The Sage Black - Sold by Christie's

During its 20th Century Evening Sale on November 17, 2025, Christie's sold Beauford's The Sage Black from the Collection of Robert and Faye Davidson.

Lot 20 A
The Sage Black
(1967) Oil on canvas
signed, inscribed, titled and dated
 'The Sage Black Beauford Delaney Paris 1967'
(on the reverse)
35 ½ x 33 in. (90.2 x 83.8 cm.)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Two fairly recent descriptions of this bold work resonate with me.

The first, written by curator Stephen C. Wicks of the Knoxville Museum of Art, was published in the museum's Beauford Delaney and James Baldwin: Through the Unusual Door catalog in 2020:

"Of Delaney's many images of Baldwin, The Black Sage represents one of his most powerfully expressive portrayals. The writer's larger than live visage exceeds the canvas's vertical span. The painting's title and the sitter's enlarged eyes suggest Delaney's recognition of his protégé's emergence as a cultural and artistic visionary. Delaney's use of swirling color and dripping black paint to define the contours of Baldwin's face brings to mind the writer's recollection of the artist calling to his attention the strange beauty of an oily reflection 'moving like mercury in the black water of the gutter.'"

The other description was written by Rachel Cohen and published in Amy J. Elias' 2025 anthology of scholarly essays entitled Speculative Light: The Arts of Beauford Delaney and James Baldwin:

"... the head of the sitter stretches up to the very top of the canvas and seemingly beyond, suggesting that the viewer might be within that person—or the whole world might be.Lines of a striking periwinkle blue course aruond the face and shoulders and through the background, as does an ochre yellow .... A pattern of colors is running through the atmosphere and the person.

To read a full essay that provides additional painterly description of The Sage Black and information about Beauford's life at the time he created this work, visit Christie's Website and click on Lot Essay.

The estimated sale price for this celebrated work was $500,000 to $700,000.

The actual sale price was $1,524,000, including a 27% buyer's premium.

The hammer price of $1.2 million is a new record for a Beauford Delaney sale at auction.

Christie's to Auction The Sage Black

Christie's will auction Beauford's iconic portrait of James Baldwin entitled The Sage Black during its 20th Century Evening Sale on November 17, 2025.

Lot 20 A
The Sage Black
(1967) Oil on canvas
signed, inscribed, titled and dated
 'The Sage Black Beauford Delaney Paris 1967'
(on the reverse)
35 ½ x 33 in. (90.2 x 83.8 cm.)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Les Amis has published posts that mention or feature this painting many times before:

Beauford's Portraits of James Baldwin - Part 2

Beauford and the Sage

Beauford and Free Lunch - Part 2

Romare Beardon and Harry Henderson on Beauford

Beauford and the Civil Rights Movement

Christie's estimates the sale price to be between $500,000 and $700,000.

For information about the auction, click HERE.

Finding Higher Ground: Beauford at the Bistro at the Bijou

The Knoxville Museum of Art (KMA) has the largest public collection of Beauford's work in the world.

Knoxville Museum of Art
© Wells International Foundation

It has created a space dedicated to works by Beauford and his brother, Joseph, as part of its permanent exhibition entitled Higher Ground: A Century of the Visual Arts in East Tennessee.

Beauford Delaney works in Higher Ground exhibition
© Wells International Foundation

As part of its public programming to increase awareness of the exhibition, KMA has organized an event in collaboration with a local downtown restaurant called Bistro at the Bijou, where Knoxvillians will celebrate Beauford's life, his art, and his...

GUMBO!

Knoxville Museum of Art promotional image

In 2012, Les Amis published an article about Beauford's gumbo recipe, which appeared in a 1949 edition of the Greenwich Village Gourmet.

Bistro at the Bijou will reproduce this recipe during dinner service from 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm on November 18, 2025. Attendees will enjoy a live performance of jazz by the Greg Hardy Trio.

To read the gumbo recipe, click HERE.

The Bistro at the Bijou
807 South Gay Street
Knoxville, TN 37902
Phone: (865) 544-0537

Following Love...

In October 1954, Beauford wrote:

"The privilege and right of choice and following love in all its difficult and painful rhythm, knowing the satisfaction that comes from the power of feeling and stimulation that comes from those we love; it's the essence of our work."

Today, I am presenting images of several of Beauford's abstracts, currently held by the Knoxville Museum of Art, that evoke this sentiment for me.

Untitled (Clamart)
(1959) Watercolor and gouache on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Untitled
(1960) Watercolor on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Untitled (Abstract Circles)
(1956) Pastel on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Black-Red-Gold Abstraction
(1963) Oil on canvas
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Untitled
(c. 1962-1963) Watercolor on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY