Bonhams is offering a selection of artwork by iconic boxer Muhammad Ali, from the personal collection of Rodney Hilton Brown in New York on October 5, 2021.
The auction, titled TCM Presents…It’s a Knockout! will feature 24 of Ali’s works from the collection of his friend, Brown. As the owner of Hilton Fine Arts, Ltd., Hilton Brown was the publisher for a set of limited-edition silk-screen prints by Ali in 1979. More recently, he authored the new book Muhammad Ali: The Untold Story: Painter, Poet and Prophet. The works are estimated at US$384,000 collectively.
Ali (1942-2016) began to draw and paint informally as he grew up, influenced by his father, Cassius Clay, Sr. , a full-time sign painter and professional artist. He also took lessons with sports artist Leroy Neiman and harbored a lifelong passion for the arts.
Ali became a professional boxer following his first gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics at age 18. He then switched to heavyweight and won his first championship in 1964 at age 22.
He would draw and paint in his downtime and as a way to explore his civil rights activism. In 1967, he produced a series of drawings for Avant Garde magazine to convey his religious and political messages. A drawing from this series, War In America, will be offered at this sale with a presale estimate of between US$25,000 and US$35,000.
During that year, Ali was stripped of his heavyweight title for refusing to be inducted in the U.S. Army.
Another highlight from the selection is Sting Like a Bee, painted during the filming of Freedom Road in Mississippi in 1978, with a presale estimate of between US$40,000 and US$60,000. This work was originally released in a limited edition of 500 prints in 1979, and is the only artwork to include a complete poem by Ali.
“ Muhammad Ali was a cultural icon who defined a generation. His artwork depicts those subjects close to his heart: boxing, civil rights, religion and world peace and humanitarianism,” Helen Hall, Bonhams director of popular culture, said in a statement. “This sale presents buyers with an incredibly rare opportunity to acquire unique and meaningful artwork made by ‘The Greatest of All Time.’”