As Thinkspace LA approaches its 20th anniversary, LA Modern Auctions (LAMA) is proud to present The Collection of Shawn & Andrew Hosner of Thinkspace LA, in a two-part auction event taking place on September 12th and 13th. Offering almost 500 works, this is a unique opportunity for art collectors of various price ranges and tastes to purchase incredible works while supporting the gallery’s continued programming, with a portion of sales also being donated to the Keep A Breast Foundation, in loving memory of Shawn Hosner.
With works from Javier Calleja, Roby Dwi Antono, Hebru Brantley, Banksy, KAWS, Shepard Fairey, Margaret Kilgallen, Audrey Kawasaki, and Mark Ryden, the collection represents the Hosners’ fearless and intuitive approach to collecting and community. As co-founders of Los Angeles gallery and cultural incubator Thinkspace LA, the Hosners have been an integral part of several contemporary art movements that have exploded over the last two decades.
This special auction includes numerous events from September 7 – 13. The main auction goes live on Thursday, September 12 at 10am PST listing numerous original works. Additionally, the online auction goes live on Friday, September 13 at 10am PST: with a focus on editions and multiples, new and seasoned collectors alike will find prints, collectible toys, skate decks, and more!
See below for the full details and links to RSVP for individual events.
La Cage à Travers Un Ciel Bleu Cobalt
Absinth
The Collection of Shawn and Andrew Hosner of Thinkspace LA
Los Angeles Modern Auctions
6666 Lexington Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90038
Key Dates
Opening Night: Saturday, September 7 from 5-8pm PST. RSVP here.
In-person preview days: Monday, September 9 – Friday, September 13 from 10am to 5pm PST daily. See the full Collection here.
Andrew Hosner in conversation with Evan Pricco from Juxtapoz: Tuesday, September 10 at 4pm with cocktail reception to follow the talk. RSVP here.
Main Auction goes live: Thursday, September 12 at 10am PST. Accommodates advanced bids, telephone bidding, and live online bidding – more info here.
Online Auction goes live: Friday, September 13 at 10am PST. Accommodates advanced online bids and live online bids – more info here.
True Trailblazers within the art community
From press release: The Hosners simultaneously rallied a heartful community of like minds while building a remarkable collection that represents a wide swath of bold contemporary artists – many of whom have since become internationally recognized.
Beginning with a small work by Jeff Soto that they purchased in the 2000s for around $300, the Hosners together evolved into inveterate collectors who championed emerging artists in what they call the New Contemporary Art movement, including Neo-Pop, street art and graffiti, art collectibles, and contemporary ceramics.
They co-founded Thinkspace in 2005, operating from a space in the Silver Lake neighbourhood’s bustling Sunset Junction and eventually relocating to Culver City in 2021. As both collectors and gallerists, the Hosners have been more likely to set market trends than follow them: “The first rule of buying for us, and myself moving forward, will always be you have to like it,” says Andrew Hosner. “We’ve never really tried to buy simply because of a name.”
The Banksy: Parachuting Rat
A couple of the marquee works in the auction are works from the UK artist Banksy. The first is a really special piece, since there’s really not been many to come to market over the years: his iconic Parachuting Rat image. Which, by and large, he really only did on the streets. When Shawn and I got married in 2005, we did a really simple ceremony because that was Shawn in a nutshell. The following week we decided to have a little soiree at the house to celebrate […] and everyone had brought very nice little knickknacks and gifts, even though we told them not to.
Definitely the coolest thing that we had gotten was gifted to us by our close friends, who at the time owned and operated the Lab 101 Gallery. Evan and Freddie brought us over a work on cardboard of the parachuting rat from Banksy, who at the time was super cool and underground. They brought it over and they were like, ‘Hey, this is from not too long ago when Banksy was in town and he did that little pop up show here in LA […] he stayed with us and bombed on some pieces, and this is actually on a piece of cardboard from where Evan used to work.’”
Other Collection highlights
Undoubtedly, many of the artists whose works the Hosners showed and collected have become important. Highlights include Banksy’s 2002 Parachuting Rat (est. $40,000–60,000], Jen Stark’s 2011 sculpture Beyond Finite (est. $20,000–30,000), the figurative drawings Words of Wisdom from Javier Calleja (est. $20,000–40,000) and The Street (Sketch) from Mark Ryden. A group of works from Roby Dwi Antono include the 2022 Love Me Do (Study) (est. $20,000–30,000) and the 2021 sculpture Asteria (est. $10,000–15,000), which was exhibited at the Thinkspace exhibition Epos.
Though hesitant to apply any one label to their collection, Hosner does note that it skews toward the figurative. This propensity shows up everywhere across the collection, from Audrey Kawasaki’s 2008 panel As I Fall (est. $15,000–25,000) to Betye Saar’s Floating Doll with Ball in the Galaxy (est. $10,000–15,000), as well as works from KAWS, Hebru Brantley, Swoon, Edgar Plans and others. The collection also shows an affinity for the “Beautiful Losers” group, with works from Shepard Fairey, Margaret Kilgallen, Barry McGee, and Ed Templeton. Leading lots of the sale include Kilgallen’s mixed-media Untitled (Fawk-Fate) (est. $20,000–$40,000) and Shephard Fairey’s 2017 Damaged Pig Painted (est. $15,000–20,000).
The Hosners have also been avid fans of ceramic sculpture, by both canonized makers and emerging ones alike. Richard Pettibone’s 1962 Untitled (est. $4,000–6,000) and Peter Shire’s Untitled (Cup) ($800–1,000) accompany ceramic works from new generations, with examples from Josh Cloud, Sharif Farrag, Raven Halfmoon, En Iwamura, Kazuhito Kawai, Grant Levy-Lucero, Narumi Nekpenekpen, Brian Rochefort, Maryam Yousif, and others.
Alongside ceramics are a range of works from emerging LA artists working in paint and mixed media, including Shizu Saldamando, Jeremy Shockley, and others.
A significant chapter for both LA culture and contemporary art
Talking about his decision to bring this collection to auction, Andrew Hosner shares: “I felt that it was more important to keep the gallery going and all that comes with it: the community, our extended gallery family, and all of our ‘children’ that are the artists that we’ve supported over the years, that they continue to have a place to exist and nurture and grow and support each other… that ultimately is the best legacy that I could ask for, for Shawn.”
Works featured in The Collection of Shawn & Andrew Hosner of Thinkspace LA and The Collection of Shawn & Andrew Hosner of Thinkspace LA: Online Only will be on view September 9th – 12th at LAMA’s new location at 6666 Lexington Ave, Los Angeles.
For further information, please reach out to press@lamodern.com.
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