Two Buildings for Beauford

As 2025 comes to a close, Knoxville continues to honor Beauford and his family in one of the most auspicious ways possible—by working on buildings named after them.

That's right - buildings (in plural)!

In August 2021, ground was broken on the Delaney Museum at Beck.

The Beck Cultural Exchange Center acquired the Delaney family's last homestead in 2015 with the intent to restore the home and grounds. Since that time, Beck President Reneé Kesler has led the effort to turn the property into an international museum that will honor Beauford, his brother, Joseph (who was also a painter), and the entire Delaney family.

Watch Reverend Kesler tell the story of how she acquired the home HERE.

The museum was originally projected to open in Autumn 2022. But due to the Covid-19 pandemic and escalating construction costs, work on the project has been postponed several times.

Construction finally began in earnest on November 18, 2025.

Beck released the following photos when it announced the commencement of work.

All images courtesy of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center

See images of the work being done at the Delaney Museum at Beck by clicking HERE.

In another area of Knoxville, a much larger project is now nearing completion.

The Beauford Delaney Building is part of the Knoxville Multi-Use Stadium project in Knoxville's Old City. We first wrote about it in February 2022. 

Construction had not begun at that time.

Today, the nine-story, mixed-use building, which has been dubbed "The DELANEY," has 47 one- or two-bedroom condominiums and over 20,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space. Advertisements boast of indoor and outdoor entertainment areas, stadium and city views in every direction, large terraces and spacious balconies, and a state-of-the-art fitness center. The condos range in price from $750,000 to $2.5 million.

All images courtesy of David Butler

Though construction is not quite complete, some residents are already moving into the building. 

See images of the condos HERE and watch a local news report about the building HERE.

This is Les Amis' last posting for 2025. We wish you the happiest of holiday seasons and look forward to seeing you in the New Year!

Sweet 16 - Celebrating Les Amis' Milestone Anniversary

On December 14, Les Amis de Beauford Delaney will celebrate sixteen years of honoring Beauford's brilliance through the Les Amis blog.

This anniversary is important because it marks a major transition in the life of the blog, which has grown into both a beloved source of stories for casual readers and a valuable reference for scholars wishing to explore Beauford’s life and art.

To honor this journey and better serve our worldwide community, we are bringing Les Amis into a new era.

We’re working on a major upgrade: moving the blog (which has approximately 750 posts to date) to a modern platform that will improve accessibility, allow interactive features, and safeguard our content for the future.

This platform will be hosted by the Wells International Foundation (WIF).

WIF is the U.S. nonprofit that raised the money for and organized the Resonance of Form and Vibration of Color exhibition, which launched Beauford's renaissance in 2016.*

 

Resonance of Form and Vibration of Color catalog cover

Great progress has been made on this project, and as of this writing, we are on track to complete the transition by the end of December 2025.

Once this has been accomplished, we will perform a final series of tests for functionality and go live early in 2026.

Today, we want to reflect on and celebrate what has transpired since our first post on December 14, 2009.

How It All Began 

Les Amis de Beauford Delaney is a small, French non-profit organization (Association 1901) that was created in November 2009. 

Beauford Delaney
(1953) Carl Van Vechten

 The goals of the organization are as follows: 

1) Placement and maintenance of a tombstone for the grave of painter Beauford Delaney, who is buried at the Parisian Cemetery of Thiais 

2) Payment of the renewal fees for his grave 

3) Organization of commemorative or educational events in his honor 

4) Informing the press and the media of his life and accomplishments. 

For several years, the French nonprofit pursued all four goals on its own.

We launched the blog to raise awareness of Beauford's story in support of the fundraising effort to place a tombstone at his previously unmarked grave at Thiais Cemetery outside of Paris.

With the support of the U.S. Embassy and numerous private donors, we succeeded in this effort and laid the stone over the summer of 2010.  

We organized a graveside ceremony, which was followed by a U.S. Embassy-hosted reception in Paris on October 14, 2010. 

Gathering around the tombstone

© Discover Paris!

Because of the passion ignited by this effort, we continued to delve into his life and art and bring these stories to the public through the blog. 

Beginning with the 2016 Resonance of Form exhibition, we have partnered with WIF on various events.

