Artnet Auctions’ Important Photographs sale has returned, now live for bidding through October 17, 2024, featuring a striking range of 20th-century works by some of the medium’s most influential photographers. Rarity is a common thread among the available lots, marking the sale as a true, not-to-be-missed opportunity for collectors of photography. The works are rare by being vintage, or because of the medium used, being from a very small edition, or because they are a rare variant of a main image that was done in a larger number. One such example is a unique edition of Children at a Puppet Theatre, Paris (1963) by German American photographer and photojournalist Alfred Eisenstaedt, which has a provenance traceable directly to the artist, as it was given to his friend and editor Barbara Baker Burrows through his sister-in-law.

Below, we explore just a few of the top lots from the Important Photographs sale through the lens or rarity.

Cindy Sherman, Untitled Film Still (1979)

Cindy Sherman, Untitled Film Still (1979). Est. $60,000–$80,000.

Cindy Sherman is among the most famous contemporary photographers today and is best-known for her staged self-portraits. She first garnered widespread acclaim with her series “Untitled Film Stills,” which she created in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The present Untitled Film Still (1979) is a unique vintage edition, but closely related to another famous image from the series taken at a slightly different angle, which was once used as a benefit print for the academic journal October. The image is exemplary of Sherman’s exploration of gender and identity, and her chameleon-like persona.

Annie Leibovitz, Keith Haring, New York (1986)

Annie Leibovitz, Keith Haring, New York (1986). Est. $40,000–$60,000.

Created by the influential Annie Leibovitz and depicting seminal visual artist Keith Haring covered in and surrounded by his signature painting motifs and patterns makes the image iconic in and of itself, and one of the most important photographs of the past century. As the story goes, initially Haring only covered the room and his torso with black lines, but together with Leibovitz decided to paint the rest of himself too to create a truly immersive image. A rare platinum print and printer’s proof from an edition of 30, Keith Haring, New York (1986) presents an opportunity to not only acquire one of Leibovitz’s most desirable images, but in a rare medium and size as well.

Peter Beard, Elephant Mother and Child (1972)

Peter Beard, Elephant Mother and Child (1972). $60,000–$80,000.

Peter Beard garnered international acclaim for his documentary images of the African continent and, more specifically, his images of wildlife, as well as his extensive journals where he frequently incorporated his images. While primarily employing photography to create Elephant Mother and Child (1972), the work also includes collaged elements and drawings, resulting in the present lot being wholly unique—a hallmark of Beard’s practice, as he often incorporated ephemera, organic elements like leaves, or hand-drawn or written elements on each work. Also notable about the present lot is the series of images surrounding the central image, as it is a collection of some of his most famous shots.

Edward Steichen, J. Pierpont Morgan, Esq. (1903)

Edward Steichen, J. Pierpont Morgan, Esq. (1903). Est. $100,000–$150,000.

Pioneering photographer Edward Steichen is recognized as one of the key figures who transformed the medium into a genre of fine art, cited by Alfred Stieglitz as “the greatest photographer that ever lived.” His portrait of American financier and investment banker J. Pierpont Morgan is a rare vintage gum bichromate over platinum print, and only 12 prints from this particular negative have ever been made. The print was recently shown at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, and the Morgan Library and Museum, New York, holds a print of this same version in its archive collection. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, has a different version of the print, and while that iteration appears regularly for sale, the present version and that of the Morgan have never been offered for sale before.

Richard Learoyd, Agnes, July 2013 (2013)

Richard Learoyd, Agnes, July 2013 (2013). Est. $25,000–$35,000.

Measuring framed at 74.5-by-60 inches, Agnes July 2013 (2013) is an exceptionally large piece by prodigious British visual artist Richard Learoyd. Speaking to the piece’s rarity, it hails from an edition of just three prints. Learoyd is best known for his contemplative and atmospheric portraits, such as the present image, landscapes, and still lifes, which he creates using antique methods of production, namely using camera obscura. The result is grain-less, arresting images that seem to defy the limits of human visual perception.

Important Photographs is now live for bidding through October 17, 2024.