Joan Didion’s career as a writer and influential critic of American culture began in the 1960s when she burst on the scene as a new and distinctive voice. After marrying fellow writer John Gregory Dunne, the couple moved to Didion’s home state of California where they would pursue their careers and became a bicoastal glamour couple, frequenting the Hollywood scene in California and the literary world in New York. It is the influence of both of these places that can be felt throughout Joan Didion’s career as a writer, as well as in the collection of art and objects that occupied her New York City apartment at the end of her life. Friendships with artists produced the opportunity to acquire works of art that reflect the creative and intellectual milieu the Didion-Dunnes occupied, and are the structure that will create a sale that does justice to Joan Didion’s legacy.
Highlights in the sale include works by Richard Diebenkorn, Sam Francis, Brice Marden, Ed Ruscha, Jennifer Bartlett, Vija Celmins and Patti Smith. Also included is a selection of photographs of Joan Didion by Brigitte Lacombe, Annie Liebovitz, Mary Ellen Mark and Julian Wasser. Furnishings and decorations from Didion’s apartment include a large partner’s desk from California, a Late Regency Pembroke table, an American writing desk, silver, porcelain and collectibles amassed by the Didion-Dunnes on their travels, and objects gifted to them by artists and writers. A selection of books and ephemera will also be included.
Proceeds from the sale will benefit patient care and research of Parkinson’s and other movement disorders at Columbia University, and the Sacramento Historical Society for the benefit of Sacramento City College scholarship for women in literature.
For more information about Joan Didion, click here www.joandidion.org
For Press inquiries, please contact Jo Olsen Jo@stairgalleries.com
GALLERY EXHIBITION HOURS:
Monday, October 31: 9am – 5 pm
Tuesday, November 1: 9am – 5 pm
Wednesday, November 2: 9am – 5 pm
Thursday, November 3: 9am – 5 pm
Friday, November 4: 9am – 5 pm
Saturday, November 5: 11am – 5pm
Sunday, November 6: Closed
Monday, November 7: 9am – 5 pm
Tuesday, November 8: 9am – 5 pm
Wednesday, November 9: 9am – 5 pm
Thursday, November 10: 9am – 5 pm
Friday, November 11: 9am – 5 pm
Saturday, November 12: 11am – 5pm
Sunday, November 13: Closed
Monday, November 14: 9am – 5 pm
Tuesday, November 15: 9am – 5 pm