KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Connoisseurs and aficionados have a chance to claim a piece of art history after the estate of Beauford Delaney announced it would auction some of the Knoxville artist's works to benefit a dance studio.
His estate is auctioning off some of his works to raise money for a Knoxville dance studio — named Dancers Studio. Money will be used to renovate the studio, built in the 1970s. Case Auctions is a partner in the fundraiser, and said it works to make sure all the pieces available are real.
"We've been able to really help to secure that for future generations and, kind of, really codify what is and what's not a Beauford Delaney work. Because, unfortunately, there are a lot of that come up at auction that are not actually by Beauford Delaney," said Reilly Shwab, a fine artist specialist.
Delaney is recognized internationally for his modernist paintings during the mid-20th century. Many of his works featured scenes of New York, jazz clubs and popular African-American figures. He has been referred to as one of the most important Black artists of his era.
He was born in Knoxville on Dec. 30, 1901. As his artistic talent developed, he gained the attention of Lloyd Branson, a full-time Knoxville artist who became his mentor. Delaney left Knoxville to study in Boston and eventually arrived in New York in 1929.
Eventually, Delaney met a young James Baldwin — a writer who emerged as a prominent and inspiring voice for New York City's LGBTQ+ community in the mid-1950s and 1960s. While Delaney was a fixture in Greenwich Village's gay community, the National Museum of African American History and Culture said he often hid his sexual identity from friends, fearing they would be repelled by it.
Baldwin encouraged Delaney to move to Paris, and Delaney eventually died there in 1979.
Some of Delaney's works will be available for viewing at an event on June 23 hosted by. Case and Dancers Studio. At the event, people can also enjoy cocktails and dance performances. Tickets cost $75, and attendees will have a chance to buy some of Delaney's works.
The main auction is set for July.