Lester Thomas Beall Paintings & Artwork for Sale | Lester Thomas Beall Art Value Price Guide

Oct. 30, 2024
LESTER BEALL (1903 – 1969)
Est: £4,000 - £6,000
LESTER BEALL (1903 – 1969) UNITED STATES LINES TRIPTYCH three lithographic posters, condition A-; backed on linen, framed each 30 x 22 in. ( 76 x 56 cm.)
Lyon & Turnbull
Aug. 03, 2023
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). S.S. AMERICA / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 30x22 inches, 76¼x56 cm.
Est: $1,000 - $1,500
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) S.S. AMERICA / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 30x22 inches, 76 1/4x56 cm. Condition A-: minor abrasions at edges; foxing in image. Paper. "In 1951, Beall was retained, through J. Walter Thompson, on the United States Lines Company account developing all of the promotional material for the ocean liner United States. For four years he designed posters, menus, cocktail napkins, linens and everything else that required graphic treatment" (Beall p. 72). Beall designed at least 6 posters for the United States Lines, each with a crisp, efficient, modern graphic treatment, and realized with a contemporary dynamic vision.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 18, 2023
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). SLUMS BREED CRIME / UNITED STATES HOUSING AUTHORITY. 1941. 39¾x29½ inches, 101x75 cm. U.S. Government Printi
Est: $4,000 - $6,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) SLUMS BREED CRIME / UNITED STATES HOUSING AUTHORITY. 1941. 39 3/4x29 1/2 inches, 101x75 cm. U.S. Government Printing Office, [Washington, D.C.] Condition A / A-: slight time-staining at top edge; minor abrasions at edges; minor creases along unobtrusive horizontal fold; pencil notations at bottom edge. Paper. In 1937, Beall was the first American designer to have a one man show at the Museum of Modern Art, and in the same year was one of the first designers commissioned by the U.S. Government to help promote the Rural Electrification Administration.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 18, 2023
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). CROSS OUT SLUMS / UNITED STATES HOUSING AUTHORITY. 1941. 39¾x29½ inches, 101x75 cm. U.S. Government Printing
Est: $4,000 - $6,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) CROSS OUT SLUMS / UNITED STATES HOUSING AUTHORITY. 1941. 39 3/4x29 1/2 inches, 101x75 cm. U.S. Government Printing Office, [Washington, D.C.] Condition A / A-: small tears and abrasions at edges; minor creases along unobtrusive horizontal fold; pencil notations at bottom edge. Paper. In the 1930s, Beall produced a series of silkscreen posters for the Rural Electrification Administration. Here, for the United States Housing Authority, in a continuation of his earlier series, Beall provides a powerful visual rejection of Depression Era / Dustbowl shanties in favor of larger, newer residences. One of a series of progressively designed posters produced by Beall for the U.S. Government, featuring photomontage, sans-serif lettering and other recognizable elements of European design, which began filtering into America before the war. Lester Beall was "able to bring the clean asymmetry of Bauhaus design into everyday life in this country long before Gropius and Mies Van der Rohe were given an opportunity to do so in architecture" (Word & Image p. 62). Word & Image p. 86, Mechanical Age pl. 74.
Swann Auction Galleries
Feb. 28, 2023
Original Lester Beall 1941 Poster - Don't Let Him Down
Est: $1,500 - $2,000
Lester Beall (1903 - 1969) was the first graphic artist to be honored by a one-man exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art (in 1937) and was awarded the 1983 Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Institute of Graphic Arts. Deeply influenced by the European avant-garde in the 1930's, Beall synthesized its forms for the American business community and was a pioneer in the development of advertising, corporate identity design, packaging, and print media during the post-war decades. In this image, created in 1941, for the U.S. Government Office of Emergency Management Beall uses his recognizable style to put forward a powerful message. Beall uses a photo in the background to let the domestic viewers know that it is essential to support our American troops. The patriotic message shows Beall's application of compositional thrust and counter-thrust to balance a forceful space. ( R.Remington) This is an Original Vintage Poster printed using stone lithography; it is not a reproduction. This poster is conservation mounted, linen backed, and in excellent condition. We guarantee the authenticity of all of our posters.