When the blog is transferred to the new platform, we will work with WIF in an advisory capacity on the selection of content that will be uploaded alongside the blog.

We are excited that what started as a modest online publication has grown into a key resource supporting the global renaissance of interest in Beauford’s work.

Sixteen Years of Milestones and Achievements 

Across these sixteen years, Les Amis has supported and documented major developments in the reclamation and expansion of Beauford’s artistic legacy. 

We have

• Featured exhibitions of his work around the world and highlighted new acquisitions of his works by major museums
• Reported on the sale of his work by numerous auction houses and celebrated record breaking transactions
• Shared anecdotes from personal friends and acquaintances that shed light on Beauford's personal life
• Documented initiatives to preserve Beauford Delaney archival materials
• Exposed readers to the vast depth and breadth of his artistic practice
• Provided support for scholars wanting to investigate his life and work as well as the life and work of his famous mentee, James Baldwin. 

Beauford's work at the groundbreaking Paris Noir exhibition in 2025
© Entrée to Black Paris  

Negro Man [Claude McKay]
(1944) Oil on canvas
Acquired by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 2022
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator,
Image: Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, NY
  The Sage Black
(1967) Oil on canvas
Record-breaking sale by Christie's in November 2025
$1.2 million (hammer price)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Through these efforts, Les Amis has played a significant role in shifting Beauford from the margins to the center of conversations on 20th century artists.

Moments That Resonated the Most

Among the many posts that have filled the blog over the years, certain stories have left an enduring mark.

These include profiles and posts about

• Beauford’s friendships, particularly his life-changing bond with James Baldwin
• Projects inspired by Beauford's life and work, including the Classes Duo partnership with the City of Paris and the play, Amazing Grace is Yellow
• Lesser-known moments of Beauford's life in Knoxville and Boston
• Deep dives into specific paintings that helped newcomers connect emotionally with his work
• Scholarly commentary and exchanges about Beauford's œuvre. 

 

These posts remind us that the blog is more than an archive—it is a space for discovery, memory, conversation, and connection.

The Community That Keeps the Blog Alive

We cannot honor this milestone anniversary without recognizing the vibrant community that has sustained this project:

• The readers who come back year after year
• The students and scholars who find information and images to support their work on the blog
• The educators who use our posts in their classrooms
• The friends of Beauford who read the blog and are inspired to contribute their own stories about him
• The museum curators, auction houses, and archivists who share research or request information.

 

Speculative Light book cover
Cover Art: Portrait of James Baldwin
(1965) Oil on canvas
Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, NY

We especially thank the Estate of Beauford Delaney, the Knoxville Museum of Art, Galerie Intemporel, the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, the University of Arizona, the University of Tennessee Knoxville, and the Michael Rosenfeld Gallery for their unwavering support over the lifetime of the blog.

Looking Forward

Sixteen years is a milestone, but it is also a beginning. We continue to work—joyfully and intentionally—to expand Beauford's legacy.

Because Beauford deserves more ...

... more recognition, more scholarship, and more space in the global conversation about modern art.

Looking ahead, Les Amis aims to

• Launch new digital features, examples of which include exclusive interviews, digital stories, and curated reading lists.
• Expand access to resources for students, educators, and Black and other cultural institutions.
• Support new research that deepens our understanding of Beauford’s artistic evolution.
• Continue collaborating with museums and scholars on exhibitions and archival projects.
• Continue nurturing the community of Beauford's supporters around the world.

Our overarching mission remains the same: to keep the light shining brightly on Beauford’s work and to ensure his story is never again pushed to the edges of art history.

In Gratitude 

To everyone who has walked this sixteen-year journey with us—thank you!

Your curiosity, your engagement, your passion, and your love for Beauford’s art make this blog a living tribute.

His legacy continues because you choose to be part of keeping it alive.

Auto-portrait
(1965) Oil on canvas
Whitney Museum of American Art, New York City
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, NY  *****************

*WIF is raising $3200 to support the cost of transitioning the Les Amis blog to its new home.

If you'd like to donate, click HERE to access WIF's giving page. 

Enter "Beauford Delaney" in the donor note so your gift is directed to this project. 

Beauford's Portrait of Peter Eyre

Hauser and Wirth in London has a Beauford Delaney portrait for sale.

The sitter was Peter Eyre.

