Potter & Potter Auctions’ Late Spring Art and Design Sale to Include Outsider Art, Folk Art, Fine Art, Furniture, and Other Category-Spanning Design Genres.

Potter & Potter Auctions is pleased to announce this 518-lot sale to be held on May 28, 2026, starting at 10 AM. The auction will be held live at Potter & Potter's gallery, located at 5001 W. Belmont Avenue in Chicago, and will also be live-streamed on www.potterauctions.com. Phone and absentee bids are welcome. Please contact the auction house directly for more information.

The top lot in this sale is #248, Bill Traylor's (American, 1853-1949) Untitled (Man Looking into Hole). It has a presale estimate of $30,000-$50,000. This crayon, black colored pencil, and graphite on thick paperboard drawing was produced in 1939. It is framed and measures 17-1/4 x 9-1/4" overall. This is a classic image for Traylor - an active figure with an umbrella has been used before. This specific work features a die-cut opening, which is incorporated into the composition.  

Other exceptional offerings in this event include:

Lot #14, Tony Fitzpatrick's (American, 1958-2025) Southside Rose, is estimated at $10,000-15,000. This mixed media collage from 2005 is framed under glass and measures 21 x 17-1/2" overall. It features a black woman in a bustier, skirt, and red gloves, surrounded by gambling, nightlife, and cultural images. According to Aron Packer, Potter & Potter Auctions' Fine and Outsider Art Specialist, who curated this sale, "Tony Fitzpatrick was a complex and beloved figure in the Chicago art world. He passed away last year at the age of 66. Beyond art, Fitzpatrick had many interests and careers, including boxer, poet, actor, playwright, author, and artist. He is best known as a printmaker and collage artist, as well as for drawings on slate and craft paper. He was a champion of artists, famous and otherwise, and will be missed as the Chicago icon that he was."

Lot #13, Ed Paschke's (American, 1939-2004) Groucho-Doody, is estimated at $2,000-3,000. This framed, graphite on paper drawing from 1974 is signed and dated on its lower right and measures 24-1/2 x 18-1/2" overall. According to Packer, "This is an important and somewhat early drawing for Paschke from his 'Pimp' series.  He did 40 works in this series, and they rarely come up for auction."   

Lot #77, Rene Magritte's (Belgian, 1898-1967) Untitled (Bien Amicalement ex votre (Yours very sincerely, Rene Magritte), is estimated at $8,000-12,000. This c. 1930 ink drawing and watercolor with collage on found paper is framed under glass and measures 15-1/2 x 16-1/4" overall. It is signed and inscribed on its lower right as noted in the work's title. On the verso are two ads for art expositions, with one ad having dates for the years 1926 and 1927. According to Packer, "This work on paper is compelling for so many reasons: The use of preexisting imagery and text from an advertisement with the printed face of a woman and the word Madame in cursive in the center of the composition. A collage element in the shape of a bird cut from sheet music, with the face of a woman in ink and edges possibly singed. A foot "holding" his classic pipe, emanating smoke over the words Au revoir written in ink. And finally, an anthropomorphized leaf with a face drawn with a smiley smirk."

Lot #58, Ivan Albright's (American, 1897-1983) Bronze Leaves from the Vermont Home of Ivan Albright, is estimated at $2,000-3,000. This group of three circa 1950-era sculptures is possibly in the form of sycamore leaves. This design theme is quite unusual for Albright, who was best known for his mortality, aging, and death-inspired production. The largest leaf measures 19 x 14 x 6". The trio was purchased from the family in the early 1990's by Grapevine Antiques of New Paltz, NY.

According to Aron Packer, Potter & Potter Auctions' Director & Specialist, Fine & Outsider Art, ”We are very excited to start our auction featuring Tony Fitzpatrick, a beloved figure in the Chicago art world and beyond. With Tony’s passing, our art scene will never be the same, and moving forward Chicago will feel his influence for decades to come. Within the first 66 lots dozens of Fitzpatrick originals and prints are interspersed with Tony’s influences and interests. The mix includes Ed Paschke, Karl Wirsum, Leon Golub, Charles Bukowski, Lee Godie, Richard Hull, Ivan Albright, tattoo flash, sculptures of buildings in Chicago by Zani Jacobsen, high school ledger drawings, and collage work by artist and critic Harry Bouras. This group of artwork and artists stand to remind us of Tony’s legacy.  Now is the time to get one of his affordable prints or one of his more rare masterpieces."