The Ross Art Group, Inc
May. 19, 2022
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). S.S. AMERICA / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 29½x21½ inches, 75x54½ cm.
Est: $1,500 - $2,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) S.S. AMERICA / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 29 1/2x21 1/2 inches, 75x54 1/2 cm. Condition A: minor abrasions at edges. In 1937, Beall was the first American designer to have a one-man show at the Museum of Modern Art. He designed at least six posters for the United States Lines, each with a crisp, efficient, modern graphic treatment, and realized with a contemporary dynamic vision.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 19, 2022
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). EUROPE / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 29½x21½ inches, 75x54½ cm.
Est: $1,500 - $2,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) EUROPE / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 29 1/2x21 1/2 inches, 75x54 1/2 cm. Condition A: minor restoration at edges. In the 1930s, after a traditional education in Chicago, Lester Beall became interested in avant-garde typography and the design elements of the Bauhaus. He moved to New York in 1935, where he began a successful career as an art director. He created world-acclaimed logos and corporate identities for such companies as American International Paper, Merrill Lynch, Caterpillar, Martin Marietta and the New York Hilton. His goal was always to get his clients out of what he called "the vast anonymity." He strove to achieve this goal with graphics as simple, efficient and readable as possible, as exemplified here with the S.S. United States in the middle of a patriotically-colored arrow pointing toward the word "Europe." Beall p. 73.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 19, 2022
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1937. 40x30 inches, 101½x76¼ cm.
Est: $12,000 - $18,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1937. 40x30 inches, 101 1/2x76 1/4 cm. Condition B+: repaired tear at bottom edge, into text; repaired tears, creases and abrasions at edges; archival tape and hinges on verso; partial silkscreen. Paper. One of the greatest American posters of the 20th Century, Beall's optimistic, patriotic and progressive image is a monumental work whose aesthetic simplicity masks a complex design that reveals "the artist's distinctly American counterpart to European modernism" (Mechanical Age p. 174). In fact, in many ways this image can be seen as the American version of El Lissitsky's Russische Ausstellung (see Swann Sale 2039, lot 77), with the boy and the girl gazing hopefully and happily into their future. "The image speaks for itself in this almost-textless photomontage, a brilliant combination of realism and abstraction. These are 'poster children' for the REA - happy beneficiaries of the program, in the present and the future . . . The flag motif serves several purposes. It signifies the overarching protection of the New Deal; the 'matched' white stripes and fence rails subtly reinforce the connection between America and the farm; and it provides further visual interest, as the band of blue below the stripes somehow still functions as sky." Beall 114, Mechanical Age pl. 58, Resnick 30, Modern Poster 186, MoMA 221.1937.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 19, 2022
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). [ADVERTISING PROOFS / ENTRIES]. Group of 5 ads. 1936-1938. Sizes vary, each approximately 16¼x12½ inches, 41
Est: $1,500 - $2,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) [ADVERTISING PROOFS / ENTRIES]. Group of 5 ads. 1936-1938. Sizes vary, each approximately 16 1/4x12 1/2 inches, 41 1/4x31 3/4 cm. Condition varies, generally A-: each on LB stamped letterhead, mounted to illustration boards; paper taped to verso with submission information and handwritten notations. Group includes: one ad for Hiram Walker (1936), a Canadian Whiskey distillery; two for George Bijur, Inc. (1938), a Manhattan advertising agency; and two for Time Magazine (1938). Images available upon request.
Swann Auction Galleries
Feb. 05, 2022
Original American World War II Poster Lester Beall
Est: $300 - $450
Beall , Lester 1903 - 1969 Don´t let him down Offset 1942 40.1 x 29.9 in. (102 x 76 cm) Printer: U.S. Government Printing Office Condition Details: (B) small tears and minor staining at the edges, surface creasing
PosterConnection Inc.
Jul. 20, 2021
United States Lines / Europe. ca. 1952.
