Kent Monkman Paintings & Artwork for Sale | Kent Monkman Art Value Price Guide

Nov. 28, 2024
Kent Monkman, OC (b. 1965), Cree, POSTMODERN, 2013
Est: $40,000 - $60,000
Kent Monkman, OC (b. 1965), Cree POSTMODERN, 2013 signed and dated lower right; titled and dated to gallery label verso Estimate: $40,000—60,000 CAD
Waddington's
Nov. 21, 2024
The Madhouse
Est: $300,000 - $400,000
Kent Monkman b. 1965 The Madhouse acrylic on canvas 84 by 132 in. 213.4 by 335.3 cm. Executed in 2020.
Sotheby's
Aug. 22, 2024
KENT MONKMAN (1965- ) Preparatory drawing for The Examination.
Est: $8,000 - $12,000
KENT MONKMAN (1965- ) Preparatory drawing for The Examination. Graphite on acid-free paper. 254x330 mm; 10x13 inches. Signed and dated in pencil, lower right recto. 2008. A preparatory drawing for the artist's large, narrative painting The Examination. Provenance: private collection. Kent Monkman is an interdisciplinary Cree visual artist. A member of Fisher River Cree Nation in Treaty 5 Territory (Manitoba.) Here, Monkman draws on centuries of medical surgery paintings, such as Robert Hinckley's The First Operation under Ether or similar surgical views by Thomas Eakins and even Rembrandt, in which male figures loom over patients being treated or operated on. But here the tables are turned. It is not an operation but an investigation of the gender of Monkman's famed protagonist, Miss Eagle Testickle, and seizing the opportunity to seduce rather than being victimized, Miss Chief refutes colonized sexuality and takes control of the scene. As the artist explains, "set inside an Indigenous earthen lodge, a dozen settler males jostle for a view during an invasive examination of Miss Chief's private anatomy. The physicians, scientists, and priests express shock, bewilderment, and enthusiasm at the revelation of Miss Chief's biological sex, their curiosity having been aroused by the allure of her ravishing genderfluid appearance. Miss Chief rises to the occasion, reveling in the melodrama unfolding around her. Unabashedly, she parts her thighs, willingly offering the excited men a generous view. While one of her warrior lovers . . . bursts into the scene to protect her from what must surely be a non-consensual act." In the nineteenth century, medical doctors and academics such as William Alexander Hammond, Stephen Powers, and A.B. Holder subjected non-binary Indigenous people to anatomical examinations to determine their genders. Settlers also forced Indigenous people on reserves and in residential schools to comply with binary definitions of sex and gender. Monkman's paintings can be found in private collections and institutions such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art; The Denver Art Museum; National Gallery of Canada; the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.
Swann Auction Galleries
Aug. 22, 2024
KENT MONKMAN (1965- ) Study for Icon for a New Empire.
Est: $6,000 - $9,000
KENT MONKMAN (1965- ) Study for Icon for a New Empire. Graphite on acid free paper. 317x217 mm; 12½x8½ inches. Signed and dated in pencil, lower right recto. 2002. A preparatory drawing for the artist's large, narrative painting Icon for a New Empire. Provenance: private collection. Kent Monkman is an interdisciplinary Cree visual artist. A member of Fisher River Cree Nation in Treaty 5 Territory (Manitoba.) Among many aspects of his allegorical work is a modern, indigenous, queer, reflection on classical works of art. In doing so he flips the historical narrative and creates a magical, at times ribald, present rife with insinuation and allegations of centuries of mistreatment of the First Nations people. Here, with acknowledgement to James Earle Fraser's sculpture End of the Trail (a small copy of which can be seen in the background) he depicts an artist breathing life into this very statue through a kiss. It is a gesture reminiscent of the artist in Jean-Léon Gérôme's painting, Pygmalion and Galatea. By doing so Monkman repositions an icon of the American West as an object of sexual desire above and beyond its artistic merits. The irony of this sexual attraction can be found in the statue's original meaning, reflecting the suffering and cultural destruction visited on Native Americans by the colonizers of North America; with the main figure (modeled by Fraser after Seneca Chief John Big Tree) embodying the tribulations and exhaustion of a people driven from their native lands. Monkman's paintings can be found in private collections and institutions such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art; The Denver Art Museum; National Gallery of Canada; the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.