Peter Eyre
(1960) Oil on canvas
67.5 x 56.5 x 4.3 cm / 26 5/8 x 22 1/4 x 1 3/4 inches (framed)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Eyre is a U.S.-born stage and screen actor who has lived in Great Britain since the age of twelve. He has performed numerous times in London's West End and on Broadway as well as in multiple feature films and television shows.

In 1959 and 1960, Eyre studied drama in Paris. Through his friendship with Belgian theater director Robert Cordier, he came to know James Baldwin.

Through Baldwin, he came to know Beauford.

Eyre wrote the following about Beauford:

Beauford was a very quiet gentle man, almost Buddha-like in his often silent observation of the lively crowd in the bars who surrounded the very volatile Jimmy. We made friends and I loved his wise pronouncements. I think I was an oddity to him. I was a 19 year-old English school kid seeking some kind of validation in Paris.

I loved his illuminating abstract paintings infused with light, and I was flattered when he suggested he paint my portrait. Being with him was a lovely tranquil time.

When we went out after the sittings, I would take him back to his apartment. I was always amused when he would show his address to the taxi driver, on a tiny piece of paper ... 53 rue Vergingetorix ... which is a bit of a mouthful for someone not at ease in the French language!

Beauford’s portrait and loving friendship made me feel that my very insecure youthful self held a possibility to be someone.

Now looking back I am especially happy to realise Beauford Delaney has taken place as one of the great artists of the twentieth century. Yes... a very great artist and a pure soul.

I had the opportunity to interview Eyre about his experience meeting Beauford and sitting for his portrait.

He told me that he and Cordier hung out at Les Nuages and KevVillage near rue de Rennes in the 6th arrondissement and said this is where they would meet up with "Jimmy" and Beauford. He believes Beauford asked him to sit for a portrait during a meeting in a cafe and remembers shyly agreeing to the request.

He sat with Beauford "maybe seven times" for the portrait.

Eyre recounted the story of the work hanging in the office of Paul Facchetti during Beauford's 1960 solo exhibition of abstract paintings at the Facchetti gallery on rue de Lille. He said it was hung there as a favor because Beauford wanted Henry Miller to see it.

Eyre and Beauford were in the office when Miller arrived at the exhibition, and Beauford brought Miller into the office to introduce the two men and present Eyre's portrait.

Beauford at the Paul Facchetti Gallery
© Paul Facchetti

Eyre (who was known as "Oscar" in England) remembers being stunned when Miller viewed the painting, looked at him, then turned to Beauford and asked "Is he the new Oscar Wilde?"

Eyre inherited the portrait from his mother. He said she never met Beauford, and he is not sure when she purchased the painting.

When I asked about his favorite memory of Beauford, he replied, "I loved his composure, sweetness, and kindness."

To view a photo portrait of a young Peter Eyre (1961), click HERE.

The sale price for Beauford's portrait of Peter Eyre is GBP 250,000.00, excluding VAT.

For information, contact Aileen Corkery at aileen@hauserwirth.com.

Additional recent sales of Beauford's work

Last week, Les Amis reported on the record breaking sale of Beauford's portrait of James Baldwin entitled The Sage Black.

This week, we're announcing additional recent sales of Beauford's work.

Phillips held its Modern and Contemporary Art Day Sale, Morning Session in New York on November 21, 2025. Lot 183 was a beautiful Beauford Delaney watercolor on paper, the provenance of which lists the Gloria and James Jones Collection.

Lot 183
Untitled
(1961) watercolor on paper
signed, inscribed and dated "Beauford Delaney 1961 Mallorca" lower right
25 3/4 x 19 3/4 in. (65.4 x 50.2 cm)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Beauford traveled to San Telmo in Mallorca with Charlie and Gita Boggs and Joe and Bernice O'Reilly during the summer of 1961. This trip took place after Beauford's suicide attempts in Greece.

In Amazing Grace: A Life of Beauford Delaney, biographer David Leeming states that "In San Telmo, he did eat well and rest, and, with the help of soothing talks with Bernice and Gita especially, managed to maintain a surface calm and even began to do some watercolors."

The estimated sale price of Untitled was $20,000-$30,000.

The actual sale price was $41,280, including a 29% buyer's premium.