Est: $1,400 - $1,700
ARTIST: LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) SIZE: 22 1/2 x 30 1/8 in./57 x 76.6 cm PRINTER: DESCRIPTION: Lester Beall's work "is a good illustration of how the simplified forms, direct message, and smooth surfaces of Cassandre found an echo here" (Word & Image, p. 62). Beall has all his tricks—arrows, stripes, angles, and an exciting dramatic thrust—on display for the brand new S.S. United States. This may have been the poster introducing the S.S. United States for its inaugural voyage, before its Blue Riband triumph over the H.M.S. Queen Mary in trans-Atlantic speed. (Modern; Travel; Ships; American)
Poster Auctions International Inc
May. 13, 2021
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). POWER FOR DEFENSE / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1941. 40x30 inches, 101½x76¼ cm. U.S. Department o
Est: $8,000 - $12,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) POWER FOR DEFENSE / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1941. 40x30 inches, 101 1/2x76 1/4 cm. U.S. Department of Agriculture. Condition B+: small losses, replaced losses, sharp creases and abrasions along bottom edge; minor creases and abrasions at edges; staining at left edge. Partial silkscreen. Mounted on paper. "The third set, designed in 1941, the year the US entered World War II, makes references to national defence, with titles such as ‘A Better Home,' ‘A Turn of the Hand,' ‘Power on the Farm' and ‘Rural Industries.' This group is the most visually intricate, with angled typography, patterns of colour bars and dots, and silhouetted photographs" (Eyemagazine.com). This is from the 3rd series. Beall 120, Remington p. 64.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 13, 2021
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). NOW I'M SATISFIED / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. Circa 1939. 40x30 inches, 101½x76¼ cm. U.S. Depar
Est: $8,000 - $12,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) NOW I'M SATISFIED / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. Circa 1939. 40x30 inches, 101 1/2x76 1/4 cm. U.S. Department of Agriculture. Condition B / B+: small replaced losses, repaired tears and creases at edges; creases and scuffing in margins and image. Partial silkscreen. Mounted on Japan. "Beall's first REA poster series emphasized electricity's role in meeting basic human needs . . . [but] showed no people. The second poster series, however, showed technology's impact on actual users, a tendency towards realism that Beall reinforced by incorporating photography" (Resnick p. 58). This impressive photomontage depicts an elderly woman, sitting comfortably in her rocking chair, sewing by the electric light cast from her table lamp. This is from the 2nd series. Beall 110.
Swann Auction Galleries
Mar. 27, 2021
Lester Beall (1903-1969) "Running Water - Rural El
Est: $2,000 - $4,000
1937. Silkscreen.
Cottone Auctions
Feb. 04, 2021
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) When I Think Back / Rural Electrification Administration.
Est: $8,000 - $12,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) When I Think Back / Rural Electrification Administration. Partial-silkscreen poster, unbacked. 1016x762 mm, 40x30 inches. 1939. "Beall demonstrated with these posters that the language of communication was not necessarily bound to timework cliches and literal conventions. An expanding world of science, technology and manufacturing had generated rising expectations that called for a new graphic industry, succinct of statement and visually attuned to the increasing velocity of American life" (Beall p. 74). Beall 113.
Swann Auction Galleries
Feb. 04, 2021
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) A Better Home / Rural Electrification Administration.
Est: $10,000 - $15,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) A Better Home / Rural Electrification Administration. Partial-silkscreen poster, unbacked. 1016x762 mm, 40x30 inches. 1941. In the 1930s, after a traditional education in Chicago, Lester Beall became interested in avant-garde typography and in the design elements of the Bauhaus. He moved to New York in 1935, where he began an extraordinarily successful career as an art director. Not only did he create world-acclaimed logos and corporate identities for such companies as American International Paper, Merrill Lynch, Caterpillar, Martin Marieta and the New York Hilton, but working for the publisher McGraw-Hill, he redesigned 20 of their magazines. In 1937, he was the first American designer to have a one man show at the Museum of Modern Art. Beall 117.