Swann Auction Galleries
Sep. 17, 2020
KENT MONKMAN, FORT EDMONTON, 2003, acrylic on canvas, 24 ins x 36 ins; 61 cms x 91.4 cms
Est: $30,000 - $50,000
KENT MONKMAN FORT EDMONTON, 2003 acrylic on canvas 24 ins x 36 ins; 61 cms x 91.4 cms Provenance: Private Collection, Ontario Exhibited: Kent Monkman: The Triumph of Mischief, Art Gallery of Hamilton, June 7 - August 26, 2007; exhibition travelled to Toronto (MOCA), Halifax (SMU Art Gallery), Calgary (Glenbow Museum); Victoria (Art Gallery of Greater Victoria) Paul Kane painted Fort Edmonton, the Hudson Bay Company outpost that overlooked the North Saskatchewan River, between 1849 and 1856. Set against a sublime pastoral landscape, Kane’s outpost rests atop a sun-struck hilltop while a grouping of teepees stand below. Kane’s physical placement of the HBC outpost high above the Indigenous community should not be easily dismissed. It suggests a racial hierarchy of European civilization over others and is reflective of their paternalistic treatment toward Indigenous populations. Moreover, Kane’s romanticization of a Christian cross and the flag of empire are further evidence that Fort Edmonton is steeped in colonial ideology. Nearly 150 years after its completion, Kent Monkman revisits Kane’s painting with his own version of Fort Edmonton. However, in Monkman’s hands, the colonial matrix that drove Kane to produce his work is delegitimized. Though it is also set against the backdrop of Fort Edmonton, Monkman’s painting features a triplicate of queer sex and desire among stallions, glimpsed on a petroglyph, and engaged between a frontier soldier and woodland warrior. Here the viewer doubles as voyeur, peering into a panorama of sex, pornography, and BDSM play. For Monkman, the dominant and submissive relationship extends well beyond the realm of BDSM and into the subjugation of Indigenous peoples in North America. Fort Edmonton’s kink both encapsulates and redresses centuries of sexual oppression and colonial authority. It also challenges existing archetypes of colonialism by recovering agency over how one’s self, one’s family, and one’s people are represented to others. We thank Matthew Ryan Smith, Ph.D., Curator and Head of Collections at Glenhyrst Art Gallery in Brantford, Ontario, for contributing this essay. Estimate: $30,000–50,000
Waddington's
Apr. 13, 2017
KENT MONKMAN (1965-), UNTITLED, acrylic on canvas, 48 ins x 48 ins; 121.9 cms x 121.9 cms
Est: -
KENT MONKMAN (1965-)UNTITLEDacrylic on canvassigned and dated /91 48 ins x 48 ins; 121.9 cms x 121.9 cms Provenance:Private Collection, OntarioKent Monkman is a Canadian artist of Cree, Irish, and British descent who has gained recognition for his vivid, large scale and lavishly detailed historical landscapes. Inspired by the romantic paintings of Edward Church, Thomas Cole, and George Caitlin, Monkman uses a traditional American landscape to contrast a re-imagined indigenous history, commenting on the effects of colonialism and Christianity. His alter ego, Miss Chief Eagle Testickle, makes dramatic appearances bringing in the themes of homoeroticism and altered views on sexuality to his paintings. The eccentric representation of Miss Chief challenges the power dynamics between the Europeans and Aboriginals and criticizes traditional myths of contact between the two cultures.Estimate: $5,000–7,000
Waddington's
Nov. 26, 2011
Kent Monkman 1965 - Canadian watercolour and
Est: $6,000 - $8,000
Kent Monkman 1965 - Canadian watercolour and gouache on paper Study of Apollo and Hyacinthus 21 1/2 x 14 1/2 inches 54.6 x 36.8 centimeters signed and dated January 18th, 2008 Provenance:Private Collection, Toronto
Heffel
Nov. 24, 2011
Kent Monkman 1965 - Canadian chromogenic prints on metallic paper Miss Chief: The Emergence of a Legend
Est: $10,000 - $12,000
Kent Monkman 1965 - Canadian chromogenic prints on metallic paper Miss Chief: The Emergence of a Legend Literature:David Liss et al, Kent Monkman: The Triumph of Mischief, Art Gallery of Hamilton, 2007, reproduced pages 1, 34, 35 and 36 Provenance: Private Collection, Toronto Exhibited:Art Gallery of Hamilton, Kent Monkman: The Triumph of Mischief, June 7 - August 26, 2007, traveling in 2007 - 2010 to the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, Toronto, the Winnipeg Art Gallery, the Glenbow Museum, Calgary, the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and Saint Mary's University Art Gallery, Halifax, Miss Chief Eagle Testickle first introduced herself to the public at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection in 2004. Since this performance, the alter ego of Toronto-based artist Kent Monkman has frequently rematerialized in his paintings, performances and, as seen here, photographs. Miss Chief: The Emergence of a Legend plays with the conventional portrait genre, which in the past has objectified native populations. Alternatively, Monkman turns the pictorial space into theatre, allowing Miss Chief to perform in different guises that each challenge aboriginal visual history. The title of the series references the construction of an artist's identity - a theme that is dramatically infused into each image. This work consists of five photographs mounted in frames designed by the artist, each with an individual title: Hunter, Vaudeville Star, Cindy Silverscreen, Film Director and The Trapper's Bride. The dimensions include the frames, which were done by the artist as part of the work.