Galerie Setze in Paris privately sold several sketches that Beauford executed in the 1930s.

Unnamed portrait
(circa 1935) Charcoal
28 x 44 cm
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Portrait of James Baldwin
(circa 1938) Pencil on paper
27 x 37 cm
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, NY

Though the title of this work indicates that the sitter for the portrait was James Baldwin, the date attributed to the work and Beauford's own cryptic inscription make this highly unlikely. Baldwin reportedly met Beauford when he was sixteen years old—this means he could not have sat for Beauford prior to 1940.

Galerists Sandra and Eric Setze reported that Beauford gifted these works to Professor Michel Fabre, whose son, Pierre Fabre, received them through inheritance.

The sale price of these works is undisclosed.

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

Two Jazz Abstracts

A couple of days ago, I attended the vernissage (opening) for a retrospective show of work by sculptor Melvin Edwards at the Palais de Tokyo Contemporary Art Center in Paris' 16th arrondissement.

The space used to be occupied by the Musée National d'Art Moderne, which may be where Beauford attended a 1967 course in modern art featuring Braque, Picasso, and Vlaminck.

(The other possibility is that Beauford took the course at the Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris, which is located in the Palais de Tokyo's east wing.)

Across the street from the Palais de Tokyo is the Musée Galliera. I have written about this museum before in the context of Beauford's painting entitled Portrait of Marian Anderson, Jazz.

As I once again contemplated Beauford's naming of this completely abstract work after Anderson, I suddenly remembered that he did the same thing with Charlie Parker.

Portrait of Marian Anderson
Jazz, 1966
FNAC 29060
Centre national des arts plastiques
© droits réservés / Cnap /
Crédit photo : Yves Chenot
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, N. Y.

I always presumed that Charlie Parker Yardbird was a portrayal of Parker's music.

Charlie Parker Yardbird
(1958) Oil on canvas
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Gift of the James F. Dicke Family
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, NY

I now wonder if Beauford intended it to be a portrait of Parker.

Beauford painted figurative portraits of Anderson and Parker, making the evaluation of the abstracts bearing their names even more intriguing.

Beauford created his "musical portrait" of Parker in 1958, whereas he created Portrait of Marian Anderson, Jazz in 1966.

He painted his figurative portraits of Parker and Anderson in 1968 and 1965, respectively.

Charlie Parker
(1968) Oil on canvas
Memorial Art Gallery, University of Rochester
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Photograph by Joshua Nefsky
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, NY

Portrait of Marian Anderson
(1965) Oil on canvas
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
J. Harwood and Louise B. Cochrane Fund for American Art
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, NY

Piasa Sells Beauford Delaney Abstract

On October 16, 2025, Piasa auctioned a single yellow abstract painting during its Modern and Contemporary Art sale.

Untitled, Paris
(1967) Oil on panel
Signed lower left
Counter-signed, dated and located on the reverse
94.5×70.5cm / 37.2x27.7in
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, N. Y.

The estimated sale price for the work was 100,000€ to 150,000€.

It sold for 124,630€—including a 24% buyer's premium.

In Amazing Grace, biographer David Leeming states that the Musée Galliera showed several of Beauford's works in their exhibition called L'Age du Jazz in May 1967.

He says that among these works were "abstractions that were attempts to convey in light and color the dynamics of jazz."

Perhaps Untitled, Paris was one of them.

For more information about the Piasa Modern and Contemporary Art auction, click HERE.

Piasa Offers a Beauford Delaney Abstract for Sale

Piasa is no stranger to Beauford's work, having sold six of his paintings and works on paper during its June 2023 Modern and Contemporary Art sale.

On October 16, 2025, the auction house will offer a single yellow abstract painting during its upcoming Modern and Contemporary Art sale.

Untitled, Paris
(1967) Oil on panel
Signed lower left
Counter-signed, dated and located on the reverse
94.5×70.5cm / 37.2x27.7in
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, N. Y.

The Web page showcasing this piece describes Beauford's impasto as appearing "to dance like tiny sparks on the canvas."

It offers a lyrical portrayal of Beauford’s abstracts as “luminous” and interprets his artistic spirit as follows:

"Beauford Delaney in Paris is the story of light transformed into colour and colour transcended by light. His painting rises to the level of meditation, exploring the spaces between figuration and abstraction, between personal and universal experience. Through this prism, he defines a visual language in which every nuance, every sparkle speaks of hope and resilience, reinvention and liberation."