Swann Auction Galleries
Feb. 04, 2021
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) It's Fine For Us / Rural Electrification Administration.
Est: $10,000 - $15,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) It's Fine For Us / Rural Electrification Administration. Partial-silkscreen poster, unbacked. 1016x762 mm, 40x30 inches. 1939. Lester Beall was one of the first designers commissioned by the U.S. Government to help promote the Rural Electrification Administration. The posters he created in this series, released in three sets for the R.E.A., pitched basic modern amenities to the hinter lands of America, where many such "luxuries" were virtually unknown. The R.E.A. existed not only to help rural America enter into the modern age but also served to create jobs for a Depression-ravaged country. Elevating visual communication to an extremely efficient level, Beall's style involves a technique close to the ideogram, employing clear and direct images, free from any exterior influences that would lessen the pure message. Beall 115.
Swann Auction Galleries
Oct. 12, 2020
Original American World War II Poster Lester Beall
Est: $400 - $600
Beall , Lester 1903 - 1969. Don´t let him down. Offset 1942. Printer: U.S. Government Printing Office. Condition Details: (B) small tears and minor staining at the edges, surface creasing
PosterConnection Inc.
Sep. 26, 2020
Original American World War II Poster Lester Beall
Est: $400 - $600
Beall , Lester 1903 - 1969. Don´t let him down. Offset 1942. Printer: U.S. Government Printing Office. Condition Details: (B) small tears and minor staining at the edges, surface creasing
PosterConnection Inc.
Feb. 20, 2020
Original Lester Beall Poster c1950 for United States Lines on Carton
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
Lester Beall (1903 -1969) was the first graphic artist to be honored by a one-man exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art (in 1937) and was awarded the 1983 Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Institute of Graphic Arts. Deeply influenced by the European avant-garde in the 1930's, Beall synthesized its forms for the American business community and was a pioneer in the development of advertising, corporate identity design, packaging, and print media during the post-war decades. "In 1951, Beall was retained, through J. Walter Thompson, on the United States Lines Company account developing all of the promotional material for the ocean liner United States. For four years he designed posters, menus, cocktail napkins, linens and everything else that required graphic treatment" (Beall p. 72). This is an Original Vintage Poster printed using stone lithography; it is not a reproduction. This poster is printed on a thin carton board for a stand up display and shows minor smudges and handling. We guarantee the authenticity of all of our posters.
The Ross Art Group, Inc
Jun. 08, 2019
Original 1940s American WW II Poster LESTER BEALL
Est: $200 - $350
Artist: Beall , Lester 1903 - 1969. Don´t Let Him Down. Technique: Photo/Offset 1942. Size: 40.1 x 29.9 in. (102 x 76 cm). Printer: U.S. Government Printing Office. Condition Details: (B+) was folded, small tears at the edges and folds. Estimate: $350. Reserve / Starting Price: $200.
PosterConnection Inc.
May. 23, 2019
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1937. 39x29 inches, 99x75 cm.
Est: $20,000 - $30,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1937. 39 1/4x29 1/2 inches, 99 3/4x75 cm. Condition B+: minor creases and abrasions at edges; creases, minor scratches and light foxing in image; partial silkscreen. Mounted on Japan. One of the greatest American posters of the 20th Century, Beall's optimistic, patriotic and progressive image is a monumental work whose aesthetic simplicity masks a complex design that reveals "the artist's distinctly American counterpart to European modernism" (Mechanical Age p. 174). In fact, in many ways this image can be seen as the American version of El Lissitsky's Russische Ausstellung (see Swann Sale #2039, lot 77), with the boy and the girl gazing hopefully and happily into their future. "The image speaks for itself in this almost-textless photomontage, a brilliant combination of realism and abstraction. These are 'poster children' for the REA - happy beneficiaries of the program, in the present and the future . . . The flag motif serves several purposes. It signifies the overarching protection of the New Deal; the 'matched' white stripes and fence rails subtly reinforce the connection between America and the farm; and it provides further visual interest, as the band of blue below the stripes somehow still functions as sky." Beall 114, Mechanical Age pl. 58, Resnick 30, Modern Poster 186, MoMA 221.1937.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 18, 2019
Conrad Herrmann - Old Man Reading in Cottage Interior
Est: $300 - $500
Conrad Herrmann - Old Man Reading in Cottage Interior
Westbridge Fine Art Auction House
Mar. 31, 2019
Lester Beall - Untitled - Abstract
Est: $900 - $1,200
Untitled - Abstract (mixed media on paper board, 22" x 29.5", framed)
Westbridge Fine Art Auction House
Dec. 16, 2018
Lester Beall - Untitled - Abstract
Est: $900 - $1,200
Untitled - Abstract (mixed media on paperboard, 22" x 29.5", framed)
Westbridge Fine Art Auction House
Oct. 28, 2018
Lester Beall - Untitled - Abstract
Est: $900 - $1,200
Untitled - Abstract (framed mixed media on paperboard, 22" x 29.5")
Westbridge Fine Art Auction House
Jun. 26, 2018
S.S. America. ca. 1939.