Heffel
Nov. 24, 2011
Kent Monkman 1965 - Canadian acrylic on canvas Kiss the Sky
Est: $40,000 - $50,000
Kent Monkman 1965 - Canadian acrylic on canvas Kiss the Sky 59 1/2 x 47 1/2 inches 151.1 x 120.6 centimeters signed and dated 2010 Literature:Gerald Hannon, "The Pink Indian", Toronto Life, September 2011, pages 54 - 62, reproduced pages 54 and 55 Provenance: Private Collection, Toronto Exhibited:17th Biennale of Sydney, Australia, May 12 - August 1, 2010 Kent Monkman's alter ego, Miss Chief Eagle Testickle, has escorted the artist on his rise to international acclaim. As a recurring figure in Monkman's work, the chiseled Miss Chief opens up discussions regarding historical paintings and any Eurocentric narratives they may project. In Kiss the Sky, she is dominant amidst the classical background and is accompanied by three winged males, a reference to the Greek mythological tale of Icarus. Icarus attempted to escape from Crete by using wings that his father constructed from feathers and wax. Disoriented by his attempt to conquer the skies, Icarus disobeyed his father's instructions and flew too close to the sun, ultimately melting the wax and causing Icarus to fall to his death. The tale is commonly associated with failed ambition - a myth Monkman is undeniably making reference to. By contrasting the faltering figures with the heroic, manicured stance of Miss Chief, Monkman (who is of Cree and Irish descent) is questioning the classical representations of the relationship between the native and non-native population. Monkman skillfully presents such questions without lecturing - with only a smirk and a gentle nudge.
Heffel
May. 17, 2011
Kent Monkman 1965 - Canadian acrylic on canvas
Est: $30,000 - $40,000
Kent Monkman 1965 - Canadian acrylic on canvas Kindred Spirits Share Mysteries of the Ancient Ones 36 x 48 inches 91.4 x 121.9 centimeters signed and dated 2008 Provenance:Private Collection, Ontario Based in Toronto and accomplished in multiple artistic disciplines, Kent Monkman is an undeniable force in the contemporary art community. Monkman, who is of Cree and Irish ancestry, is successful at challenging the historical narratives that have been written and painted by the non-native population. His strength is to infuse traditional, iconic images with his own distinct voice that is at times heavy with controversial and hyper-sexualized tones, yet always presented with a hint of satire. In Kindred Spirits Share Mysteries of the Ancient Ones, an idealized assimilation of the non-native and native population is presented in lieu of accentuating the ruinous and tumultuous histories between the two. Such a significant interrelationship is prominently featured in this work and is one of the multiple narratives that Monkman so impressively constructs. In this piece, Monkman tackles the great masters of American realist painting, notably Asher Brown Durand, Albert Bierstadt and Thomas Eakins. First, the title is derived from a painting by Hudson School painter Durand entitled Kindred Spirits (1849) which illustrates the founder of the Hudson River School Thomas Cole in discussion with poet William Cullen Bryant. Kindred Spirits places both men in deep conversation, with the Catskill Mountains in the distance. Given the belief shared by the Hudson River School that the American landscape was sanctified by God, Durand's painting is loaded with religious values. By referring to this well-known painting in his own title, Monkman is raising concerns regarding the power of projecting idealizations onto the painted landscape. Therefore such a landscape is not representational nor realist but, in fact, ideological. Second, the backdrop of the painting is a reference to the Hudson River School painter Bierstadt and his sweeping landscapes of the American West, a subject matter he painted prolifically. Monkman effectively captures the kind of lush and luminous surface that Bierstad was renowned for creating. However, the most recognizable artistic reference may be to that of Eakins's masterpiece The Swimming Hole (1884 - 1885) with a group of men depicted in the lower left. As opposed to the non-native men iconically featured in Eakins piece, the individuals in Monkman's work are of European and First Nations status and are stripped of any clothes or other articles that may enhance their cultural differences. Interestingly, their poses are stiff and their gestures are unnatural and highly choreographed, which is a further reference to the classical model positions found in paintings of the past. Submerged in the majestic lake and enchanting surroundings, the looming sea monster is the focus of the mens' attention. The Mishibizhiw or Mishepishu (Great Lynx or Underwater Panther) would be recognized by the indigenous people of the Great Lakes district. Kindred Spirits Share Mysteries of the Ancients Ones is illustrating a cohesive, if not hyper-idealized, relationship between the native and non-native population. In doing so, the artist is combining alternate narratives with "mysteries of the ancient ones". Ultimately, Monkman is leading his audience into a conversation of unwritten histories and the narratives that are widely excluded from the canon he so proficiently studies. Such a discussion would not be possible without the strength of such a talented instigator and a painting such as this.
Heffel