The estimated sale price for Untitled, Paris is 100,000€ to 150,000€.

For information about the sale, click HERE.

Beauford's Nature Landscapes

Beauford rarely painted figurative or abstract works that depict only nature (no definitively identifiable dwellings or people).

Today I am sharing images of the ones I know about.

Untitled (Knoxville landscape)
(1922) 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, N. Y.

Untitled (Trees)
(1945) 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, N. Y.

Central Park
(1950) 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, N. Y.

Untitled (Streaked Light)
(ca. 1962) 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, N. Y.

Untitled (Istanbul, Turkey)
(1966) Oil monotype on paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, N. Y.

Untitled
(1967) 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, N. Y.

Untitled (Knoxville landscape)
(1968) Oil monotype on cream wove paper laid down to illustration board
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, N. Y.

Untitled (Abstracted landscape)
(1969) Watercolor on wove paper
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, N. Y.

Untitled (Knoxville landscape)
(1969) Knoxville Downtown Wrap
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery, LLC, New York, N. Y.

Untitled (Knoxville landscape)
(1971) 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, N. Y.

It's Hard to Work in Yellow

Beauford's masterful use of the color "yellow" is inevitably mentioned when people talk about his art.

It wasn't until I watched artists in the YouTube video Art Matters NY (55:18-57:04 minutes) discussing his recent solo exhibition at The Drawing Center that I began to understand the level of his mastery.

Shown at In the Medium of Life at The Drawing Center:

Untitled (Red Bar)
(1962) 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, N. Y.

Comments in the video such as "if you try to ... make something look 3D with yellow ... give it some volume with yellow paint, you almost immediately figure out that yellow wants to sit there and be flat" incited me to research painting with yellow.

So, I did an Perplexity AI search using the following prompt:

"I recently watched a YouTube video during which an artist expressed her admiration for Beauford Delaney's masterful use of the color yellow in his paintings and described the difficulty she has painting with yellow.

"Is this difficulty something that is "known" among painters?

"Might it be peculiar to her?"

Here was the response:

Yes, difficulty painting with the color yellow is a recognized challenge among painters and is not peculiar to the artist you watched; yellow is widely considered one of the trickiest colors to handle in both technical and expressive terms.

Yellow pigments tend to be less opaque compared to other colors, making it hard to achieve bright, smooth coverage without multiple layers. Many yellow paints are described as overly transparent or even "clumpy," leading artists to struggle with getting an even, vivid finish. Classic solutions include starting with a white or light primer to boost vibrancy or layering over ochre or brown bases to build depth.

The issues with yellow extend beyond opacity: yellow is highly sensitive to contamination by other colors during wet-on-wet techniques, easily muddying toward green, brown, or dull tones with accidental mixing. Many botanical artists and portrait painters report avoiding yellow subjects purely because of how hard the pigment is to control, highlighting this as a shared experience across painting communities.

Artists like Beauford Delaney and Van Gogh became famous for overcoming these obstacles and using yellow to powerful effect, mastering layering and pigment selection to create luminous, spiritual, and expressive works. Delaney’s yellow, for example, is described as interwoven with other colors to create a lyrical, layered brushwork that captures both light and emotion.

Having read the above, I am looking at Beauford's yellows in a new light. 

Here are just a few examples of his work in which this color predominates. (Note the texture in these paintings!)

Portrait of James Baldwin
(1966) 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, N. Y.

Street Scene
(1968) Oil on canvas
Signed and dated "BEAUFORD DELANEY 1968" lower right
© Estate of Beauford Delaney,
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, N. Y.

Bernard Hassell
(ca. 1971) Oil on canvas
Private collection
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, N. Y. 

Untitled
Signed, inscribed and dated "Beauford Delaney Paris 1965 midday" on the reverse
(1965) Oil on canvas
25 1/2 x 21 in. (64.8 x 53.3 cm.)
© Estate of Beauford Delaney
by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire,
Court Appointed Administrator
Courtesy of Michael Rosenfeld Gallery LLC, New York, N. Y.

Untitled (Portrait of a Young Man)
(c. 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, N. Y.