You Can Bid on a Painting by Jimmy Carter for a Few Thousand Dollars

Christie’s is selling four works by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter this month, all with high estimates of less than $15,000.

Three of the works are currently participating in an online auction called “American Collector,” which will end at 11 a.m. ET on January 27. mountain waterfall (2003) and steeple (2010) Both works have presale estimates of $6,000 to $8,000, and both works are undated. Still life (angry pomegranate) Estimated price is $2,000 to $4,000.

Currently, all three works are under active bidding. As of press time, steeple Ready to sell for $24,000 (after 31 bids), mountain waterfall $17,000 (26 bids), and still life $6,000 (35 bids).

The fourth work, hornet’s nest (2003) will be auctioned at a live day sale titled “We the People: America at 250” on January 23 in New York. The work, which depicts three Davy Crockett-esque men drawing rifles in a landscape, has a presale estimate of $8,000 to $12,000.

The four paintings are part of dozens of personal items belonging to Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalyn, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Carter Family Foundation, which focuses on supporting communities in the Carters’ native Georgia.

It includes a handwritten letter written on White House stationery from President Carter to Rosalind on her 51st birthday in 1978. Additionally, the “American Collector” sale features furniture crafted by Carter: Pine Manger Coffee Table and Two round side tables in carved walnut Both are estimated at $2,000-4,000, while Ash jewelry box The estimate is $1,000 to $15,000.

The four paintings are part of a collection of nearly 100 paintings that Carter created after leaving the White House, although he first encountered painting through mail-order painting classes while serving in the U.S. Navy after World War II, his daughter Amy Carter told The New York Times new york times.

“In his daily life, he was constantly thinking about the really big problems that he wanted to solve,” Amy Carter told reporters. era. “None of these things are in his paintings. His paintings seem to be quiet places for the things he loves.”

Carter was not the only 20th-century political figure to be painted, with former US presidents George W. Bush and Dwight D. Eisenhower and former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill all taking up paint.

However, Churchill’s paintings are the only ones with a significant market, with a 1943 painting once owned by actor and activist Angelina Jolie selling for $11.6 million at a Christie’s London auction in 2021. according to era The report said the low prices for Carter’s paintings were intentional to establish a benchmark for his market.