Est: $2,000 - $2,500
ARTIST: LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) SIZE: 21 7/8 x 30 in./55.5 x 76.2 cm DESCRIPTION: Lester Beall was one of the chief figures in American Modernist graphic design from the 1930s until his death in 1969. His signature style used angled elements, dynamic arrows, iconic shapes, and silhouetted photographs. All but the last are in evidence for this quite direct advertisement for the great S.S. America. The ship, sponsored by Eleanor Roosevelt, was one of the few with interiors designed entirely by women. The smokestacks, originally designed for a streamlined look, had to be raised over 15 feet to prevent soot accumulations on the aft decks. While the S.S. America transited the Panama Canal, German spies transmitted intelligence on U.S. defense preparations; they were later convicted in the largest espionage trial in American history (the Duquesne Spy Ring), and were imprisoned for violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act. (Ships; Modern)
Poster Auctions International Inc
May. 27, 2018
Lester Beall - Untitled - Abstract
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
Untitled - Abstract (framed mixed media on board, 22" x 29.5")
Westbridge Fine Art Auction House
Mar. 11, 2018
Lester Beall - Untitled - Abstract
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
Untitled - Abstract
Westbridge Fine Art Auction House
Feb. 25, 2018
S.S. United States. ca. 1952.
Est: $2,000 - $2,500
Artist: LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) Size: 22 x 29 7/8 in./55.7 x 76 cm This poster is the story of two legends. Its designer, artist Lester Beall, was one of the chief figures in American Modernist graphic design from the 1930s until his death in 1969. His signature style used angled elements, iconic arrows, dynamic shapes, and silhouetted photographs, and all but the last are in evidence here for an absolute tour de force on behalf of the S.S. United States, the last grand steamer in the old style to have been constructed and the fastest. On its maiden voyage on July 3, 1952, she broke the record for the fastest trans-Atlantic crossing by over 10 hours. The previous record-holder, the H.M.S. Queen Mary, held the title for 14 years. The S.S. United States still retains the record today, after 65 years. The market for passenger travel dwindled; the ship was sold, mothballed, and left to rust... until now. Currently docked on the Delaware River in Philadelphia, the ship may be restored and permanently berthed in New York. (Ships; Art Deco)
Poster Auctions International Inc
Feb. 25, 2018
United States Lines / Europe. ca. 1952.
Est: $1,400 - $1,700
Artist: LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) Size: 21 7/8 x 30 3/8 in./55.6 x 77.2 cm Lester Beall's work "is a good illustration of how the simplified forms, direct message, and smooth surfaces of Cassandre found an echo here" (Word & Image, p. 62). Beall has all his tricks arrows, stripes, angles and an exciting dramatic thrust on display for the brand-new S.S. United States and the older, pre-war S.S. America. This may have been the poster introducing the S.S. United States for its inaugueal voyage, before its Blue Riband triumph over the H.M.S. Queen Mary in trans-Atlantic speed. (Modern; Ships)
Poster Auctions International Inc
Nov. 16, 2017
LESTER BEALL Group of 5 paintings.
