NEW YORK, NY.- As fall marks the beginning of a new auction season,
Swann Galleries, a family-owned firm founded in 1942 and New York’s preeminent specialized house for books and works of art, appoints Nigel Freeman and Rick Stattler as Vice Presidents, and Alexandra Mann-Nelson as Chief Marketing Officer. The appointments come as Swann has undergone a period of growth in recent months, and follows the news of the expansion of their fine art offerings with the addition of a Modern & Post-War art department, headed by Harold Porcher, and as Devon Eastland and Deborah Rogal step into their roles of senior specialist for early printed books, and director of photographs and photobooks, respectively.
“Auction houses are in a state of transition amid the Covid-19 pandemic, but Swann’s ability to remain agile throughout the past tumultuous year has been heartening,” says Alexandra Mann-Nelson who has worked within the Swann communications department since 2011, and served as the director since 2015. “It’s exceptionally rewarding to help steward the next phases of the business as we develop new technologies and ways of reaching collectors, and see important collections on the horizon.”
Nigel Freeman founded the African American Art department at Swann Galleries in 2006. The department has a longstanding track record for high auction prices for established artists, as well as bringing to market new artists. As director, Freeman has handled The Art Collection of Dr. Maya Angelou, The Golden State Mutual Life African-American Art Collection, and African-American Art from the Johnson Publishing Co. Swann remains the only major auction house with a department specializing in the category. “I greatly appreciate this recognition of my contributions. My career at Swann has been a wonderful partnership for over twenty years and I look forward to continuing to develop Swann’s offerings of African American art, as well as advance the sales of fine art at the house as we move into a new era,” noted Freeman.
Rick Stattler joined Swann in 2007 and has served as the director of books and manuscripts since 2014. “Books and manuscripts have been central to Swann's business since the house was founded back in 1942. Playing a part in that ongoing journey has been a great adventure. The company has proven its ability to pivot quickly without forgetting its commitment to quality and customer service, and we hope to reach even greater heights in the years to come,” noted Stattler of the change. Stattler regularly produces the house’s Americana auctions and has facilitated the sales of numerous important collections, including Revolutionary War letters, archives relating to slavery and the Underground Railroad, American Indian photographs, Theodore Roosevelt books, Abraham Lincoln portraiture, and numerous early editions of the Book of Mormon.
“It is hard to imagine a time when good news is as welcome as it is now, and so I am delighted to be able to announce several wonderful, exciting and well-deserved transitions within Swann. Unified by a passion for what we do and a new found unity of purpose brought about by the pandemic, throughout which we have been able to even more closely focus on our professional priorities, Swann is continuing to provide for our clients exceptional and thoughtfully catalogued material even as we being to slowly broaden our focus to embrace new areas of interest,” concluded Swann President, Nicholas D. Lowry of the appointments.
