must be received no later than five (5) days after the sale.


If paying with a credit card, a 3% credit card processing fee will be applied to the final sales price (i.e. hammer price + buyer's premium + applicable taxes). If you have a credit card on file with Case, any winning bids will be automatically charged (up to $3000) along with applicable fees 72 hours after you receive your invoice unless other arrangements have been made.


If paying with wire transfer, please use the following information:
Bank: Pinnacle Bank
150 Third Avenue South, Suite 900
Nashville, TN 37201
Phone # (865) 766-3000
Swift Code: PNFPUS44
Routing, Transit, ABA: 064008637
Beneficiary: Case Antiques, Inc.
4310 Papermill Drive
Knoxville, TN 37909
Account #: NOT DISCLOSED (please refer to your invoice email for the Deposit Account Number or contact us )

The collection of Marlin Phythyon Sanders, Nashville, Tennessee.