Est: $1,000 - $1,500
LESTER BEALL Group of 5 paintings. Each oil or gouache on paper, 1946-1952. Each signed in black ink, lower left or right verso. Various sizes and conditions. Acquired from the Estate of Joanna Beall Westermann, the artist's daughter, by the current owner.
Swann Auction Galleries
Apr. 29, 2017
RARE 1950s Lester Beall United States Lines Poster
Est: $950 - $1,700
Artist: Beall , Lester 1903 - 1969. United States Lines - Europe. Technique: Offset ca. 1950. Size: 30.3 x 22 in. (77 x 56 cm). Printer: no information. Condition Details: (A-) on linen, minor tears in the margins, one of them 3 in./8 cm at the top edge, bottom edge cut a little unevenly after removal of metal bars. Estimate: $1700. Reserve / Starting Price: $950.
PosterConnection Inc.
Apr. 29, 2017
Old Original 1940s American WW II Poster LESTER BEALL
Est: $280 - $500
Artist: Beall , Lester 1903 - 1969. Don´t Let Him Down. Technique: Photo/Offset 1941. Size: 39.7 x 30.3 in. (101 x 77 cm). Printer: U.S. Government Printing Office. Condition Details: on linen, minor creases at the top (A/A-). Estimate: $500. Reserve / Starting Price: $280.
PosterConnection Inc.
Aug. 11, 2016
Don't Let Him Down. 1942
Est: $700 - $900
Artist: LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) Size: 30 1/8 x 39 3/4 in./76.5 x 100.8 cm US Government Printing Office
Poster Auctions International Inc
Aug. 03, 2016
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). EUROPE / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 30x22 inches, 77x56 cm.
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) EUROPE / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 30 1/2x22 inches, 77 1/2x56 cm. Condition B+: repaired tears and restoration at edges. In the 1930s, after a traditional education in Chicago, Lester Beall became interested in avant-garde typography and the design elements of the Bauhaus. He moved to New York in 1935, where he began a successful career as an art director. He created world-acclaimed logos and corporate identities for such companies as American International Paper, Merrill Lynch, Caterpillar, Martin Marietta and the New York Hilton. His goal was always to get his clients out of what he called "the vast anonymity." He strove to achieve this goal with graphics as simple, efficient and readable as possible, as exemplified here with the S.S. United States in the middle of a patriotically-colored arrow pointing toward the word "Europe." Beall p. 73.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 10, 2016
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1939. 40x29 inches, 101x75 cm.
Est: $20,000 - $30,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1939. 40x29 3/4 inches, 101 1/2x75 1/2 cm. Condition A- / B+: minor creases and overpainting at edges and in image; slight time-staining at right edge. Silkscreen. Paper. One of the greatest American posters of the 20th Century, Beall's optimistic, patriotic and progressive image is a monumental work whose aesthetic simplicity masks a complex design that reveals "the artist's distinctly American counterpart to European modernism" (Mechanical Age p. 174). In fact, in many ways this image can be seen as the American version of El Lissitsky's Russische Ausstellung (see Swann Modernist Poster Auction #2039, lot 77), with the boy and the girl gazing hopefully and happily into their future. "The image speaks for itself in this almost-textless photomontage, a brilliant combination of realism and abstraction. These are 'poster children' for the REA - happy beneficiaries of the program, in the present and the future . . . The flag motif serves several purposes. It signifies the overarching protection of the New Deal; the 'matched' white stripes and fence rails subtly reinforce the connection between America and the farm; and it provides further visual interest, as the band of blue below the stripes somehow still functions as sky." Beall 114, Mechanical Age pl. 58, Resnick 30, Modern Poster 186, MoMA 221.1937.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 10, 2016
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). HERE IT COMES / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1939. 40x30 inches, 101x76 cm.
