Las Cruces artist Bob Diven calls an upcoming online auction of nearly 100 pieces of the art he has created during the past 43 years, “thousands and thousands of hours of labor coming together into this one moment.
“It’s part lifetime perspective and it’s part garage sale – if your garage is full of your original art and not lawn mowers,” Diven said.
A preview of the auction is underway now and continues through 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 31, on the Mesilla Valley Estate Sales website, www.mvestatesales.com. Auction bidding will begin at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 31, and close at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 7, Diven said.
Diven’s pieces to be auctioned include paintings, drawings, sculptures, prints and “notable items from my history,” he said.
Those items include a handmade “Robert the Rusty” suit of armor and an English long bow custom made for Robert the Ratcatcher, the character Diven created for and performed in many Doña Ana Arts Council Renaissance Arts Faires over the years. The bow, which has little rats etched into it, was made by a Missouri artist and is the only piece in the auction Diven did not create.
Also included are one-of-a-kind pieces Diven made for Doña Ana Lyric opera and local theatre productions, including the painting he did for Las Cruces Community Theatre’s 2000 production of “Harvey.”
Artwork in the auction will include life-size paintings and one of the five life-sized casts of Billy the Kid Diven created. Another of the casts is in the collection of the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum and part of one of their current exhibitions. Another cast is in Sparky’s Burgers and BBQ in Hatch.
The auction will include “something for everybody who has followed my work,” Diven said. It gives “everybody an opportunity to find something of mine to have.”
Some of the pieces in the auction have been featured in juried art shows in Las Cruces and around the country. Other pieces have never been exhibited,” said Diven, 64, who began his career as a full-time artist 43 years ago.
“I originally conceived of this auction because I thought I was taking a job in Santa Fe with the New Mexico Arts Division,” Diven said. “That job fell through,” he said, “but I’m proceeding with the auction. It’s the time to do it.”