Est: $15,000 - $20,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) HERE IT COMES / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1939. 40x30 inches, 101 1/2x76 1/4 cm. Condition B+: losses and minor tears at upper right edge; foxing in lower text; minor creases and abrasions at edges; small stain in far left image. Silkscreen. Paper. "Beall demonstrated with these posters that the language of communication was not necessarily bound to timework cliches and literal conventions. An expanding world of science, technology and manufacturing had generated rising expectations that called for a new graphic industry, succinct of statement and visually attuned to the increasing velocity of American life" (Beall p. 74). Beall 111.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 10, 2016
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). THINGS LOOK BETTER / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1939. 40x30 inches, 101x76 cm.
Est: $15,000 - $20,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) THINGS LOOK BETTER / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1939. 40x30 inches, 101 1/2x76 1/4 cm. Condition B+: minor restored losses at edges; creases, abrasions, restoration and overpainting at edges and in image. Silkscreen. Mounted on Japan. "For the Second series, produced in 1939 . . . Beall's visual language, marked by his experiments with photomontage, had become more complex" (Beall p. 74). Beall 112.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 10, 2016
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). FARM WORK / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1937. 39x30 inches, 101x77 cm.
Est: $15,000 - $20,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) FARM WORK / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1937. 39 3/4x30 1/4 inches, 101x77 cm. Condition A-: minor creases and restored loss in lower margins and text. Silkscreen. Here, Beall employs the red, white and blue pictographic manner that was the style of the entire first series (except for Wash Day, which is blue and yellow). The image clearly and effectively shows how electricity is brought from power lines down to the farm where the machines are powered. One of the rarest images from the 1937 series. Beall 104, Modern American Poster 40, Crouse p. 85, Encyclopedie de l'Affiche p. 102.
Swann Auction Galleries
May. 10, 2016
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). RADIO / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1937. 38x28 inches, 98x73 cm.
Est: $15,000 - $20,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) RADIO / RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION. 1937. 38 3/4x28 3/4 inches, 98 1/2x73 cm. Condition A. Silkscreen. Matted and framed. In the 1930s, after a traditional education in Chicago, Lester Beall became interested in avant-garde typography and in the design elements of the Bauhaus. He moved to New York in 1935, where he began an extraordinarily successful career as an art director. Not only did he create world-acclaimed logos and corporate identities for such companies as American International Paper, Merrill Lynch, Caterpillar, Martin Marieta and the New York Hilton, but working for the publisher McGraw-Hill, he redesigned 20 of their magazines. In 1937, he was the first American designer to have a one man show at the Museum of Modern Art. That same year, Beall was one of the first designers commissioned by the U.S. Government to help promote the Rural Electrification Administration. The six posters he created in this series for the R.E.A. pitched basic modern amenities to the hinter lands of America, where many such "luxuries" were virtually unknown. The R.E.A. existed not only to help rural America enter into the modern age but also served to create jobs for a Depression-ravaged country. Elevating visual communication to an extremely efficient level, Beall's style involves a technique close to the ideogram, employing clear and direct images, free from any exterior influences that would lessen the pure message. At a time when the majority of the American rural populace was largely illiterate, Beall's simple silkscreen, in patriotic red, white and blue, amply conveys the message of getting radio into every home with hardly any text at all, and has been referred to as "a benchmark in the history of graphic design" (Posters American Style, p. 126). Beall 105, Mechanical Age p. 155, Modernism 252b, Crouse p. 84, Design Graphique p. 83, Encyclopedie de l'Affiche p. 102, Modern American Poster 39, MoMA 218.1937.
Swann Auction Galleries
Nov. 19, 2015
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). S.S. AMERICA / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 30x22 inches, 76x56 cm.
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) S.S. AMERICA / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 30 1/4x22 inches, 76 3/4x56 cm. Condition A / A-: slight darkening at left edge; minor creases at lower right corner. Metal strips affixed to top and bottom. Paper. In 1937, Beall was the first American designer to have a one-man show at the Museum of Modern Art. He designed at least six posters for the United States Lines, each with a crisp, efficient, modern graphic treatment, and realized with a contemporary dynamic vision.
Swann Auction Galleries
Nov. 19, 2015
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). S.S. UNITED STATES / NEWEST . . . LARGEST AND FASTEST AMERICAN SHIP. Circa 1952. 30x22 inches, 76x56 cm.
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) S.S. UNITED STATES / NEWEST . . . LARGEST AND FASTEST AMERICAN SHIP. Circa 1952. 30 1/4x22 inches, 76 3/4x56 cm. Condition A-: minor tears, abrasions and slight time-staining at edges; metal strips affixed at top and bottom. Paper. "In 1951, Beall was retained, through J. Walter Thompson, on the United States Lines Company account developing all of the promotional material for the ocean liner United States. For four years he designed posters, menus, cocktail napkins, linens and everything else that required graphic treatment" (Beall p. 72).
Swann Auction Galleries
Nov. 19, 2015
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). UNITED STATES LINES / EUROPE. Circa 1952. 29x22 inches, 75x56 cm.
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) UNITED STATES LINES / EUROPE. Circa 1952. 29 3/4x22 inches, 75 1/2x56 cm. Condition B+: abrasions in lower left image; creases and minor repaired tears at edges; light foxing in bottom margin; tape on verso. Paper. In the 1930s, after a traditional education in Chicago, Lester Beall became interested in avant-garde typography and the design elements of the Bauhaus. He moved to New York in 1935, where he began a successful career as an art director. He created world-acclaimed logos and corporate identities for such companies as American International Paper, Merrill Lynch, Caterpillar, Martin Marietta and the New York Hilton. His goal was always to get his clients out of what he called "the vast anonymity." He strove to achieve this goal with graphics as simple, efficient and readable as possible, exemplified here with the S.S. United States in the middle of a patriotically-colored arrow pointing toward the word "Europe." Beall p. 73.
Swann Auction Galleries
Oct. 11, 2015
Farm Work. 1937
Est: $8,000 - $10,000
Artist: LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) Size: 30 1/4 x 39 3/4 in./76.8 x 101 cm In 1937, after being the first American designer to have a solo show at the Museum of Modern Art, Beall was asked by the U.S. Government to use his unique take on typography and design to promote the Rural Electrification Administration. The result was a collection of simple, straightforward images in patriotic tricolor, essentially pitching the benefits of bringing electricity to America's less populated areas. This design is from the first series, clearly showing (to a widely illiterate population) how electricity could ease the burden of farm work. As a whole, the posters remain one of the greatest examples of American graphic design and are prominently featured in many museums today.
Poster Auctions International Inc
Apr. 25, 2015
Original 1950s United States Lines Travel Poster BEALL
Est: $1,800 - $3,200
Beall , Lester 1903 - 1969. United States Lines - S.S. United States. Offset ca. 1950. Size: 30.3 x 22 in. (77 x 56 cm). Printer: no information. Condition Details: (A) tiny tears and minimal staining at the outer edges, original metal bars at the top and bottom edges.
PosterConnection Inc.
Apr. 25, 2015
RARE 1950s Lester Beall United States Lines Poster
Est: $1,400 - $2,600
Beall , Lester 1903 - 1969. United States Lines - Europe. Offset ca. 1950. Size: 29.9 x 22 in. (76 x 56 cm). Printer: no information. Condition Details: (A) tiny tears and minimal creasing and staining at the outer edges, original metal bars at the top and bottom edges.
PosterConnection Inc.
Oct. 14, 2014
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969). S.S. AMERICA / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 30x22 inches, 76x56 cm.
Est: $2,000 - $3,000
LESTER BEALL (1903-1969) S.S. AMERICA / UNITED STATES LINES. Circa 1952. 30x22 inches, 76 1/4x56 cm. Condition A: minor creases in margins and image; metal strips affixed to top and bottom and hook on verso for hanging. Paper. In 1937, Beall was the first American designer to have a one-man show at the Museum of Modern Art. He designed at least 6 posters for the United States Lines, each with a crisp, efficient, modern graphic treatment, and realized with a contemporary dynamic vision.
Swann Auction Galleries